Category Archives: Cuisine

The best of the best.

Asyukutei: An izakaya style sushi restaurant with a Bali feel

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At the end of April, Asyukutei opened in Chuo Park. Asyukutei’s very simple design and pure white exterior may make it appear to be another little Kochi cafe, but closer inspection of the menu outside the front door reveals that it is a sushi shop in disguise.

Then, you walk in and find yourself even more confused. You discover that it is really a sushi shop disguised as a Bali inspired izakaya cafe… While a little ambiguous, the small space has a good atmosphere and feel to it. The food was just as enjoyable.

While Asyukutei’s main focus is on sushi, they have a daily lunch set that, at least on the day we went, was not sushi–it was gingered pork, red miso soup, rice, and a little side of fish for 850 yen.

The daily sushi plate lunch (1050 yen), was an 8 piece set–each piece was quite a bit bigger than the average kaiten zushi, so the price seemed reasonable. This set also had the red miso soup and side of fish.

Both sets were very good, but if you’re not in a mood for sushi, you might want to make sure the daily lunch set is not sushi.

Oh, and one more point, he cooks all of his rice in an Okama (traditional style Japanese pot [see picture below]).

At night, there is a course meal for 3500 yen which had a lot of goodness on it. It changes daily, and includes an 8 piece sushi plate. If you want more control of what you get, you can order items individually, although it might get expensive fast. Oh, and of course, there is sake.

Talking to the owner, his goal is to make sushi a more accessible food–especially for foreigners who struggle with the typical scribbled kanji menus of other sushi restaurants. He plans to work on an English menu to help with this. Ultimately, I think he wants his place to be known for good sushi in a casual, izakaya-esque atmosphere.

The owner was a very friendly man, so go practice your Japanese conversation skills and learn more about sushi and fish!

Next time you’re downtown and wanting to try something different than your usual, we hope you’ll check out Asyukutei and support their efforts in making a more friendly, social sushi shop.

details

Tel. 088-871-1866

Times:  11:00 am – 2:00 pm;  5:00 ~

 



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El Mortero’s Spanish Cuisine Night: Authentic Spanish Catering Under the Stars

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Al fresco dining and authentic Spanish cuisine? Finally, two rarities on the Kochi
culinary map are coming together for one night on July 30th. El Mortero, a local
Spanish catering company (run by a real Andalucian), will be presenting a full-
course Spanish dinner at Deer Land Farm, a popular dairy farm that is located just five minutes north of the city by car. This is a great opportunity to enjoy tapas, gazpacho, paella and many more honest to goodness Spanish dishes—all under the evening sky! Space is limited to 20 customers, so you’ll need to book in advance.

details

Date: Saturday, July 30th

Place: Deer Land Farm (Okazaki Bokujo)

Time: 6:30pm start

Cost: 3000yen (drinks separate)

Menu: Tapas, soup, salad, two main dishes (including paella), and dessert. Non-
alcoholic and alcoholic drinks available.

Reservations and further info: 080-5660-8688 (English OK)
elmorterokochi@gmail.com

Directions:  Head north on Prefectural Road 270 (runs past Kamimachi 2-chome and Naka-mama Shotengai). It’s five minutes by car from the Tsutaya in Nakamama and one minute north of Yukawa Onsen in Engyoji. Deer Land Farm will be on the right side and is signposted.

The map below show Yukawa Onsen, so just head a little farther north until you find the sign as shown in the picture below.

 



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Slow Down to the Good-Life Paced Atmosphere of Yururi

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Just near Yasube, the awesome gyoza place downtown, is another izakaya with a very different feel to it.

Yururi (ゆるり) means to slow down and take it easy. Stepping into the cozy, intimate space imbues the relaxed feeling of the Kochi surfer culture. The atmosphere, accompanied by the aroma of the delicious food being made right in front of you, might cause a temporal lack of desire to go back out to the real world.

If you like fish and vegetables, this is the izakaya for you. All of the ingredients are from Kochi, and the chef has some interesting variations on things.

For example, the last time I was there, we had fish and chips, but the fish was battered with a slice of avocado. Mind blowing stuff–give me more!

Vegetables are usually steamed, and the sashimi is as fresh as it comes, making this place great for the health conscious as well.

The menu is very difficult to read, handwritten kanji, but don’t let the deter you. One of the servers speaks pretty good English and can describe anything on the menu if you ask him.

Don’t go crazy on ordering because the price will rack up pretty quickly, but it is still in moderate range. If you’re going with a group of five or six who like to drink a lot as well, you can expect of 3000-4000 per.

Also, it’s not so big, so if you’re heading in with a group, call for reservations ahead of time.

Yururi. Relax. Eat. Drink. Talk. Refresh. It is a must in Kochi.

For more info, check here.

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L’aperitif s’il vous plait! June 2nd

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Are you, like me, one of those people who can’t help thinking that most meals peak at the starter and then vaguely disappoint after that?

If so, Thursday June 2nd is your lucky day…

Bring on the Aperitif festival!  A bunch of Kochi’s best French and Italian chefs will displaying their wares at various stalls dotted around Central Park in the city.  Go along, buy yourself a glass of wine and then sample as many starters as you can manage.  The basic price is going to be 300 yen per dish, with some of the more sumptuous ones costing more like 500 yen.   It should be a great atmosphere, and we are hoping to discover some brilliant European restaurants hiding in Kochi that the Kochibeat has yet to unearth!

DATE: Thursday June 2nd

PLACE: Chou Koen

TIME: 5pm – 9pm

COST: As much or little as you want.

 


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The Perfect Hangover Cure: Healthy Udon at Hikaruya

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We struggled into the centre of Kochi city; fuzzy-headed and weak-stomached after a few too many the night before. We knew that some nutrition was required, but what to eat? That’s when we stumbled upon hikaruya (ひかるや) shining at us just across from Harimayabashi.

The outside is wooden and serene. The inside is clean, friendly and mercifully calm. We were assigned to our own little room – not just becasue we looked a complete mess – but because the restauarant is made up of small ‘ko-shitsus’ – small private tatami rooms.

And the food? Lunchtime is all about udon. We went for the yuzu jelly and fresh veg udon. It was simple and delightful. And 630 yen. There is plenty of other choice and the daily lunch set looked lika a little bargain at 800 yen.

And the good news is that if you are feeling better a few hours later, you can go back for some Izakaya-style food in the evening. The tempura is delicious, sashimi fresh and grilled saba sushi unbeatable!

The details can be found here

Name ひかるや　(Hikaruya)
Open 11:30 – 15:00 for udon and 17:00 – midnight for Izakaya


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Friendly Food – Bar e Caffe Cammino

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Another great restaurant in Harimaya-cho!

Cammino is easy to spot because of the rarity that is a terrace outside.  There really should be more of these in Kochi, and from our experience, sipping a vino rosso alfresco is the best way to appreciate this place.

The food is good, especially the starters; try the katsuo tataki Italian style.  The pasta is pretty standard as are the pizzas, but the best thing (other than the afore mentioned terrace) is the service.  These guys are super friendly, and they also speak a bit of English.  It doesn’t feel too forced either, you can really relax here, and the back ground music is surprisingly good, which is not true of all the restaurants in Kochi.

They are also doing a Christmas meal special at the moment for 4,200.  It looks really impressive, with meats, fish, a real bit of roast and some booze thrown in too!

The details:

from the east entrance of Obiyamachi, cross over the north-south tram street.  Head into Harimaya-cho and look out for the decking-terrace on your left.

Open 12:00 – midnight (closed between 3 and 5)

Day off Tuesday

Tel:  088-855-6265

More information:

http://www.zukan.co.jp/open-info/101206cammino.html

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Kochitalian: La Primavorta

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“Our main ingredients are all local, all Kochi grown or reared, and then with the addition of the very best of Italian herbs, spices and olive oils, we create a flavor which you will not find anywhere else:  A unique Kochi-Italian experience.”

Suwa san, the almost disconcertingly young owner of this fantastic restaurant has a very clear idea about what he is creating.  It is a pretty bold statement, but every time I have been there, it has proved itself true.

La Primavorta has recently moved to Harimaya-cho, just east of Obiyamachi, and across from the cake shop, vert vert. It is not a place to pop into hoping for a cheap eat, as Suwa himself says, “come here to treat yourself, have something a little special!”  And that’s how the atmosphere in the restaurant feels, it makes you want to put on your only-for-special-occasions jacket, invite that person you’d always fancied and have a bit of a special night out.

Back to the food.  It is all great; the fresh vegetables are cooked to perfection, on this particular night  we had a dazzlingly bright banya-kauda with anchovy sauce.  And our Kochi-bred pork pasta ‘marutariati’ (sp?) was incredibly tender, rich and… very, well, kochitalian!

You will end up paying about 4000 yen if you have a couple of beers, or there are a number of course options (3,000 – 5,000 yen) which probably work out cheaper.  Lunch is a much more reasonable 1,200 yen!

Opening hours are from 12:00 – 2:30 for lunch and 6:00 – 10:00 for dinner (Last order 9:00pm)

Tel: 088-885-7041

Tuesdays are their day off, and check out the website for more info…


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Sala: Luxury on a Budget

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Sala is a stylish little restaurant in Nangoku (see the map).

When we first pulled up, I thought it would be a fairly pricey place.  It is a small building with nice landscaping, and modern Japanese architectural elements and interior design.  I was really surprised to see it because it otherwise is in the middle of no where!

The restaurant itself is not very big, and the seating is fairly close together.  Despite being modern, they managed to keep a cozy atmosphere.  The chairs are large and comfortable, and the tables are spacey so you don’t have to worry about bumping your neighbors elbows.  They seat four per table, but they could just as easily seat six (if the chairs weren’t so big!).

When I looked at the menu, I was surprised to see such low prices.  The majority of the menu was about 900 yen for a set (including salad, rice or bread, and soup).  Take off 200 yen if you don’t want the set, and add 200 yen if you want a coffee after dinner.  I had the salmon in cream sauce spaghetti with a salad and soup.  The drink menu also seemed quite extensive, but I didn’t take much of a look, to be honest.  The people over at the next table were having red wine.  All I can say is it didn’t look chilled!

I took a bite of my wife’s cordon bleu, and was surprised to taste shiso (perilla).  It was a very nice addition and made it taste very Japanese.

Overall, the food was quite nice.  I’ve had better, but it also cost a lot more.  However, for the price, atmosphere, and volume, it is hard to beat Sala.  You will have to go by car, which means you probably won’t be able to taste whatever wine they were serving, and if you don’t live nearby, it will take you a little ways to get out there if traffic on Nangoku Bypass is congested.  My verdict? Save this place for a casual date–but try to make reservations because it will fill up quick!

Also, there is a lunch set menu that seemed to be a little cheaper but equivalent in volume.  Check it out if you are in the area or want to go for a drive on the weekend, and let us know what the lunch is like.

As always, if you’ve been to Sala, please comment below and give your opinion.

For other reviews (in Japanese).

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