Todai Dyaya is a tourist attraction on Cape Irago, at the point of the Atsumi Peninsula. Freshly gathered shellfish are lined up in the aquarium at the storefront, and you can taste live, seasonal shellfish such as Atsumi Peninsula’s famous gigantic clams and rock oysters. Seafood set lunches and seafood bowls cooked with seasonal local fish are also available.
Delicious ‘Ichiba-don (seafood bowl),’ their signature dish, is made with seasonal, fresh fish that is sent straight from the market. You can take a tour of the fish market and have fun witnessing the live auctions.
Strawberries grow in greenhouses that are bathed in sunlight in the warm climate of Tahara City on the Atsumi Peninsula. From January to mid-May, you can pick juicy and sweet strawberries at Nikken Farm.
Takana is a traditional vegetable grown in the cold climate and volcanic ash soil of Aso, and it is unique in that it is harvested by hand rather than machine. Pickling Aso Takana with salt and red chili peppers results in Aso Takana pickles. The lush new pickles are also popular, but “takanameshi” is made by fermenting old pickles with lactic acid for half a year. It is then finely chopped, stir-fried in oil, and mixed with rice, and is widely enjoyed at home and in local restaurants.
Specializing in Aso grassland-raised and grass-fed red meat, Akagyu beef is served over a hearth along with seasonal vegetables from the area like taro and tofu that has been fried in rich spring water. It is grilled over charcoal before served. To fully experience the life and food of Aso’s farmers, finish your meal with mustard greens rice, traditional pickles like red pickled vegetables, and a soup called “dagojiru” filled with plenty of local vegetables.
Imakin Shokudo is a popular restaurant in Aso City, Uchinomaki’s hot spring town, where people queue every day. The ”Akagyu Don” is a popular menu item there. Beef thighs are grilled in a sweet and spicy soy sauce and served in a rice bowl with a hot spring egg in the center. You can combine it with eggs or make your own flavor by mixing it with the popular, special red beef miso and wasabi.
Okhotsk buffet with about 70 dishes inspired by the mountains and seas of Okhotsk. The open-air restaurant serves a variety of delectable dishes. Fresh seafood is available as sashimi or teppanyaki.
Oysters are Ondo’s specialty. Ondo’s clean waters are ideal for oyster farming, and the island continues to produce the most shucked oysters in Japan. The rice dish ”Kakimeshi” is made with large oysters and vegetables. It was once a side dish for oyster farmers, but it is now a traditional local dish.
Star chefs’ special oyster menus, such as oyster nigiri sushi, oyster rolls, and oyster escabeche, represent an evolution of oyster food as well as the ”tradition x evolution” of Ondo oysters. This appealing food culture is offered to inbound tourists, especially foreigners with an intense craving for oysters.
You will learn how to make and eat sushi at Gourmet College, where students will acquire knowledge directly from a sushi chef. The sushi toppings are Ondo oysters and fresh white fish from the Seto Inland Sea, a unique experience available exclusively in Ondo.