Floating meals are simply the beginning of what makes this restaurant so memorable.
Conveyor-belt sushi eating places, the place sushi is delivered to diners by conveyor belt, is a Japanese system that’s turn out to be well-known all over the world, however do you know there are some eating places that ship meals to diners by boat?
One among these hard-to-find eating places is Irori-yaki and Tofu Nabe Hinatoriyama, situated in Hachioji, a metropolis in Tokyo that’s simply over an hour by practice or automobile from Tokyo Station.
▼ The restaurant has parking for 100 autos, and welcomes diners to its stress-free oasis with an attractive entrance gate.
The grounds are like a park, with benches, restrooms, and a small shrine to be discovered on the best way to the restaurant, which has a water wheel out entrance.
The luxurious moss and forest air create an extremely stress-free environment, making guests really feel as in the event that they’ve escaped to an oasis away from the skin world. The constructing itself is stuffed with allure and character, like an previous countryside people home you would possibly hear about in people tales.
▼ Diners are led alongside this balcony to their personal eating room, with the lanterns and picket plaques outdoors bearing the identify of every room.
▼ Stepping inside, you’ll really feel like a particular visitor in your personal personal room, full with an irori (fireplace).
As indicated by the complete identify of the restaurant — Irori-yaki and Tofu Nabe Hinatoriyama — the massive draw right here is tofu nabe (tofu hotpot), and irori-yaki (meals grilled on an irori), and workers place charcoal within the fireplace for you after you enter the room.
Each room is personal, so even solo diners will have the ability to loosen up in privateness, and although the course meal (the menu solely consists after all meals) is over an hour lengthy, you’ll solely work together with workers on three events: once they information you to your room, once they add charcoal to the fireplace, and if you pay the invoice.
“What about once they convey you your order?” You could be asking. Effectively, due to the weird boat-delivery system, workers don’t convey your order to you — you merely accumulate it your self…
▼ …through this window on the again wall of the room.
▼ Gently slide the window open right here and also you’ll be amazed to seek out…
▼ …a waterway!
All of the home windows of the personal tatami rooms open up onto the waterway, and the water is all the time flowing so that you get the sensation that you just’re eating by a river. Solely on this river, you received’t discover individuals on boats, you’ll discover meals on boats, with good platters of meals arriving at your window.
▼ How’s this for a supply?
Diners are alerted to their meals deliveries by the sound of chirping birds — when you hear the birdsong, merely open your window and also you’ll have the ability to accumulate your tray of meals from the boat.
▼ Bear in mind to select up solely the steel tray and depart the precise boat within the water.
Making this supply system much more spectacular is the truth that there’s no particular high-tech wizardry behind it. Every window merely has a plastic tab that will get pushed up by a stream of excessive stress water, possible launched by a management within the kitchen, that stops the tray on the acceptable window. As soon as the meals is collected, the water turns into calm, reducing the tab and permitting the boat to proceed on its merry manner again to the kitchen.
With the fundamental Hinatoriyaki Course, you get a few waterside deliveries with totally different trays of meals, beginning with the appetisers, which include a facet salad and skewered konnyaku dengaku (miso-glazed yam muffins).
▼ You additionally get a tofu hotpot.
The tofu hotpot comes on a burner with strong gas, which diners mild utilizing the lighter that will get delivered with the meal.
▼ A bit later, you’ll obtain the elements to grill on the fireplace.
The fundamental Hinatoriyaki Course prices 3,820 yen (US$27.68) and consists of the appetisers and hotpot, in addition to 4 hen skewers, two vegetable skewers and one skewer of hen meatballs.
▼ Every skewer comprises beneficiant parts, as they’re heavy to carry.
Completely different programs supply totally different skewers, with some together with sausage, prawn, sea bream, and even ayu sweetfish. In case you resolve you wish to add extra drinks or skewers to your course, you’ll be able to organize them at a further value through the cellphone within the room.
Diners prepare dinner the skewers themselves, however it’s simple to do as the fireplace is cleverly designed so the skewers slot into the hole to sit down at simply the correct angle for grilling.
Merely flip the skewers often to forestall them from burning, and benefit from the tantalising aroma of grilled meat when you look ahead to them to be prepared.
▼ Skewers style much more scrumptious if you grill them your self.
Biting into these skewers will depart you puzzled with their implausible flavour. The hen ones particularly are an absolute standout, with a moist deliciousness which you could solely get with charcoal grilling.
The tofu within the hotpot was additionally scrumptious, and the broth is made with home made dashi (dried and smoked bonito fish inventory), which supplies it an additional depth of umami flavour, and a slight sweetness that makes it style a bit like a thick potage.
▼ A superb soup you’ll wish to savour till the final drop.
The course features a selection of inexperienced tea soba, nabeyaki udon, Sanuki udon, or white rice as your closing dish. The nabeyaki udon comes extremely advisable, with its scrumptious broth and thick, chewy noodles.
▼ So hearty and warming, significantly on a chilly wintry day.
The ultimate dish of the course often arrives about an hour-and-a-half after the beginning of the course, however should you’re in a rush, you need to use the cellphone in your room to talk to workers and ask them to hurry issues up a bit.
▼ In any other case you’ll be able to take your time and pour your self a cup of tea after your meal.
Having a spacious personal room all to your self makes it tempting to remain right here all afternoon, however alas, as soon as your meal is over, it’s time to take your room tag and return it to reception, the place they’ll use it to tally up your meal.
▼ The room tag has the identify of the room printed on it so workers will know what to cost you.
When you’ve paid the invoice and stepped out into the gardens, you’ll most likely vow to go to once more.
Not solely is that this an attractive escape from the hustle and bustle of the fashionable world, however the service and high quality of the meals is great. Plus, after all, the novel waterway system is one thing you don’t get to see in Japan each day, and the luxurious of a personal room makes the entire expertise all of the extra particular.
That is one restaurant you’ll wish to go to time and again, and introduce all of your family and friends to as effectively. And should you’re on the lookout for one other restaurant that delivers meals to diners by water as a substitute of a conveyor belt, you’ll wish to head over to Shizuoka, the place the allure of picket tubs will mesmerise you as they float by.
Restaurant data
Iroriyaki to Tofu Nabe Hinatoriyama / いろり焼と とうふ鍋 ひな鳥山
Deal with: Tokyo-to, Hachioji-shi, Kamiyuzuki 1602-4
東京都八王子市上柚木1602-4
Open 11 a.m.-10:00 p.m. (final entry 8:30 p.m.)
Closed Wednesdays (excluding public holidays)
Web site
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[ Read in Japanese ]
