WHERE TO eat IN TOTTORI and KURAYOSHI CITY

As I dipped and stirred a thin slice of beef in the pot, I began to realize how truly underrated Tottori’s food scene is. Such awakening couldn’t have come in a better setting. We sat on the floor around a hot pot at the very first shabu-shabu restaurant in Japan. In between mouthfuls, our new pal Kodani shared more information about the history of this iconic dish, how it was brought to Japan by a Tottori local, and how it spread to nearby Kansai region and eventually swept the nation.

When we think of Japanese food, Osaka is probably the first destination to pop up in our heads. Osaka is typically dubbed Japan’s food capital. but Tottori is poised to snatch that wig as local tourism officials start focusing the spotlight on what the prefecture can bring to the dining table.

Many of the most celebrated culinary treats in Japan have their roots in Tottori. It is where the idea of shabu-shabu was born, where the tastiest crabs and shrimps are caught, and where 20th century pears are harvested. It is also home to gyukotsu ramen, a rare type that uses cattle bone for its broth (and it’s the best ramen we’ve ever had)! Tottori also produces top-grade melt-in-your-mouth but economical wagyu beef, the Tottori beef, which is believed to be the precursor to other highly revered but insanely expensive Kobe beef, Matsusaka beef, and Omi beef.

And all I can do is agree. I have been to 21 prefectures in Japan so far, but I can’t think of any destination that gave me a more delicious time than I had in Tottori. From Tottori City to Kurayoshi to Daisen to Yonago to Sakaiminato, Tottori prefecture offers an unforgettable gastronomic experience at a much budget-friendly rate. All Tottori needs is brilliant marketing and it can seriously give Osaka a serious run for the “food capital” title.

If your destination is Yonago, Daisen, or Sakaiminato, we have a separate post for it. READ: Where to eat in West Tottori.

But if you ever find yourself in Tottori City and Kurayoshi City, here’s what and where you should eat!

Co je uvedeno v této příručce?

Hamashita seafood shop & Restaurant
Sasa Sushi
Sumibi no Jujuan (Charcoal Grill Restaurant)
Turudaya Coffee (Tsuruta-ya)
Takumi Kappoten Shabu-shabu
Beniya Cafe
Coco garden at Oenosato natural Farm
Hachibee Gyukotsu Ramen
Takauna Ramen
Kurayoshi’s Roaming Cat
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Hamashita seafood shop & Restaurant

Specialty: Matsuba Crab
Hours open: 8:30 AM to 04:00 PM

Tottori is famous for a lot of highly sought-after seafood including mosa shrimp (mosa-ebi), iwagaki oysters, white squid, and the matsuba crab. The matsuba crab (male snow crab) is Tottori’s most prized winter food. It may have slender legs, but they’re known to pack soft succulent meat that has a unique natural sweetness.

Tottori’s location and water quality make it an optimal environment for crabs. Hence, Tottori is the top supplier of crabs in Japan, catching more than any other prefecture and even three times more than Hokkaido, which is also known for their crabs. Although Tottori ships their bounty to other prefectures, many foodies from all over Japan come over to have a taste of the freshest catch. In Tottori City, the place to go os Karo Port, the second biggest fish port and market in Tottori Prefecture. but standing next to Karo Port is Hamashita Fishery & Restaurant.

Hamashita seafood shop & restaurant has a small indoor “market” where you can choose the crabs that you want and they will prepare it for you on site. They have a dining area where you can enjoy nibbling on these crabs. most diners want their crabs boiled, but if you want to have a taste of what makes the matsuba crab one of the most sought-after in Japan, have it sashimi-style. even without any seasoning, the matsuba crab has a delightful sweetness to it.

Crab season in Tottori is from November to March.

Ceny:

Crabs: ¥2000 up, depending on what you shop

Crab bowl: ¥980

Assorted sashimi: ¥980

Uni (sea urchin) on rice: ¥1880

How to get there: At Tottori Station, take the Karo-yuki Hinomaru bus and alight at Karo Kaigan or Kanikkokan mae. It’s a short walk from there.

Sasa Sushi

Specialty: Sushi
Address: 104, Suehiroonsen-cho, Tottori City
Hours open: 5pm-12am

As a coastal city, Tottori has a constant supply of seafood, guaranteeing the freshness of the ingredients served at the city’s sushi restaurants. one of them is Sasa Sushi.

Sasa Sushi isn’t a budget option. It’s on the more upscale end of the spectrum, but every piece is worth it. Each rice ball is hand-shaped, topped with ocean-fresh toppings as you order, and served on a carefully chosen Kurayoshi ware. The toppings change depending on availability of ingredients, but if your timing is right, you can expect uni (sea urchin), fatty tuna (otoro), bonito, matsuba crab, and mosa-ebi. The last two are Tottori delicacies. Don’t miss the shrimp-flavored tamago, too!

This 40-year old sushi bAR má pouze 8 sedadel, což umožňuje šéfkuchaři věnovat dostatek času zdokonalování každého kusu. je vyžadována rezervace.

Ceny:

10-dílná sada sushi: ¥ 4 300

Pivo: ¥ 600

Nejbližší stanice: Tottori Station.

Jak se tam dostat: SASA Sushi je jen 7 minut chůze od stanice Tottori.

Sumibi no Jujuan (restaurace na uhlí))

Specialita: Tottori hovězí
Adresa: 751, Suehiroonsen-Cho, Tottori City
Otevřené hodiny: 17:00

Japonský Wagyu je jedním z nejslavnějších hovězích na světě. Zejména hovězí maso Kobe, hovězí maso Matsusaka a hovězí maso Ohmi jsou celosvětově ctí. Kus kteréhokoli z těchto zázraků masa s roztavením v ústech vás pošle do gastronomického nebe a zpět. Ale přicházejí s cenou, velmi vysokou. Naštěstí existují i ​​další méně slavné, ale stále extrémně chutné typy.

V Japonsku jsou čtyři plemena Wagyu, z nichž nejběžnější je, že tvoří téměř 90%, japonský černý skot (Kuroge Wagyu). Tento Wagyu má čtyři kmeny, pojmenované po místě v Japonsku, které jej produkuje: Tajima, Shimane, Okaama a Tottori. Kobe hovězí maso, hovězí maso Matsusaka a hovězí maso Ohmi pocházejí z kmene Tajima. Rodokmen Tottori je jiný kmen, ale stejně hodný.

V Tottori je jedním z míst, kde se můžete vydat na hovězí maso Tottori, Sumibi no Jujuan, restaurace typu Yakiniku, která obsahuje grily na uhlí. Má rozmanité menu, které se může pochlubit také kraby Matsuba, ale většina patronů sem přichází pro Tottori Beef. Stejně jako hovězí maso Kobe je charakterizováno jeho něžnou texturou a ačkoli ne tak intenzivní, krásně mramorovaný vzhled. Je to mastné, téměř máslové a šťáva praskla v ústech jako exploze chuti. Nejlepší na tom je způsob, jak je to tak levnější než odrůda Kobe.

Ceny:

Síčkové sady Sirloin Tottori Wagyu (s předkrmem, salátem, rýží, dezertem, grilovanou zeleninou): ¥ 10 000

Tottoti Beef Sukiyaki Set Meal (s předkrmem, nudle, dezert): ¥ 4800

Jujuan Set (s hovězí a zeleninou pro grilování): ¥ 6480/osoba (minimálně 2 Pax)

Nejbližší stanice: Tottori Station.

Jak se tam dostat: Sumibi no Jujuan je jen dva bloky od stanice Tottori. Můžete se toho dostat pěšky za pouhých 5 minut.

Tudaya Coffee (tsuruta-ya)

Adresa: 21, Shokuninmachi, Tottori City
Otevřené hodiny: Nedokázal jsem získat plné provozní dny a hodiny, ale uzavírá se v 21:30.

Dalším místem k získání nízkonákladové Tottori Wagyu je káva Turudaya. Tato kavárna byla kavárna Marufuku, která byla mezi místními obyvateli velmi populární a měla loajální patrony, ale z nějakého důvodu se uzavřelo. Během naší návštěvy bylo značení Marufuku stále nad barem.

Nyní je to Turudaya Coffee, kavárna, která také podává těžší večeře, včetně talíře hovězího steaku Tottori za pouhých 3000. Pokud máte rozpočet a chcete jen ochutnat hovězí maso Tottori, je to dobré místo pro začátek.

Ceny:

Tottori hovězí steak: ¥ 3000

Kuřecí steak: ¥ 1000

Vepřový steak: ¥ 1300

Nejbližší stanice: Tottori Station.

Takumi Kappoten Shabu-Shabu

Specialita: Tottori hovězí shabu-shabu
Adresa: 652, Sakaemachi, Tottori City
Otevřené hodiny: 11:30-14:00, 17:00-21:00
Uzavřeno: Každé 3. pondělí v měsíci

Většina lidí si myslí, že Shabu-Shabu byl vynalezen v Osace. Po pravdě řečeno, Osaka může získat úvěr pouze tím, že mu dá jméno a možná jeho popularitu. Ale jeho původ lze vysledovat zpět k Tottori, a pokud kopáte hlouběji, do Číny. V roce 1938 cestoval do Číny jako armádní lékař tottori otolaryngolog (chirurg ENT) jménem Shoya Yoshida. Tam dokázal vyzkoušet jídlo s názvem Shuàn Yángròu nebo okamžitě vařenou skopovou. Používá horký hrnec s komínem, kde jsou tenké plátky skopového masa „opláchnuty“ v horké vodě, než jsou ponořeny do omáčky.

Když se vrátil do Japonska, změnil hlavní protein z skopové na hovězí maso kvůli problémům s dostupností. Poté sdílel recept na restaurace v Kjótu a Osace a právě v druhém získal jméno Shabu-Shabu, onomatopoeický termín odkazující na zvuk, který vydává.

V roce 1962 otevřela Yoshida ve svém rodném městě Tottori vlastní restauraci s názvem Takumi Kappo. Zůstává dodnes. Takumi Kappoten používá místní ingredience včetně tenkých plátků hovězího masa Tottori, které jsou ponořeny do polévky Gyusuji a jedí se sezamovou omáčkou. Půda zeleniny a houby také přichází s objednávkou.

Cena: ¥ 3990 nahoru.

Nejbližší stanice: Tottori Station.

Jak se tam dostat: Takumi Kappo je jen 2 bloky (5 minut chůze) od stanice Tottori.

Beniya Cafe

Specialita: Japonská kari rýže
Address: 151 Suehironsencho, Tottori City
Hours open: Thursday-Tuesday 8am-7pm
Closed: Wednesday

It was the British that brought curry to Japan from India during the Meiji era in the late 19th century. since then, the Japanese have taken liberties with the ingredients. Their version of curry is made from less spices and has a more subtle taste, but the umami flavor is still there. It’s usually served on top of rice. Today, it is one of the most popular dishes in the country.

Tottori beats all the other prefectures when it comes to consumption of curry. It’s evident in the number of curry places in the area, one of which is Beniya.

Beniya is a small cafe that is well-known for its chicken cutlet curry. I’m not a fan of curry in general so I wasn’t really that excited about this lunch stop. The unusually dark roux was not helping, either. Reluctantly, I had a taste of it and it was surprisingly delightful. The curry itself is bursting with flavor but not too overpowering, and complements the crispy chicken.

Cena:

Curry rice: ¥600

Chicken katsu curry: ¥800

Croquette curry: ¥700

Nejbližší stanice: Tottori Station.

How to get there: From Tottori Station, you can just walk. It’s situated just 3 blocks away.

Coco garden at Oenosato natural Farm

Specialty: fluffy Pancakes
Address: 877 Hashimoto, Ohenosato Shizen Bokujou, Yazu-cho, Yazu-gun
Hours open: daily 10am-6pm

Oenosato natural farm is famous in Tottori for their all-natural ways of poultry farming, especially their free range chickens. located at the foot of the mountains of Yazu, it can be reached after a 40-minute train and bus journey from Tottori Station. Yet, customers go out of their way to enjoy what they have to offer.

Here you’ll find Oenosato Village, a complex of small restaurants and stores serving dishes made from natural ingredients. but we came here for breakfast at Coco Garden, a cafe next to Oenosato Village. We had a wonderful first impression of the place. Every corner was Instagram-worthy. Every pastry on display was eye-catching. but its crowd-magnet is its fluffy pancakes. Their pancakes are made from free-range eggs that the farm is proud of. It is the most unforgettable pancake I’ve had in my life.

Nearest Station: JR Koge Station.

How to get there: From Tottori Station, take the JR Imbi Line or Wakasa railway to Koge Station. Fare: ¥240. travel time: 14-18 minutes. From Koge Station, board the San-san Bus bound for Oe and alight at Oenosato Shizen Bokujo-mae. travel time: 15 minutes.

Hachibee Gyukotsu Ramen

Specialita: Gyukotsu Ramen
Address: 1-101 Fukubacho, Kurayoshi City
Hours open: Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays 1130am-2:30pm, 6pm-08:30pm;
Friday, Saturday, Holidays, 1130am-2:30pm, 6pm-10pm
Uzavřeno: Úterý

Almost every prefecture puts their own twist to the quintessential Japanese comfort food, ramen. two of the most popular are Fukuoka’s tonkotsu ramen (Hakata ramen) and Hokkaido’s miso ramen. even small cities have their own version. some of the most unforgettable for me are Onomichi’s fatty shoyu ramen and Kumamoto’s rich garlic-overloaded ramen. but if you ask me to rank all the types of ramens that I have slurped, I’m pretty sure that Tottori’s gyukotsu ramen sits comfortably on top of the list.

While the rest of the world is in love with tonkotsu ramen, whose broth is made from pork bones, Tottori uses cattle bones in their gyukotsu ramen. I’ve been to 21 prefectures so far and only Tottori uses this ingredient as base for their broth. It’s rare, yes, but not exactly surprising, given the prefecture’s affinity with beef.

Hachibee is one of the few ramen spots in the world that serve this type of ramen. It is also our guide’s favorite ramen place. He had been raving about it since our first day in Tottori. located in Kurayoshi City, Hachibee isn’t well-known among tourists but is popular among locals. It was pretty packed when we arrived, but thankfully a table became open immediately.

Hachibee’s gyukotsu ramen captivates instantly. We were sold even before we could even take a look at it. The aroma coming from the hot soup filled the air. and when it was finally on our table, we just had to take photos. It looked pretty with thick cuts of pork neatly and beautifully arranged on top of the noodles and bamboo shoots. and the taste was heavenly. The beef bone flavor is undeniable but gentle, not overpowering but blending well with white shoyu. Although I still prefer Takauna’s broth (another ramen shop in neighboring Kotoura), the big chunks of pork