Urawa is a historic town located just outside of Tokyo and has its own unique gourmet scene.
We went to Niki-ya in Urawa for Kagoshima Beef Kaiseki lunch.
Niki-ya is a beautiful historic building which used to be a residence of Kobayashi family. The property has a beautiful Japanese garden and the building with traditional-style Japanese and "old-Western" style rooms. The family turned it into a restaurant about 10 years ago to serve traditional Japanese kaiseki (会席) courses.
Autumn salmon with chrysanthemum petals and hakusai. Radish tofu, shrimp, and radish green sauce.
Gobo root "rikyu-zuke"...this same recipe has been carried on for 100 years.
"Kuzu" soup...dried scallop and mushrooms, goji berries, baby scallion.
Sashimi...Taira-gai and Tuna.
"Unohana" Soy bean croquette between the Japanese wafers. We were instructed to eat as "hamburger-style"!
Anago Ganmo (sea eel tofu fritter).
Kagoshima Beef main course. Kagoshima beef is one of the premium breeds of Japanese beef. They were raised with the special care and take a nap to the classical music. The beef was pan-fried without any seasoning or oil, and it was served with sea salt and wasabi shoyu.
The rice was cooked in the traditional Kamado over the flame made with rice husks.
Black sesame pudding.
What a elegant lunch course we had! Every dish was so delicately prepared and delicious. This is also a great place to bring your special guests to. When I come back to Japan with Jason, I want to take him there.
