If Hazumiya was a modest starter, Tama was where this food meetup really got going.
Tama is in Higashihonmachi in Matsue, and its regulars are mostly the serious food lovers of the neighborhood. They run their own fishing boat, and I heard they even call their regulars when some good fish comes in. A place with a concept like that can hardly be bad.
Otoshi
It changes every time I come, so they seem to put some real thought into it.
We started with bottled beer.
Apparently it’s a limited-edition beer from Kirin. Spin-offs like this are usually worse than the original, but this one was the exception. It’s made with hops freshly harvested in 2010, which is probably why it tastes so green and fresh. A great pick.
Fried fugu
I’ve had it before, and it’s still clean-tasting and delicious. There are plenty of ways to eat fugu, but I think big deep-fried chunks like these are the most satisfying. For one thing, it’s fun to have a mouthful.
Kani miso
This is crab innards. It’s good mixed into rice, but it’s also great scooped up a little at a time as a nibble with sake.
A plate of assorted sashimi
I think it was about 1,500 yen a plate. I get that freshness varies from day to day, but that day it was top-notch. Every piece of fish had crisp, sharp edges. The octopus at the back right was especially sweet, as if someone had sprinkled sugar on it. At this price for this quality, it’s practically a steal.
Today’s sake: a glass of Toyonoaki
I ordered a local brand I like. It’s known for going down smoothly. At this quality it holds its own even against sake from Niigata.
Salt-grilled doro-ebi
These are shrimp you grill and eat head and all. The shrimp are so fresh that even with just a sprinkle of salt, the rich, nutty flavor pours out, starting from the head. The perfect drinking snack at an izakaya.
On the house
An unusual shrimp came out, but maybe because it had gone cold, it was just so-so.
Oysters in vinegar
Winter means oysters, of course. If they’re truly fresh you can eat them raw, but they said these weren’t quite that quality, so they served them this way instead. I know full well that demanding a perfect supply doubles the price, so at times like this letting it go is a virtue. Besides, the menu is so much cheaper than in Tokyo or Seoul that I tend to order with abandon.
Buri ara-ni, simmered in soy sauce
This one had also gone cold and lost a bit of flavor, but the belly part was sweet. A plate was about 500 yen, and it’s a big portion, good for two bottles of beer.
My second sake was Nanakanba.
Maybe because it’s junmai, it has a clear, clean taste. Quite different from the soft, rich taste of Toyonoaki.
Sawara (Spanish mackerel) tataki
Sawara is a rather plain-tasting fish to begin with. But in winter it puts on fat and turns superb. Lightly seared tataki-style and served with condiments, it melted away in my mouth and was a match for any fish. I hereby name it the best of the day.
Beef tendon stewed in red miso
Beef tendon simmered in red miso. If an izakaya’s nikomi is this good, who needs a fancy restaurant’s stew? After Kitsuneya in Tsukiji, that’s two motsu-nikomi hits in a row. It’s a bit sweet for Korean tastes, so I’m not sure it would suit everyone, but “perfect with a drink” is exactly the right phrase. A wine sommelier looks cool, but becoming a sake sommelier – they call it a kikisakeshi – doesn’t sound bad either.
Anko (monkfish) karaage
After the fugu I tried the fried monkfish, and it was dripping with juicy fat. If the fugu was simply clean-tasting, the monkfish karaage crossed into the realm of the devil. Eat too much and you blow your calorie budget, but it’s too good not to eat.
Finally, I took a photo of the Toyonoaki.
It’s probably not that easy to find outside this area. There’s the Shimane antenna shop, Nihonbashi Shimane-kan, in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, so they might sell it there. The hand on the left belongs to the owner.
After this light meal, we moved on to a second place I like, where the beer is good – and the shochu too – topped up our alcohol levels, and wrapped up day one. With this many great places around, country life doesn’t sound half bad ^_^