Yamamototei is a Japanese restaurant that gets a lot of tourists. It sits in a spot called Bentenjima in Hamamatsu and serves fresh seafood. This area is proper countryside, so it’s a bit surprising that an upscale place like this can keep going here. Then again, everyone around here gets about by car, so the location probably doesn’t matter that much.
Inside
Live tank
Live tank
Today’s menu
The prices are reasonable — not somewhere you’d come every day, but just right for dropping in now and then for a drink.
Sake glass
Fried baby shrimp
The meat is sweet.
Sashimi moriawase
The sake goes down easily.
Tempura set meal
Unagi
Even though it isn’t a dedicated unagi place, it’s really good. The flesh is nice and tender.
Raw oyster
They had oysters too, so I ordered one.
Sake glass
W Yamadanishiki 45 Junmai Muroka Nama Genshu
It looks like champagne, and it’s a wonderful nihonshu with a bright floral aroma. I never expected to find sake this good at a restaurant out in the countryside.
Mehikari karaage
Mehikari is a fish caught off Hamamatsu, but the catch is small and almost all of it gets eaten locally, so it’s hard to come by in Tokyo or anywhere else. It’s full of oil, which gives it a rich, nutty flavour.
Ochazuke
Ice cream
I polished off dessert too. It’s a big world — I had no idea a place like this existed. Travelling in Japan really is more fun when you have a local showing you around.
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