"My wife and I were the only guests on a Monday afternoon lunch.

This was undoubtedly one of the best meals I’ve had in my life. You could taste the freshness of the food and feel the passion from the chef.

He picked a lot of the mushrooms and caught the fish we ate. We let the chef pick our sake pairings and we weren’t disappointed.

This restaurant alone is worth a visit to Takayama."

Mitchell Motlagh

"This was one of our top restaurant experiences while in Japan on this two week trip. If you want a true expert fisherman and forager to make you a seasonal meal consisting of mostly wild fish and vegetables, this is the place to go.

We had many courses, a wide range of flavors, fish and beef dishes, with a wide range of matching local sake. So many dishes stood out that it is hard to know which to mention. The fried whole fish was excellent. The gelato dessert was made from vegetable and sugar ONLY, nothing else, and was incredible. The two types of steak were top notch. The sake pairings were pitch perfect. The grilled miso dish was rich and delicious. And the round plate of wild vegetables provided a wide range of flavors and treatments of the selections.

Chef was talkative and funny and very open about sharing his knowledge and food creativity. We were one of two parties at the meal, so the environment was very intimate and well-paced. We ended the meal with two glasses of hand-crafted esoteric fruit wines -- Chef has many along the wall behind the bar as shown in one of the photos!

In one of the other photos you can see a wide variety of fish that Chef caught locally that have been carefully preserved and presented at the entrance to the restaurant.

We would strongly recommend this to anyone interested in deeply considered "wild" food and flavors that match the seasons. We will be back next time!"

Shanta Puchtler

"While in Takayama, I decided to try something different from the usual wagyu, sashimi, or sukiyaki. I found a restaurant that once held a Michelin star for its take on regional cuisine, and went for their seasonal local fish course. I was curious to see how traditional hometown flavors could be refined into something worthy of a star.

It turned out to be a great choice—especially since I was planning a hike in Kamikōchi the next day. Compared to wagyu barbecue, the fish course felt much lighter on the body. The dishes highlighted the ingredients themselves, prepared in simple ways like pickling, grilling, or overnight drying. The seasoning was minimal, letting the natural flavors shine through. I left feeling satisfied but not weighed down.

True, it wasn’t the kind of explosive, juicy richness you’d get from premium wagyu, but it also never felt plain or underwhelming. To top it all off, the owner served a specially made mojito at the end—an unexpectedly perfect finish to the evening.

Additional note: their local made sake 肴 tastes very good, impressed."

Jarrett Chen