Kaisugi Ramen

This ramen place has been on my list for some time now, and I finally made it! What took so long, you ask? Well.... they don't open until 1900 and I'm usually starving by then. I need to eat by 1800 or 1830 at the latest, or I become slightly cranky. Okay. Maybe a little bit more than just slightly. My good friend, Tina, was leaving me though and she really wanted to eat here so we made plans to try it out before she flew out.

I wasn't sure where it was located, but I got the pin from their Facebook page and headed towards downtown Iwakuni. I knew where I would park and figured it would be a short walk from the parking lot. As soon as I started to make the turn into the parking lot though, Google maps stated that I had arrived at my destination. What??? Tina and I started laughing and looking around, and there it was! Right next to the pay parking lot I was pulling into.


Yay! We found it! -

Once we sat down, I picked up the menu and started looking it over. The menu is pretty simple, but I wanted to try everything on it. Tina already knew she wanted spicy ramen, and I decided on the chashu ramen. Chashu is the pork slices you usually find in ramen. While I was looking over the menu I also noticed that they have handmade gyoza. A lot of ramen places I have been to use frozen gyoza (the kind you can buy in a grocery store) so I get very excited when I see that a place makes their own!

When my ramen came to the table, I couldn't wait to dig in! BUT, I did wait long enough to take this picture -

...aaaand when they brought Tina's, she was kind enough to wait so I could take a picture of hers too -

You can choose your level of spiciness for your ramen. Tina ordered a level 1.


The gyoza -

The ramen was delicious and the chashu was so tender and flavorful! Tina really enjoyed her spicy ramen too, and we both loved the gyoza. I think I have found a new favorite place to get my ramen fix! I just wish they opened before 1900!!!

The prices were very reasonable too. Our total bill was a little over 2,000yen which was less than $20 at the time.
They only accept yen.

Hours: 1900-0300
Telephone: 0827-22-1000
Address: 麻里布町6丁目2-1, Iwakuni 740-0018

View Larger MapDriving Directions

RUSH - Teppanyaki Restaurant

The first two times I tried to go to this restaurant, I could not get in because they were full. I guess it's true when they say "third time's a charm" though, because I got the last few seats left when I went the third time. It probably had something to do with the fact that it was a brand new restaurant in Iwakuni and I was trying to go right after it opened, but I think it also might have had something to do with the super nice staff and the yummy food!



One of the first things you might notice about RUSH is that it is not like the teppanyaki restaurants you find in the U.S. You can watch them cook if you sit at the end of the counter where the "teppan" is located. "Teppan" is the grill that they cook on. I believe the restaurants in the States put on a show when they cook in front of you. At RUSH you will only get a show if someone orders a steak. If that happens while you are there, you will get to see this -



What you will definitely get though is great service and really good food! I have eaten here many times now and I have never been disappointed with anything I've ordered. The only thing I will say is that the steak is kind of fatty. Too fatty for me so I will not order it anymore, but if you like it that way then go for it. It does taste good. I just prefer a leaner cut of steak. One dish that I do always get when I go for dinner is the grilled vegetable plate. I like it so much that I really don't want to share.....but I do because I prefer to order a few different dishes and share. It's very hard though....


Look at these vegetables.....can you blame me for not wanting to share?



They have a pork wrapped asparagus dish that is pretty tasty. They sprinkle some kind of curry powder on them and I think I would prefer them without the curry powder. I'm sure you can ask them to make them without the curry powder. I am a big fan of curry, but not so much on these. Don't they look delicious?



Another dish I always get is the garlic rice. Anything with garlic is usually great in my book!



I do recommend that you try RUSH for lunch and for dinner. They have a different menu for lunch so it's a different experience. I like their lunch menu and their dinner menu so I have gone for both quite a few times now. For lunch, I really like the pork ginger and the hamburger steak. They do have English menus with pictures so ordering will not be a problem.

To get to this yummy teppanyaki restaurant, head towards the local train station in downtown Iwakuni and when you get to the rotary intersection (Andersen Bakery should be on the right corner), you will turn left. Then turn left again almost right away. RUSH is located on your left and there is a pay parking lot to the right of it that you can park in.

RUSH is closed on Mondays and their phone number is (0827)22-8339. It has been a little over a year since they opened, but they can still get pretty busy so you might want to call ahead and make reservations.

TAJ Indian Restaurant

I had bread class on Saturday and we didn't get back until around 5:30pm. I wasn't very hungry because we ate a late lunch and it seemed like our lunch lasted forever. Honestly, I was thinking I would be able to just skip dinner.

BUT....by 7:30pm I was starting to get hungry. Jason called me and when I mentioned dinner, he said he was kind of hungry too. Then somehow TAJ came up in our conversation about dinner. The next thing I knew, we were on our way to TAJ.

Jason had never been, and I had only been once before so we were both pretty excited. I even remembered to grab my camera so I could get pictures for my blog post.

AND!!!! I remembered to take a picture of the outside!!!


The first time I went to TAJ I ordered the eggplant curry. Oh. My. Goodness. Very yummy!

Jason and I looked over the menu and we decided to order a few different dishes and share everything. So, we ordered the Shrimp Salad, Chicken Tikka, Chicken Masala Curry, Garlic Nan, and Almond Nan.


Shrimp Salad


Chicken Tikka


Almond Nan


Chicken Masala Curry (level "HOT")


Garlic Nan

Everything we ordered was very tasty. Their curry seems more tomato based compared to other Indian restaurants I have been to, but it was very good. I don't think we had anything left when we were done. Hmmm....maybe I should have taken a picture of our plates after we were done. Empty plates are always a good sign.

Their menu is in English too, which is another plus.


They are open for lunch from 1100-1430, and then for dinner from 1700-2130. Their phone number is (0827)23-6709. They do speak English.

To get to this wonderful Indian Restaurant, go out Main Gate. At the first light turn right. Follow that road and go over the bridge. Pass Mike's Tex Mex, and at the 2nd light after Mike's, turn left. Go up the loopy over pass. At the light, turn right (like you're heading to the train station). When you get to the rotary, make sure you are in the left lane. As you're going by the rotary, you'll see Coco Curry on your left. Turn left down the street right next to Coco Curry. Follow that road all the way to the end. At that light, you should be able to see TAJ across the street. They do have parking available. If you know your way around Route 2, TAJ is located right off the 2, going away from McDonald's towards Otake.

If you like eggplant, I say go for the eggplant curry! The Chicken Masala was very yummy too though. Personally, I like to order different dishes and share them with my dinner date. The prices are pretty reasonable too. I think for everything we ordered, it was about 2,000yen. According to their sign outside, they also offer sets where you can get chicken curry or pork curry and nan or rice for 790yen. Not bad at all.

Give TAJ a try and let me know what you think!

SOBATAMAYA - Okonomiyaki

Although I have spent most of my life in Iwakuni, I had never heard of Sobatamaya until earlier this year. Any time I hear about a good okonomiyaki place, my ears perk up. Especially if it is here in Iwakuni. I had to try it out.

They do authentic Hiroshima style okonomiyaki here and it is very good. After trying it a few times now, I have to say it is the best okonomiyaki restaurant in Iwakuni. Apparently a lot of other people agree with me because the place is always packed when I go. Last night was no exception. I went with a couple of friends from high school (GO Samurais!! Yes...the three of us are M.C.Perry graduates) and we got there pretty early (around 6:15). There was only one other customer inside. Once we sat down and ordered, people started coming and they didn't stop. Even after the place was full, people kept coming. They even had some to-go orders so they were very busy. So, I do have to warn you that your food will probably take about 20 minutes to prepare. It's so worth the wait though! And if you sit at the counter, you get to watch them prepare it which is always pretty cool.

They do have English menus. Yay!

I always order the "House Special" which is soba noodles, pork, and egg. You can also add little extras if you want. One of my friends got hers with green onions and my other friend got his with cheese. I have never had it with cheese so I think I will have to try that next time.

We talked and watched as they prepared our okonomiyaki. Before we knew it, they were placing yummy okonimiyaki right in front of us!

I couldn't wait to dig into mine!

It was very yummy!!!! I should have taken a picture of the empty spot in front of me after I finished because I ate the whole thing!

To get to this amazing okonomiyaki restaurant, go out Main Gate. Turn right at the first light. Follow that road and go over the bridge. You'll pass Mike's Tex Mex and at the second light after Mike's, turn left. You'll go over a loopy over pass and there will be a light at the bottom. Go straight and at the first light, turn right. At the second cross street, turn left. There is a pay parking lot on the left corner that you'll see as you turn left. It is the only pay parking I know of that is near the restaurant, but it is 200yen for 30 minutes! Ridiculous. Once you turn left, you should see the restaurant on your left. First, you'll see a Japanese style restaurant and then an Italian restaurant (I heard this place is really good too!!).....and then I think the okonomiyaki place is next. There is a sliding door and a noren hanging outside. *sigh* Yes....I forgot to take a picture of the front. Again. I also forgot to get the hours of operation. I will get it and then I will just update this post. Now you know where it's at though so you can go and have some amazing okonimiyaki!

Editing to add address and telephone number -

Address: 6-8-22 Marifumachi Iwakuni Yamaguchi
Telephone: 0827-24-2080
Hours: 1700-2200
CLOSED on Wednesdays

Primavera

This is one of those places that I have been to a few times, but didn't have my camera with me. I know....shocking!

Today I was prepared though. Go me! AND I even remembered to take a picture of the outside of the restaurant. I know. I even surprise myself sometimes.

Primavera is a restaurant that is not too far from the base. It's not a very large restaurant, but I like the atmosphere and I have yet to be disappointed with the food.

I do have to mention that they do not have an English menu, but they do have some pictures. Gosh, if nothing else, go in just for a cappuccino. You'll see why in a little bit.

The item on the upper left is the hamburger set that I got. I'm very curious about the "Pork Ginger" that is right next to it.....I may have to order that next time!

The last time I went, my friend ordered the hamburger steak with Japanese sauce and it looked and smelled amazing! So, I had already decided before I got there that I was going to order the hamburger steak today. With the Japanes sauce ("Wafu sauce").
Then we opened up the menus and they have this wonderful lunch special where you get to choose your pasta and you get garlic bread and a little salad and some dessert. I started to lean a little. One of the pasta choices was a chicken and lotus root pasta. Yep, you know it. My eyes brightened at the sight of "renkon" (lotus root) on the menu. Oh, but I really had my heart set on the hamburger steak. Good thing I went with a group of ladies! Two of them ordered the chicken and renkon pasta! Yay! Two of them ordered a vegetable, garlic pasta. And then one of them ordered a lunch plate. Of course I took pictures of everything!!


Small salad that came with my hamburger steak lunch-

The little salad and soup and ....hmmm..I forgot to ask what that third item was..but this came with the pasta lunch sets -

I also got a little bowl (cute bowls!!) of soup with my lunch -

Then my hamburger steak came out! Yummy!! It had lots of grated daikon (like a radish) mixed into the Japanese sauce on top. There are two other choices for sauce. One is tomato and the other is demi glace. I really like the wafu sauce though! -

Chicken and Lotus Root pasta in Arabiata Sauce. I tried the lotus root and ...Mmmm..tasty! -

Vegetable, garlic pasta. Oh my goodness! LOTS of garlic! I LOVE garlic though so I thought it was pretty fantastic! -

Lunch plate. Sampling of a few different things. Looks yummy!!! -

Then, we got out cappuccinos. OH. MY. GOSH. Could they be any cuter?!

None of us wanted to drink them! But we did, and they make some really good cappuccinos at Primavera!

The ladies who ordered the pasta lunch also got this really cute dessert!

LOVE the presentation!!!! And the ladies said it tasted pretty good too!

To get to this lovely restaurant, go out Main Gate and turn right at the very first light. Follow that road over the bridge and past Mike's TexMex. Go through the intersection and keep going straight. After the next light, you should see a break in the road that allows you to make a right turn. Turn right and you should see a playground/park straight ahead. At the stop sign, turn left and then turn right. The park should be on your right now. Primavera is on the right, right after you pass the park. They have parking. I do recommend that you make reservations. They were completely booked when we went for lunch today. Their number is (0827)22-0566. They also have an ad in the Preview magazine that shows what their hours are.

G.Labo

I have to warn you that the quality of pictures and number of pictures for this post are not so great. It was raining too hard on Friday night for me to lug my Nikon around so I took all of the pictures with my phone. And I kind of forgot to take a picture of the outside of the restaurant. Did I mention that it was raining REALLY hard that night?

While I love spending an evening out with my co-workers, I don't like it when it's to farewell one of them. So it was with mixed feelings that I went to dinner Friday night. As always, we had a great time and there was lots of laughing going on. G.Labo is one of my favorite restaurants for parties. I called and made reservations for our group and pre-ordered a set dinner course. It was 2,800yen per person for the meal and then some people opted to do the all-you-can-drink for 2 hours so they paid an additional 2,000yen. I didn't take pictures of the drinks, but I did get some shots of all of the wonderful food that we consumed.

First, they brought out this dish.

It was salmon on top of potatoes and it had some type of sauce mixed into it. They drizzled pesto around the plate and served it with some little pieces of crusty bread. I thought it was so yummy that I had three helpings of it!

Then they brought out the garlic bread......their garlic bread is really amazing.....I could just sit and eat the bread all night. Seriously.

When they told me they were bringing this out, I almost jumped out of my seat (maybe I did ... a little) with excitement.

FONDUE!!!!

For those of you looking at this and thinking, "Is that pumpkin there on the left?" Why, yes. It is! Chunks of heavenly pumpkin that we dipped in the this creamy, amazing cheese that was still bubbling like crazy when they brought it out to us. Ohhhh.......I'm going to start drooling all over my Macbook. That pumpkin.....and that cheese.....mmmm.......Alright, moving on.

Oh. I'm sorry. Did I just add another picture of the amazing fondue? Can you see how it's still bubbling? Okay. I'm really moving on now. I promise.

The next dish they brought out was this wonderful mushroom salad.

The mushrooms were delicious and the dressing was really good too. It had a little bit of an orange flavor to it.....a very slight taste.

Then, it was time for some steak. Typically, they serve their steak medium. I didn't think about it when I made reservations and pre-ordered for our group, but I definitely could have asked them to cook them medium-well or whatever our group wanted.

The steak was pretty tasty, but I wish they would have cut them into smaller pieces, or given us steak knives. The pieces were really big and I couldn't just bite a piece off. Now, how sexy is that image of me biting off a big chunk of steak? So glad I wasn't on a first date.

It was finally time for some pasta. At this point, I am feeling kind of full and I'm not sure if I can continue with this food mission.

What? There's mushrooms in the pasta? Well, okay.....I guess I can eat a little bit more. This pasta was pretty light and yummy. It was just tossed in oil and seasonings. Now I REALLY thought I was done.


But....then they brought this out. Oh my gosh. Shrimp in a creamy tomato sauce?? Why, sure! I can still fit some more food in my tummy.

This pasta was a little on the heavy side (must be the cream sauce), but it was good.

Our dinner also came with a choice of coffee or tea, and you they serve it hot or cold so you can choose. I got the hot tea and it was a perfect ending to a yummy dinner. But then they brought out the dessert. They brought out a platter of desserts for each table so we could choose what we wanted.

This wonderful pumpkin goodness was kind of like a pumpkin cheesecake in a cup, with a heavy pumpkin flavor. It was very creamy and very yummy. Unfortunately, I am trying to cut white sugar out of my diet completely (I know....it's okay....you can call me crazy) so I just had a very small bite. It's pumpkin and I HAD to taste it.

The chocolate cake looked very dense and very rich. Not sure if it was a big favorite at our table.

This white chocolate raspberry cheesecake was definitely a hit though. It looked really good and sounded really good. And it even came with a small scoop of ice cream on top.

I felt like we definitely got a lot of great food for our money. They do have a regular menu that you can order from. You definitely do not have to order a dinner set.

Definitely a great place for a group outing, or a date night, or even lunch. They are open for lunch and they offer some decent lunch sets. They are closed on Tuesdays so keep that in mind when you plan your lunch or dinner date. For reservations, please call (0827) 21-7916. They do get booked up pretty quickly in the evenings so even if it's for a small group, I recommend that you make reservations.

To get to this lovely little restaurant, go out Main Gate. At the intersection after the railroad tracks (Four Corners), turn right and head downtown towards the train station. At the rotary (the big round-a-bout in front of the train station), turn left. At the first light, turn left and then make the first right. Park in the pay lot on your left (or any of the lots right there). You should see a covered shopping area if you stand with your back to the main road. Go into the covered arcade and go to your right. Walk for a few minutes and you should see G.Labo on your left. It is the last restaurant on your left before you leave the covered arcade (some people call the covered arcade the "Yellow Brick Road").

Enjoy and please let me know what you think!

Mmmmm......it's Udon season in Iwakuni

I finally did it! I went to the awesome udon restaurant that everyone has been telling me about for months! And by everyone, I mean my parents and Courtney. My parents alone can count as "everyone." It's not that I didn't know this place existed. I have seen it many times, and everytime I drive by it I say to myself that I am going to go there soon and get some udon. And then life takes over or I forget about it. Now that the weather is getting cooler though, I have udon on the brain ALL of the time. Thank goodness my monthly lunch with Danielle and Courtney was coming up. We all decided to go to the awesome udon restaurant this month. Woohoo! I was so excited! Am I the only person who gets this excited about food? I know. Silly question. Or....is it? I'm not sure if people realize just how excited I get. I get REALLY excited. Like, jump up and down and do a happy dance excited.

We get there and walk into the restaurant. Wow. It's very cool. As soon as you walk in, you see the fresh udon noodles.

They quickly handed us an english menu. I was too busy trying to take pictures so I didn't really look at the menu. Super happy that they have an english menu though. Even happier that it has pictures! It's kind of like a cafeteria style place. You grab a tray and you order your udon. They also have sizes. We all got medium. Once they give you your bowl with noodles, you keep moving. Here comes the best part! You are now entering the tempura zone!

Oh my gosh! The selection of tempura is amazing. Is there a better word than amazing? Because that's what the tempura selection would be. It would be the word that's better than amazing. The only bad thing about this is that I can't decide what to get. I really wanted to get one of each, but I knew that was just crazy. So I stood there and held up the line trying to decide which tempura goodness I was going to have with my udon. I could only pick one because by now I have noticed the rice balls that are next to the tempura. And they look good! Okay. I pick up the shrimp tempura and put it on my plate. It's okay. I'll be coming here often, and I will try all of the tempura. Oh, yes I will. I finally move down to the rice balls. Again, so many choices! I choose the seaweed (konbu) rice ball, and then I move to the register to pay. My total is 530yen. Yes. 530yen. I know. I stood there in shock for a few seconds. I thought I heard wrong. Really? 530yen? Wow. I pay and then go to the next stop. This is where you add your soup and toppings.

That's it. I haven't even sat down and tried any of the food yet, and I'm in love. I am in love with this restaurant. The staff is really nice and they all look so happy. AND they only charged me 530yen for a bowl of udon, a huge shrimp tempura, and a konbu rice ball. 530yen. I'm sorry. I just can't stop talking about the price of my lunch. I think I'm good now. Mentioning the price 5 times is probably enough.

What I got for 530yen.

The restaurant is pretty roomy. They have tables and counters.

I made my way to one of the tables with the tray. If you want some water, they have water stations set up in a couple of places. They also have hot tea. I took pictures of our food while Courtney and Danielle kindly went and got some water for us. I was having a little bit of regret as I looked at Courtney's and Danielle's sweet potato tempura. It looked so good. I think I already know what I'm getting the next time I eat here.

Doesn't the sweet potato tempura look good????

Courtney also got this yummy looking veggie tempura. It looks like onions and carrots, and it looks good!

Alright, now for the real test. Cheap is nice, but if the food doesn't taste good then I don't care how cheap it is. I'll pay more for good food. I put my tempura in my udon (that's how I like to eat my udon....with shrimp tempura in it), and started eating. Mmmmm.......the udon was really good. The shrimp tempura was REALLY good. Then I opened my rice ball and yes, the konbu rice ball was also very good. Well, this foodie was super happy. Good food that's very reasonable is hard to come by sometimes. Especially with this cruddy yen rate. Did I mention that my lunch was only 530yen?

I have to warn you, this place gets very busy. Now I know why.

For those of you who have never tried udon before, please don't expect it to taste like ramen with fat noodles. The noodles are completely different and the broth is different. Definitely worth trying! If nothing else, the tempura alone is worth going to this restaurant for.

To get to this wonderful udon restaurant, please go out Main Gate and go straight through the light until you get to three corners (T intersection). At three corners, take a right. Go straight on this road until you come to the intersection that will put you on Route 2. It almost looks like a T-intersection, but it's not. At this intersection, turn left. You will pass McDonald's on your right and then Fresta on your left. The udon restaurant is on your right and it's just a couple of minutes after you pass Fresta. They have a huge parking lot so there is plenty of parking. P.S. Is it really bad that I went back there again for lunch today? Two days in a row. I'm in udon heaven! I do want to post one picture from today. Jason got the special udon. It was beef with burdock and partially boiled egg.

I should also add that we got there at around 12:20 and the place was pretty packed!

I feel like I may need to join an udon eaters anonymous group or something........