Looking for somewhere to get dinner one quiet night in Fukui, I headed towards the station, guessing that's where more places might be open. There still weren't many options, so I was glad when I found a restaurant that not only was open, but looked like it had the kind of homely, inexpensive fare I was looking for. A quick check of the display, and in I went.
It's not that big a place, but still fun to be in, with an eclectic melange of decor typical of this kind of place. It's done out to look like a traditional Japanese home, with the walls looking like paper screen doors, and all around the walls are the kind of decorations you'd find there, though in greater profusion: fans, masks, hanging scrolls, mobiles, framed calligraphy. And in amongst all that are posters and handwritten prices for the food and drinks available.
I chose a set meal with deep-friend oysters, they being a specialty of the region; my notes don't include how much I paid, but I imagine it was round JPY1200-1400. The set included a good sized bowl of fresh, fluffy rice, delightfully smooth and creamy tartare sauce, a good salty miso soup, and the oysters, crisp on the outside, smooth on the inside. It accomplished its mission very capably! I was left replete and satisfied.
As I remember the menu had neither English nor pictures, but it was all hearty comfort food. Noodle dishes and rice bowls cost between JPY650 and JPY1000; they include curry udon, soba or udon with tempura, tendon (tempura on rice) and oyakodon, chicken and eggs on rice, the name translating as "parent and child rice bowl". Set meals such as mine go for between JPY800 and JPY1800 - other options include pork or chicken katsu (breaded and deep-fried), or just salad - while beer is JPY500, nihonshu (sake, rice spirit) JPY450.
