Back alley onigiri shop Ichiho Niho — Local services in Nara

Run don’t walk to this excellent onigiri shop. As the name suggests you have to go down a side passage of the building about 40 feet inside from the street to get to a cozy hand made freshly made onigiri shop. Menu available in English. Each rice ball is labeled. I had yuzu miso chicken and sukiyaki raw egg. I also had the beef and veg soup which was a nice accompaniment to the delicious onigiri. A few minutes extra walking past the tourist area but worth it. While I sat there and ate at least six locals came by to get their lunch. They do take out also. Red benches for seating or sit on the cushions as some did. It was warm in Nara but they had a couple of AC units running so it was nice and comfortable. Prices are...

Originally went in for 2 onigiris and a meat-wrapped-riceball on a stick. Finished the food in 2 minutes and went back in for 2 more! It was so delicious!! The rice itself was super soft and fluffy, and yet the onigiris did not fall apart when eating.

English menu available, staff were super nice and friendly! Small space located at the back of a building (walk in through the front door on the left and straight down a hallway). We luckily beat the crowd at 10:45ish - as we were finishing, a whole group of people went in to order! 11/10 would recommend and would definitely...

Tired from bowing at deer and squeezing with the crowd to watch the mochi show? This hidden onigiri store is the perfect respite, run by a friendly father-son pair. They spoke pretty good English and were extremely patient with us as we could not speak Japanese. The onigiri was delicious (get the tuna yukke, trust me). I also appreciated the individual labels for each onigiri (in English no less). It was a thoughtful gesture!

If I come back to Nara, it would be for this onigiri rather...