Honda — Restaurant in Iiyama

Visiting from Australia in Nagano region and I decided to do cycling around Iiyama-city. The staff at Iiyama station recommended Honda as a very popular restaurant for Unagi (smoked eel), so I stopped by Honda for a late lunch at 1pm (which was less busy and had less diners at the time).

I wasn't too hungry so I only ordered Aoi (1 portion) - the lovely illustrated menu would tell you the differences of the portions, how the shop prepared the eel and homemade seasonal pickles, and how the rice was sourced directly from local farmers at the nearby Kijimadaira village.

The eel was perfectly smoked and charred on the outside while very soft tender in the inside. Beautiful side of homemade seasonal pickles. But I think the rice and the sauce were such perfect match, even better and more delicious than the eel itself!!!! While it was slightly on the pricey end, it was truly a farm-to-table experience and I would definitely recommend or visit again...

うなぎ専門店　本多（ほんだ）

フジロックに車で向かう途中、豊田飯山ICを降りて飯山市を抜ける際に立ち寄りました。 ちょうどお昼のタイミングだったのですが平日なので混んでないかと思いましたが、お店はいっぱいのお客であふれていました。ギリギリ一席空いており、待たずに入れたのはラッキーでした。 二人とも鰻に飢えており、4600円の「うな重」と肝吸いを2人前注文。「白焼き重」も魅力でしたが、タレを味わいたかったので「うな重」一択でした。 待つこと20分ほど、ほくほくの木島平米に乗った鰻が運ばれてきました。 手前の身の部分からほおばるのですが、口の中で鰻の程よい脂と身の旨味が丁度いい加減で押し寄せてきます。蒸した鰻にタレを付けて備長炭で2度焼く手法が成せる業ですね。甘すぎず火を通しすぎていないタレが絶妙に鰻の味を邪魔せずに絡んできます。お米の水加減も絶妙で、タレ、お米のどれもが鰻の美味しさを引き立るようになっていました。

きゅうりのお漬物も口をさっぱりしてくれるので、あれよあれよと言う間に食べてしまいました。 12歳の息子は大事に大事にゆっくり食べてましたが。

文句なく美味しいです。丁寧に調理されており満たされます。 お店は良い雰囲気で、おかみさん含め優しい店員さんの対応で心落ち着いて鰻を楽しめました。 息子と一緒にたまたまお店に入る前に裏のいけすの鰻を特別に見せてもらう事ができましたが、奇麗な青の魚体の鰻ばかりでした。

是非また立ち寄りたい鰻のお店です。

Unagi Specialty Restaurant Honda

On our way to Fuji Rock by car, we stopped by this restaurant after exiting the Toyota Iiyama IC and passing through Iiyama City. It was just around lunchtime, and although it was a weekday and I thought it wouldn't be crowded, the place was packed with customers. Luckily, there was one seat available, so we didn't have to wait. Both of us were craving eel, so we ordered two servings of the "Unaju" (eel over rice) for 4600 yen each, along with liver soup. The "Shirayaki Ju" (grilled eel without sauce) was also tempting, but we wanted to savor the sauce, so we opted for the "Unaju." After waiting for about 20 minutes, the eel served over steaming hot Kijimadaira rice was brought to our table. Starting with the meat portion in front of us, the perfect balance of the eel's moderate fat and the flavor of the meat filled our mouths. This is the result of the technique of steaming the eel, applying the sauce, and grilling it twice over Binchotan charcoal. The sauce, which is not too sweet and not overcooked, blends perfectly with the eel without overpowering its taste. The rice's water content was also just right, enhancing the flavor of the eel along with the sauce and rice.

The cucumber pickles refreshed our palates, and before we knew it, I had finished our meal. My 12-year-old son savored his meal slowly and carefully.

It was undeniably delicious. The food was meticulously prepared and satisfying. The restaurant had a great atmosphere, and the kind staff, including the proprietress, made us feel at ease while enjoying our eel. Before entering the restaurant, my son and I were fortunate enough to be shown the eels in the tank at the back, and they were all beautiful blue-bodied eels.

This is definitely a place I would like to...

Came here for lunch as Honda is known to have the best Unagi-don in Iiyama and I wanted to try it out! There is a wide variety of choices on the menu ( not only unagi-dons ) and they have many different size options ( whole eel, 1/2 eel etc. ) which I thought was really cool. The service was great and the restaurant had a really nice ambiance! The unagi took awhile to come but I did not mind although I wish the unagi had more flavour, still yummy though! They have both an English and Japanese menu which is helpful for those who are unable to read Japanese and the menu also includes information on how to...