When we were visiting Shizuoka, we discovered there is more to Shizuoka than their green tea and eel. They also have their own special cantaloupe, persimmons, and guess what else? Hamburg steaks! In Japan, people eat not only hamburgers, but also hamburg steaks, without lettuce, tomato and buns. I heard that there is one restaurant in particular that offers excellent hamburg steak all around Shizuoka.

They have 30 locations only in Shizuoka! Even though there are so many locations, each of them gets pretty packed with locals. When we visited one, they had about 45 minutes of wait time. We expected the wait to be long, so it was no issue. We killed time in a nearby store selling loads of cute stuffs, and went back after about 30 minutes.

Their most popular item is their Genkotsu Hamburg Steak, or “fist” hamburg steak. Or, you can get the same thing but just a bit smaller, called Onigiri (“rice ball) Hamburg Steak. The name only reflect its size, as big as a strong man’s fist, or smaller size similar to rice ball. We went with the Onigiri Hamburg Steak. They do have option to add side of rice, bread, salad, or soup with a drink, but we didn’t get any extra.

The hamburg steak comes sizzling on iron plate, and a staff cut them in half and push the cut-side down on the plate. Thus, the cooking of the hamburg steak completes right in front of your eyes. At the end, the staff poured the sauce of your choice on top of the hamburg steaks, making them cook for a little while longer with the sauce. It was really juicy, with still a little pink left in the middle, it was not over-cooked in any way. The onion sauce was cuddling the steak so nicely, and yes, it was delicious!

Their “onigiri” size looked really small, but yet, it was super satisfying. Don’t let the look fool you. After one bite, I understood the reason why they were so popular, and the demand for more branches everywhere within Shizuoka. Read my full review of this restaurant and food on my food blog, foodlovergirl.