Okinawa Bar Haisai Naha Main Store — Restaurant in Naha

This was honestly my best dining experience during my visit to Okinawa. The decor is great, they have great vibes and a pretty good qr ordering system and the possibility for ordering a shot of Habu sake if you ring the bell on your table. The staff were super nice and they have a translated English menu which is handy. I went by myself and ordered a few items because I wanted to try a few okinawan foods.

The pork belly (Rafute on the menu) is amazing!! I highly recommend, I only ordered one so I could try other items but I definitely recommend ordering two or more 😏. I got the island rakkyo which was pretty good, you definitely need to like the flavor of onions to enjoy it. I also got the mimigo aka pigs ears, now I’ve never had pig ears in my life but the flavour of them was really good, but the texture was very interesting for me, after a while the portion felt almost too big because I’ve never had anything with quite the same chewing experience before. After these three things I ended up deciding to also order the kurumafu champuru and I highly recommend this dish, it was stir fried wonderfully so the bean sprouts kept their crispness and even though the English translation of “wheat gluten” doesn’t sound appetizing I would compare the texture to like a firm tofu and similar to tofu it keeps the flavor of the stir fry wonderfully.

All in all a wonderful experience, absolutely get the rafute and the Kurumafu champuru those were the stand outs for me; and if you can be weird with textures like me maybe skip the pig ears unless you come with someone else who likes the texture and can...

If you are seeing this review, you are currently at the gates to heaven. Food heaven, that is. The place? quaint. The prices? affordable. But as soon as any menu item touches your lips, the gates open and you will ascend into culinary bliss. We each ordered a fruit cocktail, and well, you might have well have just squeezed the grapefruit straight into my mouth, so fresh. I ordered an Okinawan appetizer, flavorful and delicious, truly a party for our tastebuds. For my main course, the famed Okinawan soba. At first, I wondered if a non-soba would be a good choice for my first taste. However, after tasting this heaven, I just don’t know if I will ever be able to eat regular soba again. When I tell you the meat melted, MELTED, in my mouth as the atmospheric Okinawa music played... it was truly an honor. We devoured everything. Our plates are clean but our souls are full. Amazing first meal in Okinawa, we will be back and so should you. (I know this review sounds dramatic, but you should know I NEVER write reviews. I was just so inclined after such an inspiring unforgettable...

Absolutely loved my experience at this izakaya. When I arrived, the place was almost full, but I managed to get a seat. Even though it was busy, the atmosphere was still relaxed and enjoyable. This izakaya is foreigner friendly. Although the staff doesn't really speak English, they will provide wifi password and the menu in English so you can order via QR code, which turned out to be super easy. I came to this place because they serve traditional Okinawan dishes. I ordered umibudo (sea grapes), mimiga (pig ears), shikwasa tako-wasa (raw octopus with Okinawan lime sauce) and chichen karaage. Everything was delicious. I also ordered Okinawan drinks, namely awamori sour and Niisato whisky highball which I truly enjoyed. Cannot recommend this place enough ✨️

Ps. No table charge (otoshi) and card...