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Chuzenji Kanaya Hotel Dining Room "Mizunara

The "Hyakunen Rice Curry," a secret flavor of the Kanaya Hotel

Chuzenji Kanaya Hotel is located on the shores of Lake Chuzenji in Oku-Nikko. Nestled in the forest by the lake, the hotel has a dining room "Mizunara" where you can enjoy lunch in a relaxed atmosphere.
A particularly recommended menu item is the "Hyakunen Rice Curry. The "Nikko Kanaya Hotel," which is affiliated with the hotel, has a history of serving rice curry as a vegetable dish in its course meals since the Meiji and Taisho periods. The name "Hyakunen Rice Curry" comes from a recipe from those days found in the hotel storehouse and recreated by a veteran chef after much trial and error.
The main feature of this dish is that the ingredients and sauce are prepared separately and combined just before eating. The sauce also contains coconut milk and dill pickle juice, and the mild and deep flavor created by the sweet, sour, and spicy flavors is worth the trouble of coming all the way out here. Rice is served with sautéed beef, and a generous amount of curry roux is poured over it in the current Chuzenji Kintani Hotel style.

Local specialty ingredients prepared in the style of Japanese Western cuisine

The “Seasonal Special Lunch” menu lets you choose between a meat or fish main course. Both options are crafted with great care in cooking methods and seasoning, based on the concept of showcasing ingredients sourced locally from Tochigi Prefecture and the Lake Chuzenji area—such as “ayu” (sweetfish) from the Nakagawa River and “Nasu Kogen Pork.”Prepared with time and care using seasonal ingredients, the flavors embody the essence of Japanese-style Western cuisine.

Local Guide
Supporters

The “Sautéed Nikko Rainbow Trout” is a hearty dish, and its slightly sweet sauce makes you want to eat it with rice. It’s the kind of dish that makes you appreciate Western-style cuisine.

A grove of mizunara trees stretches outside the Restaurant's windows, and from mid-October you can enjoy your meal while admiring the magnificent autumn leaves.

Chuzenji Kintani Hotel Dining Room "Mizunara

• 2482 Nakamiya-sha, Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture MAP
• From JR Nikko Station or Tobu Nikko Station, take the Tobu Bus bound for Yumoto Hot Spring. 1 hour ride and get off at Chuzenji Kanaya Hotel and walk for 1 minute.
• Lunch 12:00-14:00(L.O.)
  Breakfast 7:30 - 9:30 (L.O.)
  Dinner (reservation required)18:00-20:00(L.O.)
• No holidays
• 0288-51-0001
• Free of charge

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Pure handmade soba Katsura

Throaty, thinly sliced handmade soba noodles

The restaurant is famous for its Sotoichi soba (buckwheat noodles), which are made with a ratio of 10 buckwheat flour to 1 starch. The soba is thinly sliced but has a firm texture, and is well known for its robust texture that allows you to fully enjoy the flavor of the soba. The buckwheat flour is a blend of four types, including Kanuma buckwheat flour from Tochigi Prefecture, Hitachi buckwheat flour from Ibaraki Prefecture, and buckwheat flour from Hokkaido. The combination of the flours is adjusted according to the season and the condition of the buckwheat flour, to ensure a smooth texture. The soup, which goes well with soba, is a combination of soup stock made from kelp, shiitake mushrooms, and five types of fish stock, and kaeshi, a refreshing and crisp flavor.

The soba, as well as yuba umani (fried yuba) and tempura, are also delicious and highly recommended. The "Sobagaki Set" shown in the photo includes handmade soba, yuba umani (fried yuba), and fried soba gaki (buckwheat paste), which is an original creation of the owner, so you can enjoy a rich taste of Nikko's typical flavors. Sobagaki is kneaded to order, and the fluffy texture of the freshly fried buckwheat matched with the aroma of fresh, sweet buckwheat makes it a unique dish.

Local Guide
Supporters

When you come here, you should definitely try the "soba gaki" (buckwheat noodles)! It is freshly fried and soaked in hot soup, crispy on the surface, tender and chewy on the inside, and rich in buckwheat aroma. It was also delicious with a luxurious sprinkling of yuzu (a Japanese citrus fruit).

Trout dishes you should try when you visit Nikko

The area around Lake Chuzenji is famous for its trout dishes, and one of the most popular is "grilled rainbow trout with salt," which is a simple way to enjoy the taste of the fresh ingredients as they are. The white flesh of the trout is elegant and unctuous, with just the right amount of salt. Katsura purchases rainbow trout raised in the clear mountain water under the Iroha slope all year round.
Other a la carte dishes include "maitake vegetable tempura," "yuba no umani (fried yuba)," and, depending on availability, "hime trout grilled with salt.

From the entrance on the first floor, where you can watch the soba noodle making process through the glass, go up the stairs to the second floor. The view of Lake Chuzenji beyond the front glass window catches the eye. The Nantai and Shiranesan mountains are in the background, and it is a wonderful feeling to enjoy aromatic soba noodles while feeling the cool breeze blowing across the water. In spring, the pink Oyamazakura cherry trees bloom by the side of the restaurant, and in fall, the autumn leaves along the lakeside are a feast for the eyes.
The nearby Chuzenji Tachiki-kannon (Goddess of Mercy) and Utagahama beach are perfect places to stop by between sightseeing tours.

Pure Handmade Soba, Katsura

• 2482 Nakamiya-sha, Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture MAP
• From JR or Tobu Nikko Station, take the Tobu Bus bound for Chuzenji Onsen or Yumoto Onsen (about 50 minutes), get off at Chuzenji Onsen Bus Stop, and walk about 15 minutes.
• 11:00-15:30
  Ends when soba is sold out.
• No regular holidays from December to March
• 0288-55-0238
• Free prefectural parking available

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European Roman Museum Chez Hoshino

Authentic French courses that can be enjoyed in a casual manner

Chez Hoshino is located in an ideal location by Lake Chuzenji, and its southern French-style exterior is eye-catching. Chef Hoshino opened this restaurant in 1991 to bring back to life the culture of the lakeside area, which was once lined with foreign villas and developed as an international summer resort. The restaurant offers a wide range of dishes, from beautiful and colorful creative French courses to casual a la carte dishes, using ingredients loved and nurtured in the region, as well as Date chicken from Fukushima Prefecture, which the chef fell in love with.

The lunch course is a prix fixe type with a choice of hors d'oeuvre and main dish. The hors d'oeuvre in the photo is "Marinated Yashio Trout. You can enjoy the elegant texture of the high-quality fat. The main course is "Date Chicken Roti with Garlic Butter. Chef Hoshino has been using Date chicken since the opening of the restaurant, and he praises it highly, saying, "It has a chewy texture like French Bresse chicken, and the texture and flavor that makes it fall apart is unique. Roasted to a golden brown, it is a luxurious dish served with bouillon escargot (escargot butter) and ratatouille.

Local Guide
Supporters

I had the prix fixe B course, and the hors d'oeuvre of "hot spring egg with raw yuba" was a first for me, with the tender egg and slippery yuba dipped in olive oil sauce.

A la carte dishes such as spaghetti and chicken curry are also available.

Another great feature is the extensive à la carte menu—perfect for those looking for a lighter lunch—which includes options like “Hamburg Steak” and “Chicken Curry.”That day’s “Spaghetti of the Day” was a creamy sauce featuring Yashio trout and mushrooms, seasoned with just the right amount of salt. Yashio trout is a selectively bred variety of rainbow trout, and Chez Hoshino specifically uses “Premium Yashio Trout,” a branded variety that meets seven strict criteria.

This location overlooking the lake was originally the site of a restaurant run by Chef Hoshino's father. Chef Hoshino decided to open a Western-style restaurant to revitalize the village of Oku Nikko, where he was born and raised, and trained at the famous French restaurant "Auberge" in Utsunomiya City. The dishes served at Chez Hoshino are filled with his love of local ingredients and his passion for Nikko, which is why many repeat customers come back season after season to enjoy the flavors of his cuisine.

European Roman Museum Chez Hoshino

• 2478 Nakamiya-sha, Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture MAP
• From JR Nikko Station or Tobu Railway Tobu Nikko Station, take the bus bound for Yumoto Onsen (Yumoto Hot Spring) about 50 minutes, get off at Tachiki-Kannon (Tachiki-Kannon) and walk about 5 minutes.
• Lunch 11:30-15:00 (L.O.), Dinner 18:00-20:00
• Thursdays
• 0288-55-0212
• Free of charge