On the last day of my trip to Fukuoka, I visited "Tempura Takeuchi" in Nakagawa City for lunch!This restaurant offers a course that goes beyond the typical tempura experience, featuring seasonal tempura, appetizers, sushi, and chawanmushi. It is a popular spot that is reservation only and has been selected as one of the "Top 100 Tempura Restaurants."The meal began with appetizers of horse mackerel, seaweed mozuku, and red jellyfish, followed by luxurious dishes like sashimi of freshly caught sea bream, sushi, grilled items, and chawanmushi.Among them, I was particularly surprised by the sushi, thinking, "I can't believe sushi can be this delicious at a tempura restaurant!"One standout was the red mullet marinated in kombu. Instead of sushi rice, it was served with spear squid, which added a natural sweetness that paired beautifully with the red mullet. I also enjoyed Ishigaki sea bream and young gizzard shad, leaving me completely satisfied with the sushi alone! For the grilled items, we had saury grilled with saikyo miso, oil-pickled oysters, smoked octopus, and grilled mackerel. The chawanmushi made with Hokkaido lily bulbs and snow crab, along with Ariake seaweed, was packed with umami and delicious.And finally, the tempura! We savored seasonal ingredients like shrimp heads, Japanese whiting, lotus root, Kujukuri clams, Amakusa seaweed, eggplant, okra, and Hokkaido's Queen potato. I was amazed that even after eating so much tempura, I never felt heavy. The batter was light, and hardly any oil clung to the paper. I enjoyed every bite until the end.The tempura made with Hokkaido Queen potatoes was particularly memorable. The outer batter was crispy and light, while the inside was surprisingly fluffy, allowing the natural sweetness of the potato to shine through. Frying it enhanced the sweetness even more, creating a perfect combination of texture and flavor. This simple ingredient truly showcased the deliciousness of the material.To finish, we had mizuna and whelk ohitashi, followed by a bowl of rice with pickled plum. It was an unforgettable and thoroughly satisfying lunch to conclude my trip to Fukuoka!
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