Matsuyama Kitakyushu

Fukuoka Cuisine ② August 23, 2026 (Sun) 12:00 PM Tabelog 4.42 2026 SILVER 2025 Top 100 Restaurants 2019 Michelin Star 2026 Go-E-Miyo 3 Tock Today's lunch is here! It's been a while since my last visit. It takes 18 minutes by local train from Kokura Station. Get off at Kurosaki Station and walk for about 7-8 minutes. The menu consists of an Omakase course only. < Menu > 1. Cold Yamame Tea Served as a pre-meal tea. 2. Somen Handmade ice bowl made with shaved ice. Using "Yoshii Somen" from Ukiha City, Fukuoka Prefecture, without any oil. Served with shrimp, crushed okra, and red sea urchin. Enjoy the remaining broth with a glass straw. 3. Chilled Summer Vegetable Soup Served as a light dish. Fresh cucumber, myoga, shiso, nagaimo, and sesame. Accompanied by freshly cooked rice from a clay pot. 4. Freshly Shaved Bonito (front) and Dried Tuna 5. First Broth 6. Eel Tofu Soup Made with the first broth mixed with wasabi. Thickened to prevent the wasabi particles from settling. The tofu is grilled. 7. Shima Aji from Kagoshima Served with Okinawan salt, Tosa soy sauce infused with bonito aroma, or homemade ponzu. 8. Hassun - Fried lotus root - Grilled breast meat of Heian Koji chicken aged for 3 weeks - Edamame - Summer vegetable jelly - Octopus from Kanmon Strait, marinated in kombu broth with salt below 60 degrees for about a minute, seasoned with salt and sesame oil. 9. Tataki of Sirloin Cap from Nozaki Beef, Kagoshima Topped with myoga, round green onions from Yasuoka in Shimonoseki, coarsely grated daikon, and finely chopped apple. Drizzled with ginger soy sauce. The excess fat is massaged with Kyoto's Chidori vinegar for a refreshing taste. 10. Grilled Fig Soaked in salt water for about 10 minutes before grilling over charcoal. 11. Soft-Shelled Turtle Chawanmushi 12. Freshly Cooked Rice from a Clay Pot 13. Pickled Egg Yolk and Iriko 14. Karashi Takana 15. Mentaiko 16. Miso Soup 17. Pickles 18. Shizuoka Prefecture's Amane Melon, Miyazaki Prefecture's Mango, and Homemade Ice Cream The mango is a rare variety called "Palmero." Topped with soda jelly. 19. Matcha 20. Candied Ginger and Salt It was a delightful experience at "Matsuyama" after a long time, not only delicious but also enjoyable. Less

I had a meal at Oryori Matsuyama in Kurosaki, Kitakyushu.Tabelog Rating: 4.41 Tabelog Award 2026 Silver Selected as one of Tabelog's Top 100 Japanese Restaurants in the WEST for 2025.Let’s enjoy Matsuyama after a long time.- Ice-brewed Yame Gyokuro✨ It calms my heated body.- Somen from Ukiha, Fukuoka This somen is made without oil, unlike the usual ones that use oil during the stretching process. ☝️ You can enjoy the natural flavor of the wheat, its smooth texture, and the unique throat feel. This somen is paired with a slightly thickened dashi made from bonito and soft-shelled turtle.✨ Topped with an abundant amount of Hagi saltwater red sea urchin ♥️❤️ It’s incredibly sweet, with about JPY 6000-7000 worth of red sea urchin per person. Heavenly from the first bite.- Karasumi Mochi ❤️ The owner carefully grills it for you. It’s undeniably delicious.- Freshly shaved Bonito flakes As usual, both ara-bushi and honkarebushi. I want to share this with my Rita.- Homemade sesame tofu and a bowl with new lotus root from Shiroishi, Saga The dashi is made from bonito. The lotus root is lightly grilled over charcoal to absorb some flavor. The cutting style is designed to enhance the crunchy texture rather than a sticky feel.- A 1.7m long swordfish from Kinko Bay, Kagoshima An ultra-large dragon measuring eight fingers wide. Served with wasabi and salt kombu, or momiji oroshi and ponzu. The most delicious swordfish from Kinko Bay. Matsuyama's exquisite cooking technique is remarkable, with a rare center and a strong sweetness.- This month's Hassun Since it's July, we celebrate Tanabata. 1) Representing the Milky Way, the bamboo plate features chilled summer vegetables in a delicious broth. Steamed lotus root, pumpkin, boiled okra, grilled eggplant, and more, each paired with a suitable dashi. Finally topped with dashi jelly.✨ 2) Fried sandfish and edamame from Minami-ku, Kitakyushu Sandfish is in season❣️ Crispy and delicious.3) Fukuoka's fig "Toyomitsuhime" Drizzled with vinegar made from soybean flour, topped with a mix of five types of crushed nuts combined with brown sugar. A sweet and salty "addictive powder"❗ "Kitakyushu's addictive powder"‼️ The chef emphasized it for a repeat.This place is dangerous!4) Wrapped in bamboo leaves is minced Hiraikouji chicken mixed with sweet pickled myoga and sushi vinegar, served with rice.Matsuyama's seasonal Hassun is always beautiful.- Ayu from the Tenryu River I absolutely love Matsuyama's ayu ♥️❤️ While the origin is important, the grilling technique is even more crucial. ☝️ With larger ayu, a bit of charring is fine since the overall flavor is robust, but with smaller ayu, if it gets too blackened, it loses the delicate bitterness of the fish. Thus, it is carefully grilled while constantly checking its condition. The fins cannot be burnt, and to avoid an overpowering saltiness, no finishing salt is used.The green sauce is made from wild pepper, finished with rice oil for a smooth, oily texture.The light green sauce is made from cucumber, using Japanese mustard for a slight kick.Mmm, it’s still delicious. You can fully enjoy the natural flavor of the ayu from head to tail.They mentioned that ayu will no longer be served after July, and from August, there will be more flexibility in the dishes. It requires that much attention.Here, I had a black beer from Sendai called "BAEREN SCHWARZ."To cleanse the palate, I enjoyed local watermelon, Wakamatsu Queen, for a refreshing touch.- Chawanmushi made with local turban shell The turban shell is vacuum-cooked with kombu dashi. The delicious essence of the turban shell is used to make a homemade garlic butter sauce with local garlic.- Tempura made from night-harvested corn from Wakamatsu Corn stores nutrients (sweetness) through photosynthesis. Once photosynthesis begins, the sweetness decreases, so it is harvested at midnight.✨Here, I paired it with "Eshikoto Awa" from Kuro-ryu.The other tempura is seasoned with truffle salt.✨- Rice dishes 1) Miso soup Made with wakame from Aijima, Kitakyushu, and unpressed yudofu. 2) Homemade mentaiko 3) Meat miso made with sirloin from Nozaki beef in Kagoshima 4) Rice topped with egg yolk from Hiraikouji chicken.The crispy rice pairs perfectly with the accompaniments. The egg over rice is also superb!- Rare variety mango "Palmero" from Miyazaki A delicate flavor that is a cross between peach and mango, created by a team of six like the Avengers.✨ Simply served with Jersey milk ice cream and cider jelly. Here, I had Hungarian Tokaji dessert wine.- Matcha It was a great meal.A thoroughly satisfying day trip dinner. Matsuyama plans to retire in five years, so I must visit every year to enjoy ayu. Less

Oryori MatsuyamaI can honestly say I came to Fukuoka just for this place, my beloved Oryori Matsuyama.I was fortunate enough to visit around the same time last year as well.The ayu (sweetfish) season is simply the best.Thank you so much.It’s been a year since my last visit to Matsuyama, and I’ve been looking forward to this.It’s great to see Chef Matsuyama and the owner in good spirits.First, we enjoyed the chilled Yame Gyokuro tea, which helped cool us down from the hot weather outside.For the appetizer, we had cold somen noodles.What a divine presentation!The red sea urchin on top is a rare delicacy from Mishima Port, known for its saltwater flavor.Unlike board sea urchin, this red sea urchin has no bitterness due to the absence of alum.The word "sweet" was made for this red sea urchin, I whispered to myself.The broth is a delightful blend of bonito and soft-shelled turtle stock, creating a wonderful thickness that pairs perfectly with the red sea urchin.It’s like the engine is running at full throttle right from the start!The somen noodles, made by Nagao Seimen, are oil-free and healthy, allowing you to enjoy the natural flavor of the wheat without any oxidation smell.They are incredibly smooth, kneaded with pure well water from Ukiha and aged overnight.They also don’t become mushy when boiled, offering a delightful texture.Next, we had the specialty of Karasumi Mochi.The karasumi inside the mochi has been aged for a year and a half.The owner’s consistent grilling gives it a beautiful, elegant char.The visual is stunning, and the delicate flavor of the aged karasumi is exquisite.It’s a specialty that’s delicious even in summer.For the soup dish, we had new lotus root, grilled to reduce moisture and concentrate the flavor, giving it a crispy texture.Underneath was sesame tofu, and the broth made from skipjack tuna and bonito was incredibly delicate and refined.For sashimi, we had grilled swordfish from Kagoshima’s Kinko Bay, weighing 5 kg and measuring 1.8 meters.This fatty, tender swordfish is packed with umami, truly captivating the hearts of drinkers ❤️.For sake, we enjoyed DATE7seven SEA SON II, Yamawa style, and Koganezawa style.The DATE SEVEN project is a collaborative brewing initiative involving seven breweries from Miyagi Prefecture, aiming to challenge the world with the concept "All Miyagi, challenging the world" this year.The leaders use the same rice and standards to brew, expressing deliciousness while highlighting each brewery's individuality.For the 8-dish course, we had:- Ten no Kawa (Milky Way) with edamame from Kitakyushu- Amakusa chicken rice- Pumpkin and Kumamoto red eggplant simmered- Micro tomatoes- Agar brothGrilled ayu (sweetfish) with watermelon, a sauce made from tatena, and cucumber sauce, grilled over charcoal from the Tenryu River.The skill in grilling the ayu is almost magical.We were also served a stout beer from Baeren in Morioka, perfectly paired with the ayu.What a thoughtful touch!For chawanmushi (savory egg custard), we had Hirako jidori chicken and turban shell, with garlic butter.The turban shell was low-temperature cooked for 6 hours and then returned to the egg mixture.Next, we had corn tempura with salt and truffle salt, paired with Rococo beer, blended with tahini and sesame oil.For the main course, we enjoyed clay pot rice.This silver rice is simply irresistible.I could eat it on its own.The second serving included some crispy bits, reminding me how grateful I am to be Japanese.We also had red miso soup with wakame from Aijima and yudofu.For the rice accompaniment, we had the yolk of Hirako jidori chicken eggs with sweetly cooked chopped shiitake from Soeda Town in Fukuoka.We also had Shigure-ni made from "Nozaki beef," raised by the renowned beef artisan Mitsuhiro Nozaki.Oryori Matsuyama’s special mentaiko (spicy cod roe).For pickles, we had nuka-zuke (rice bran pickles), sweet vinegar pickles, and narazuke (Nara-style pickles).For dessert, we enjoyed mango with pamelo, Jersey cow ice cream, and cider jelly.We finished with matcha from Yame tea and konpeito (sugar candy).It was a delightful experience.It was a great meal, and I was truly impressed by the wonderful dishes.I will definitely visit again, so thank you in advance! Less

As summer temperatures rise, the heat in front of the grill also increases. Grilling young sweetfish requires a lot of focus and stamina. Therefore, they mentioned wanting to end the sweetfish season by the end of June next year.This is the sweetfish from Tenryu. I enjoyed every part of it, from head to tail. The bitterness of the innards paired perfectly with the dark beer. It was a great match.What surprised me was the dragon-sized ribbonfish served with wasabi and salted kombu kelp. It was so delicious that I can't even describe it. I was completely hooked.The karasumi mochi had a large piece of dried mullet roe inside the mochi. The hassun (seasonal appetizer) was also delightful. The hot fried whiting was incredibly tasty. They used Miyazaki's free-range chicken, Hiraikouji chicken, minced and mixed with rice, which is quite rare.The sea urchin somen was exquisite. The generous serving of red sea urchin from Hagi was the best. Indeed, saltwater sea urchin is delicious.I enjoyed two types of corn tempura.What a wonderful experience! Less

Somen with Soft-Shelled Turtle Broth and Red Sea Urchin from Hagi 1.5-Year Aged Karasumi Mochi Sesame Tofu with Fresh Lotus Root and Tuna Broth Spanish Mackerel 【Appetizer】(Forgot to take a photo) Chilled Summer Vegetable Nimono Freshly Fried Whiting and Edamame Minced Hiyoko Chicken Rice Fig with Kinako Vinegar and more Sweetfish Dark Green: Sauce with Wasabi Light Green: Sauce with Japanese Mustard and Cucumber Chawanmushi with Sea Snail and Hiraikou Chicken Egg Two Types of Fried Corn, Harvested at Night Rice Miso Soup with Yudofu and Seaweed Palmero and Milk Ice Cream with Cider Jelly The salt-grilled sweetfish from the Tenryu River is truly impressive. The chef emphasizes that delicious salt-grilled sweetfish cannot be made from dead fish, and his strong conviction and dedication are evident in his grilling technique. The Karasumi Mochi is of such high quality that it feels too good to serve at the beginning of the meal. There are many exquisite dishes here that you can only enjoy at this restaurant. Less

On this day, I finally visited Oryori Matsuyama, a place I had wanted to try for a long time.I went solo and had a wonderful experience. The restaurant was small, but that made it easy to enjoy great conversation and a fantastic meal even as a solo diner. I later learned that the thoughtful arrangement of the seating and the attentive service were intentional choices, which made the experience even better.I was fortunate to chat with a regular customer, which added to my enjoyment.Honestly, it might be expected for a restaurant with such high ratings, but everything was incredibly delicious.Additionally, I really appreciated the chef's philosophy, which resonated with me, making this a favorite spot.The overall satisfaction I felt at the end of the meal, which I often think about when enjoying Japanese cuisine, was truly excellent.I definitely want to return in a different season.It was a great meal! Reservation method: OMAKASECourse price: JPY 38,500Duration: About 2 hoursReservation difficulty: Newcomers can manage to get a spot with some effortOrder: Various drinks including Japanese sake and non-alcoholic beerTotal bill: JPY 45,100 Less