Why Japan’s Non-Bookable Restaurants Are the New Chic
Inside an Okinawa restaurant where the sea decides what you eat.
Although far in distance, this place feels strangely close to me. The freshness of the air reminds me of my childhood and there is something about the simplicity of it all that feels familiar. Perhaps that is what I look for when searching for these places. Not somewhere that feels like home as such, but somewhere that takes me places and leaves me daydreaming about it.
Do you ever get sick of restaurants that feel like you could be anywhere? London, New York, Paris, beautiful interiors, menus you’ve already seen hundreds of times. Great if you want to play it safe. However, when travelling somewhere as far away and as different as Iriomote, I don’t really want to play it safe. I want something local, something that can’t be found anywhere else.
Iriomote is a little island in Okinawa, covered in jungle, waterfalls and pristine beaches. It’s one of those places you don’t really picture when you think about Japan. The quietness of the island makes you feel like words don’t really matter. Surrounded by so much nature, you feel small. Not in an insignificant way, but in a humbling way. It reminds you that you are part of something much larger.
You can’t really plan to dine here weeks in advance. It’s somewhere you stumble upon. I questioned, is this actually a restaurant? Where’s the sign? We took off our shoes and entered his dining room. Scattered along the walls and surfaces, were his personal belongings. The treasures he chose to display. It almost felt intrusive, but in a very inviting way.
The space seems quaint, but once you realise that one man is behind it all, the excitement really kicks in. The owner does everything himself. He trained in the refined kitchens of Kansai, but chose to build a life here instead. To him this isn’t just about owning a restaurant, it’s about the process of the meal. Waking before the day has begun, he heads out into the pacific saltwater, catching whatever the sea decides to give him. “This is what I caught today, so this is what you’re eating.” A nightmare to a fussy eater but a total dream to me.
The fish was so fresh nothing like I eat back home. I felt almost honoured to know exactly where the fish had come from and the hands who caught it. It had been swimming in the water around the island that morning, caught by the same person who was now preparing it. That to me, is the real farm to table, or sea to table in this case. I imagine him out there early in the morning, reeling in the wriggling fish whilst thinking about what dish he is going to create that day. There is no need for a menu when the sea has already decided what you’re having. Okinawa is one of the world’s Blue Zones and I couldn’t help wonder, if I ate like this every day, would I become part of that statistic?
Before we arrive somewhere, we look up restaurants, book months in advance, find the menu, read hundreds of reviews and sometimes even decide what we’re going to order before we’ve walked through the door. Sure, there’s something nice about knowing what to expect, but that’s not what I’m looking for when I travel. Is it Comfortable? Yes. But is it exciting? Not so much.
This experience belongs to the island. That’s what’s special about it, it invites you to step into someone else’s world and for a little while, become part of it too.
Another little pin on the map for my private atlas. Not somewhere to tick off, but somewhere to remember. If you want to discover more of these places with me, subscribe to In the OSI. I’ve got plenty more and I’m excited to share them with you.
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Loved reading about this! Such a beautiful representation of meeting people, and a culture, where THEY are, instead of expecting it to meet us.