Takana Rice is a local dish from Aso made by finely chopping Aso's specialty pickled takana greens, stir-frying them with oil and seasoning, then mixing them with white rice. This home-cooked meal has been enjoyed in Aso for generations and is a must-try "local gourmet" when visiting the area. Today, we introduce eateries where you can enjoy both Takana Rice and Kumamoto's specialty dago soup as a meal set. All of these establishments are located along National Route 57 (known as "Dago Soup Highway") en route to Aso from Kumamoto City, making them convenient stops during a drive.

・Ganso Takana Meshi Asoji

・Sanzoku Tabiji

・Himeji

Look for the red sign of "Ganso Takana Meshi" along National Route 57. Many people visit Aso-ji on both weekdays and holidays, looking for the taste of this long-established restaurant. It was the first restaurant to offer "Takana Rice," a dish that had been popular in every household, on a restaurant menu. The signature dish, Takana Rice, is based on the taste that the great-grandmother of the current owner, Shogo Iseri, used to make for her children as a mother's speciality. It is a simple dish of chopped takana pickled stems and bamboo shoots fried and mixed with hot rice, but it is characterized by its unique richness and depth, as it uses homemade Aso Takana pickles (aged pickles). Even now, more than 50 years after the restaurant opened, you can enjoy the same simple taste as back then.

The interior of the restaurant is spacious. From the entrance, there are table seats on the right and tatami seating on the left at the back. Outside the window you can enjoy beautiful garden scenery and the magnificent view of Mt. Aso.

The most popular menu item is the hearty "Takana Rice Set Meal (1,430 yen)" which comes with Dago Soup, soy pulp, stewed offal, and homemade pickles. In addition to Dago Soup, you can choose from pork soup, rice soup, and miso soup.

Takana Rice has an exquisite balance of crunchy and rich takana pickled stems and sweetly seasoned shredded egg. This location uses aged pickles that have been left to mature for 6 months to 2 years, and you can enjoy the taste as a set meal or as a single item. Enjoy a regular (580 yen), small (480 yen), or large (880 yen) bowl of Takana Rice.

(Left) The pickles served on the side with the set meal are all excellent, including the authentic Aso Takana pickles that are pickled in barrels by members of the family every spring, perilla berries, and other seasonal pickles. They can also be purchased in the store.

(Right) Eating Takana Rice with perilla berries on top is also delicious.

The miso-based "Dago Soup" is carefully cooked one pot at a time after the order is placed and served piping hot. The soup stock is made daily using kelp, dried sardines, mackerel flakes, and other ingredients, and is also full of vegetables such as Chinese cabbage, eggplant, carrots, and shiitake mushrooms! This recipe is also handed down from when the restaurant first opened.

(Left) The "Stewed Offal," which is simmered slowly over two days, is a popular specialty dish among regulars. Made with domestic offal, it has no unpleasant odor and a clean taste.

(Right) The "Oden" is placed in the most prominent spot in the center of the restaurant. Each ingredient is permeated with the broth that has been added to over the years. Prices start from 150 yen a piece.

In addition to the set meals, you can also enjoy Kumamoto-style dishes such as red beef teppanyaki and horse sashimi. Takana Rice, oden, and stewed offal are also available for takeout.

https://asoji.com/

Located about one minute by car from Aso Cuddly Dominion, Sanzoku Tabiji is a long-established restaurant that is celebrating its 54th year of operation this year. It has been run by owner Nagano Hiroyoshi, who used to work in agriculture, since his early 20s. When it first opened, the restaurant started with five tables, but has been expanded every year and can now accommodate 100 people, including tables and tatami mat seating. Many celebrities visit the restaurant, and it has become so famous that there are often lines even during the day on weekdays.

They have many specialty dishes, such as their special "Dago Soup" that is served piping hot after you order, and "Horumon Stew" made with precious parts of domestic pork! If you happen to catch a glimpse of the big red lantern, this is a place you should definitely stop by.

The interior of the store was built using wood from their property in the mountains they own and beams from a cowshed. The ceiling is decorated with clay bells that the owners have collected over the years, creating a lively atmosphere.

The "Dago Soup Set Meal (1,450 yen)" includes a hearty dago soup as the main dish, Takana Rice rice, and side dishes (cold tofu, yam, grated daikon radish, boiled bamboo shoots, and shiso seeds). The side dishes, such as traditional country tofu and sticky yam, are also delicious. You also have the option to switch out the Takana Rice for sanzoku rice instead.

This location's "Takana Rice" uses homemade Aso Takana pickles. The pickles are left to sit for over six months and then chopped up and mixed together, allowing you to enjoy a variety of textures, including leaves and stems, all in one dish. The rice used is the lavish and rare Aso Hikari variety.

Takana Rice is delicious as is, but we also recommend mixing it with shredded egg, pickled red ginger, and salted shiso seeds.

This is "Dagojiru" (Dago Soup), which is characterized by its rich flavor, made by blending several types of miso, including rice, barley, and red. After receiving an order, the ingredients and dagos are added to a pot of dashi, and the miso is dissolved to finish, so it can always be enjoyed fresh.

(Left) The grated ginger topping is also great. Mix it into the soup and eat it to warm your whole body! (Right) The dagos are made from domestic wheat from Kumamoto and Fukuoka, kneaded by hand and left to sit overnight. They are chewy and go perfectly with the bean sprouts, carrots, fried tofu, and other ingredients. The unique texture of the taro stalks is especially irresistable.

(Left) There are more than 800 clay bells hanging from the ceiling. Some of them were entrusted to the restaurant by customers who requested for them to be displayed!
(Right) Menus on each table. Takana Rice is also available as "onigiri", so it is popular with small children.

TEL: +81-967-34-2011

As you drive along National Route 57, a black sign reading "Aso Local Cuisine" catches your eye. Founded in 1986, Himeji is a restaurant that serves many of Kumamoto's representative local dishes, such as Aso's unique Takana Rice (green mustard stem rice) and Akagyu (red beef), as well as Dago Soup and horse sashimi, just as the sign says. All of the menu items, from set meals to a la carte dishes, are very filling. Using locally grown seasonal vegetables and rice, and painstakingly preparing dashi stock... the dishes that the owner, Tazoe, painstakingly prepares are known for never disappointing.

The restaurant has a purely Japanese atmosphere. There are both table seats and tatami seating, so even families with children can relax and unwind.

The "A Set (1,000 yen)" which comes with Takana Rice, Dago Soup, and pickles is a popular menu item among women. It is perfect for when you want to taste simple local cuisine. A wide variety of other set meals are also available, such as the B Set with stewed offal and the C Set with horse meat sashimi, so customers can pick whatever they're in the mood for when they stop by.

Takana Rice is a dish with a generous amount of Aso Takana pickles mixed in, and a perfect balance of salt and sesame flavor. The rice used is a Koshihikari variety sourced from a contracted farmer in the local Aso area, and you'll find yourself unable to resist taking another bite.

Just look at the size! The "Dago Soup" has a refined sweetness and is made with a stock made from Rausu kelp and Gintare (black cod) blended with several types of miso, and is filled with large pieces of locally grown vegetables such as burdock, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, taro, shimeji mushrooms, and pumpkin.

Dago is made by kneading flour and water, leaving it to sit for a day, and then finishing. It is flat, elastic, and chewy. Because each "Dago" is handmade and placed in the pot after an order is placed, each bowl features a variety of dagos sizes.

The "Takana Rice Set Meal (1,540 yen)" is also popular, where you can enjoy three of Himeji's signature dishes (Takana Meshi, Dago Soup, and Stewed Offal) all at once. It also comes with  small side dishes, so you'll be sure to be full.

(Left) Most of the small dishes that come with the set meals are handmade in the restaurant. The seasoning that makes the most of the ingredients is very popular.

(Right) There is a wide range of appetizing dishes on the menu, including red beef bowls and salt-grilled horse meat set meals.

https://aso-himeji.jimdofree.com/