Eat

Kasumi Kitchen

Kasumi Kitchen is on the second floor of the Kasumigaura Exchange Center and faces Ring Ring Road, the national cycling route along Lake Kasumigaura and its lakeside. The menu brings out the best ingredients from Ibaraki and Kasumigaura under the concept of "local production for local consumption" combined with health consciousness. Menu items include the Hitachi beef tendon curry, fresh icefish rice bowl, boiled icefish rice bowl, fish burger, and minced carp cutlet burger (the menu is subject to change.) The interior is characterized by recycled supplies and furnishings from local schools that have closed down. You can also enjoy a barbecue with local ingredients without bringing anything yourself while admiring Kasumigaura's nature.

Hitachi Wagyu Beef Hitachino

This restaurant serves a range of beef dishes including yakiniku (Japanese-style grill your own meat), sukiyaki, steak and barbecue dishes. The restaurant uses Hitachi Wagyu Beef and charcoal made from oak trees grown on Mount Tsukuba.
The food isn't the only thing that draws people to Hitachino - the restaurant itself is built in a traditional Japanese style with a steep thatched roof and offers great views of the Mount Tsukuba area, whatever the time of year.

Tataki no Ikkyu Tsuchiura Branch

Tataki no Ikkyu Tsuchiura is an uncommon restaurant that combines warayaki (a cooking method that sears the surface of food with straw fire) from Kochi Prefecture and Ibaraki ingredients. The restaurant's most highly recommended dish is the fragrant warayaki bonito. Ibaraki Prefecture has a strong bonito-eating culture and the highest consumption of this fish in the entire country. Additionally, the restaurant specializes in local ingredients with a menu that includes straw-roasted Tsukuba chicken, braised Hitachi no Kagayaki (Ibaraki pork brand), fresh Kujihama whitebait, and Tsuchiura lotus root tempura. They even offer desserts made with dried sweet potatoes from Kurosawa Farm, which has a history of winning first place for its products. The restaurant is also committed to the quality of its alcohol menu, serving Japanese whiskies such as the rare Yamazaki and Hakushu, as well as Japanese sake collected from various sake breweries within the prefecture.