Eat

Niwa Cafe KULA

Niwa Cafe KULA, formerly an old warehouse that's been renovated, sits in front of the gate to Kasama Inari Shrine. The shop interior, with its impressive white walls and wooden beams, combines traditional Japanese elegance with modern design, creating a warm and tranquil atmosphere. The cafe is also an ideal spot for dropping into after a visit to Kasama Inari Shrine.

The cafe menu features set meals using locally grown vegetables, alongside homemade sweets and hand drip coffee. Drinks are made with domestically produced ingredients. Here, with each and every menu item, guests can feel the careful attention to detail. Cups and dishes are made from local Kasama-yaki pottery, which has been recognized as a Japanese Heritage.

Small art events are also held irregularly on the premises, allowing visitors to enjoy Kasama's unique culture and atmosphere as they dine on tasty cuisine.

Mori no Chevre Kan

Mori no Chevre Kan is a cheese studio located inside Mito City Forest Park. Surrounded by the rich nature of the forest, this tranquil and relaxing spot is truly appealing.

Here, using fresh goat's and cow's milk, skilled craftsmen carefully make each batch of cheese by hand. The cheese features a rich, pure flavor and smooth texture.

In addition to a wide range of different cheeses, the shop also sells sweet treats including cheese tarts and ice cream. Visitors can even enjoy sampling their dairy products right in the store.

Mori no Chevre Kan has received awards not only in Japan but also at international competitions for its delicious products.

Kuri no Ie

This cafe serves an original Mont Blanc cake crafted by a pastry chef with years of experience at three-star Michelin restaurants in Paris and luxury hotels in Macau. While Mont Blanc is typically made by piping cream made from chestnuts and other ingredients over the dough, here visitors can enjoy the chef's unique "Kobore (overflowing) Mont Blanc", with its special shaved finish (also available for takeout).
In addition to the chestnut-flavored Mont Blanc, the restaurant offers a plate of sweets and a variety of cakes made with local fruits and vegetables, as well as original coffee and three types of flavored tea.
Kuri no Ie is located in a 130-year-old traditional residence that once served as the reception hall of a former village mayor who promoted chestnut cultivation in Kasama, now Japan's largest chestnut-producing region.

Masubuchi Gyoen

Masubuchi Gyoen is a restaurant with 50 years of history, where customers can catch fish and have it cooked on-site.

The charming wooden lodge, located in northern Ibaraki and surrounded by greenery, features terraced ponds where visitors can catch various seasonal fish, including rainbow trout. The rainbow trout here is often compared to salmon due to its pink-colored flesh.

Those not used to fishing can order set menus consisting of grilled fish, local vegetables, and rice. Seasonal dishes may include wild plants such as butterbur and flowering fern, vegetable and mushroom tempura, miso soup, and rainbow trout sashimi.

SEA BiRDS CAFE

Seabird's Café, adjacent to Hitachi Station, features large windows that offer a beautiful panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean and the Asahi Overpass along the coastline.
The café and station, designed by renowned architect Kazuyo Sejima from Hitachi City, showcase a unique design that has won several awards.
The menu varies depending on the time of day: in the morning, light snacks such as pancakes are served, while hearty meals are available for lunch and dinner. Popular desserts include honey caramel pancakes topped with banana and cream, as well as a chocolate cake called "Volcano," topped with ice cream and fruit.
The café also offers dishes made with local specialties and serves locally brewed Hitachino Nest Beer.

Café & Restaurant Kobun Café

Kobun Café is a café and restaurant in a great location overlooking Lake Senba in Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture. With a variety of settings, including a spacious interior, terrace, and rooftop, it offers visitors a relaxing experience. The menu features dishes made with ingredients sourced from Ibaraki Prefecture; the Hitachi beef hamburg steak and omelet made with Okukuji eggs are particularly popular.
From July to September, a BBQ beer garden is held on the rooftop, allowing guests to enjoy the night view of Lake Senba.

Saku Café

Saku Café is a café and guesthouse nestled in a lush green area surrounded by mountains in Daigo Town, Ibaraki Prefecture. Renovated from a building built in the 1970s that was originally used as a house, it offers a relaxed and warm atmosphere. This place, which provides a soothing experience for its visitors, has been highly praised for its design and local character, winning the highest award in the Ibaraki Design Selection 2018. The meals are prepared with 20 to 30 local ingredients, including homegrown vegetables and herbs.
Saku Café has become a popular destination, offering guests a chance to immerse themselves in nature while enjoying a sophisticated menu or a stylish overnight accommodations.

Okukuji Shamo Cuisine Daikon

This restaurant specializes in Okukuji Shamo chicken, a local delicacy of Daigo. It is run by the owner, who has many years of experience working with the Okukuji Shamo Producer’s Association. The charcoal-grilled chicken includes rare cuts such as seseri (chicken neck meat), sori (the base of the chicken thigh), and knee cartilage, offering a plump and juicy texture. The samgye-tang (reservation required), made with a whole Okukuji Shamo chicken, is also exquisite. Be sure to enjoy it with carefully selected sake!

Kura + Soba Nakaya

Kura + Soba Nakaya is a restaurant operated by Kiuchi Brewery, the producer of alcoholic beverages, including the internationally renowned craft beer, Hitachino Nest Beer. Located on the grounds of the main brewery, the restaurant is housed in a charmingly renovated Taisho-period warehouse. Here, you can enjoy Sotoichi soba noodles, made from Hitachi Aki Soba—a local variety of buckwheat, also cultivated as a secondary crop alongside Kaneko Golden barley, the key ingredient in Hitachino Nest Beer.

In addition to the fragrant soba noodles, the menu features dishes showcasing locally grown vegetables and premium-brand pork, perfectly paired with sake from Kiuchi Brewery.

Mito Mon no Mae

Located in front of the Eastern Gate of Kairakuen Garden, Mito Mon no Mae offers a selection of local gourmet products, souvenirs, and cuisine unique to Mito. Recommended meals include the Wara Natto Set Meal, featuring Mito's famous straw-wrapped natto and small side dishes made with local ingredients, as well as tempura carefully fried by the chef, who trained at a long-established tempura restaurant. The restaurant is operated by Mito's Yoshikubo Sake Brewery and offers local sake and plum wine. An English menu is also available.

Kissa Kajinoki

Kissa Kajinoki is a small coffee shop with a retro atmosphere, housed in a 140-year-old former grain merchant's storehouse. Antique furniture and tableware, including a brazier and milk glass lighting, evoke the charm of the past. The café also offers a wide variety of original menu items made with local products, which are popular among customers. It’s a relaxing and stylish space, perfect for enjoying a coffee or meal.

Jikyuan Geiso

Jikyuan Geiso Shiomachikan in Hitachiota City is run by the owner, who has 30 years of experience in soba-making (buckwheat noodles), having trained at the famous local restaurant Jikyuan.
Sweet local Hitachi Aki soba is coarsely ground on a special millstone to enhance the aroma. The udon noodles are also made with locally grown "Kinu no Nami" wheat, which is ground on a millstone and dried for one to two days to produce firm, dense noodles. A la carte dishes using local ingredients such as "Okukuji Yamame" (a type of trout) and locally brewed sake are also popular.
The building, a renovated former bank constructed in 1887, has a Japanese modern style that creates a nostalgic atmosphere.