Mikuniya

We were very satisfied with the price, which seemed surprisingly low given how costs have risen. Our prawn dinner plan came with a wide range of well-seasoned dishes, including sea bream, conger eel and octopus as well as prawns. Breakfast was a tasty Japanese set meal. The Japanese-style room was spacious for two at eight tatami mats. The toilet, with an attached sink, was also roomy at three tatami mats. A river runs behind the hotel, bringing in a nice breeze that made it a relaxing place to stay. We ate in the kappo dining area on the first floor.

The restaurant is proud of its fresh seafood and seaside hospitality, even though it's in rural Japan. It is about a 20-minute drive from Pacific Blue Golf Course on the other side of Kunisaki City. The owner, Yumiko Sato, was born in 1956. The clean inn has seven rooms and a beautiful garden, and was newly built about 25 years ago. Rates are around 7,000 yen per person, with rooms including dinner and breakfast around 17,400 yen. The menu offers sake, snacks and shochu. A large bottle of Jihye Miin sake costs 6,600 yen, so it's not especially cheap. Guests can also have sashimi and shabu-shabu made with Kurumaebi from Himeshime Village.

This was about four years ago, during the COVID-19 pandemic, so maybe things have changed. Dinner was available until 8 PM, and we asked to start early at 7. We were looking forward to the fugu course at this kappo restaurant. The food was delicious and we were enjoying ourselves, but around 8:30 PM a female staff member came in angrily. She said she was already making the rice porridge for the final course and that the hot pot ingredients would be thrown away if we didn't eat them. She seemed worried about the time, but I never expected this treatment at a place taking dinner orders until 8 PM, especially one calling itself a kappo restaurant. It's still the worst experience I've had across dozens of hotel stays. The landlady later apologized for rushing us. Still, I wonder if she was making fun of us because we looked like a young couple, and whether locals, especially notable guests, get treated the same way. I don't usually like writing criticism, but I still can't believe it. I also wish the staff had known that Nishi no Seki, the local sake from Kunisaki, is often sweet. I phoned to ask whether they had a dry version, but even after checking among themselves, they couldn't tell me if it was sweet or dry. The room smelled of drainage. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, I stayed in a room with an accessible bathroom, but the step at the bathroom entrance was fairly high. There were no amenities like shampoo in the bathroom, so I had to use the public bath. That also felt like a poor fit for a traditional Japanese inn. The public bath was small, and the water was lukewarm and cold.

My family and I visited during the August Obon holiday, and everyone was very happy with the meal. The food was absolutely delicious, just what you'd hope for at a traditional Japanese inn. Even the kids were pleased with the adult meals. Maybe we're just not used to spending much, but we thought it was wonderful. We want to come back, so I'll save up for the trip. Thanks to everyone at the inn!