Amayadori no Yado Ujo Soan

The bed in Zuiu, the newly renovated special building, was nice, and there was a wide selection of yukata. The food was delicious too. But three of the four things described on the official site didn’t match what I found. The living room was supposed to have a large screen and projector, but there was no sound. It works as a TV, so at least there’s no TV noise. The bedroom was fine. The bathroom was described as having a glass ceiling with a view of the stars on clear nights, but when I looked up, there was a bamboo blind. The tea room was meant to have tea utensils so guests could enjoy a tea ceremony without worrying about etiquette. There weren’t any. When I asked, the kettle was moldy and unusable, so we had to use hot water from a kettle. For some reason, they brought just one cup of matcha for us to share. They asked if I wanted another cup and some tea snacks, but I declined because I didn’t want to make them go back and forth. I wish they’d brought those from the start, since I’d been looking forward to making tea. The moldy kettle was left in the living room sink. I didn’t want to go near it, and wish they’d removed it. We could use the bath at the sister inn, Kashoen. The instructions and guide said to bring only a bath towel, but we also needed our own towels, so we went back to get them. There was a cockroach in the tea room. The staff came right away when we contacted them and took care of it. I couldn’t get through to the front desk however many times I called, so I rang the official number from my cell. I heard the person with the phone had it on silent. The Wi-Fi password we got was wrong, so it took a while to connect. When a staff member came into the room, we were changing and the door was unlocked, which seemed to make them feel apologetic. On the way to the Kusamakura reading room, we got caught in a huge spiderweb three times. A staff member we met later was surprised by how much web was stuck on my head. I’d seen on social media that the fireplace had been lit, but it wasn’t ready yet and we couldn’t use it.

The story behind the inn comes through well, and the food is beautifully presented and tastes perfect. The service felt a little weak, and the bath was nothing special. Still, the food and the story were excellent and really moving. I’d like to visit again. And if you forget your lunch, don’t forget your umbrella.

The food had improved so much since our first visit in the summer two years ago. We requested the season’s first live squid, which was vigorously spouting water and lifted our spirits. It was crunchy, sweet, and savory, just superb. The sea bream soup, sashimi of rock oysters, sea bream and turban shells, abalone stew, smoked sea bass, and firefly squid rice kept the delicious seafood dishes coming. The Tajima beef steak with its excellent sansho pepper sauce was outstanding too. Breakfast the next morning impressed us even more. The Tajima beef shabu-shabu, rolled omelet, and grilled Spanish mackerel were especially good. I even had three servings of freshly cooked rice. The lounge and spa in the adjacent building were relaxing and enjoyable as well. The waitress remembered us from our previous visit and again gave us impeccable, warm, smiling hospitality. It was truly heartwarming, thank you. The feeling from such a satisfying trip will stay with me for a long time.

Set between mountains and the sea, this inn was quiet and peaceful, a good choice for enjoying the scenery and food without being disturbed. The landlady’s cooking and the rooms were excellent.