Ichiraku Onsen Hotel

The food was a highlight. We had Ise-Shima spiny lobster sashimi and shark fin soup for a reasonable price, and the Chinese dishes were tasty. I'd heard they also run Chinese restaurants in Shinsaibashi and Umeda in Osaka, which may explain the quality. Staff were friendly and took time to explain the dishes. Breakfast was less satisfying, with only tekone sushi or rice porridge instead of a buffet. The hotel is beside Ago Bay, just after the scenic Ise-Shima Pearl Bridge, and the view is magnificent. Getting there takes a while, though, and the final road is so narrow that only one car can pass at a time. Parking has a small asphalt section and a larger, easy-to-use gravel area. The bath called a large public bath is small, with room for about five people in the washing area and five in the indoor bath. There was no sauna or open-air bath, and I'm skeptical of the claim that the water comes from Sakakibara Onsen. It's also outside, which is inconvenient and must be cold in winter. Seeing the stars in the countryside was a consolation. The main building and annex have a very unusual look. The lobby decor feels like the owner's personal taste, and the restaurant is huge, with a high ceiling, wedding-hall style lights, a stage marked "Happy Birthday," concert-sized speakers, an enormous TV from an unfamiliar maker, children's play equipment, and large paintings that could be from the Nitten (Japan Fine Arts Exhibition). There's even laundry drying beside the kitchen. It's a chaotic scene unlike what you'd usually see in a Japanese hotel, though it makes more sense if you think of a privately run inn expanded to hotel size. I'd heard it was run by Chinese people, which seemed to fit the mix of Chinese and Japanese food. If you focus on the meal, it feels like a high-class Chinese restaurant. I stayed at Ichiraku Onsen Hotel for the first time. The entrance and interior furnishings were so mismatched that I was taken aback.