Otomari Chuzaemon

Cooking for myself was a refreshing change, with pretty fields right in front of the house. When I didn't feel like making food, they prepared sukiyaki or shabu-shabu with Shodoshima pork and beef. The service was excellent and there were lots of bedrooms, which was great, though the place is quite small. Besides that, it was very nice.

It felt really comfortable sitting on the low stool by the garden and looking out at the fields. The place is beautiful and has an antique feel. The bed is soft and everything seemed clean. The easy-clean wok's coating had peeled, though there was another cast iron one in the house, just heavier. Also, the left burner didn't respond, so we could only use the right one.

We had a really fun stay at Otomari Chuzaemon on Shodoshima, a whole house for rent run by Inoue Seikoen. Our package included olive pork shabu-shabu, and there was more pork than the four of us could finish. We only used two of the bedrooms, though the house can sleep up to eight. Maybe we could have fit more if we'd used the sofa too? We brought our own rice since none was provided. There weren't condiments besides the hot pot ingredients, and I thought salt and eggs would have made it even better. Shampoo and other toiletries, toothbrushes, and towels were provided. There was no breakfast, so we made rice balls from the leftover rice. When booking, I was told the door PIN would arrive by email about two weeks before the stay. It didn't come, so I called and they sent it right away.

A great fit for eight friends who like road trips and cooking. There are four bedrooms, so everyone gets some private space, and both the rooms and kitchen have lots of room. The sukiyaki dinner they provided was generous, with high-quality beef. I'd definitely come back next time I'm on Shodoshima.