A note on the words: higaeri onsen is a natural hot spring open to day-use visitors as well as overnight guests. Sakizuke is a starter platter of small seasonal appetizers, here featuring regional specialties like Shinshu salmon and freshwater char (iwana). Shioyaki of ayu is sweetfish salted and grilled over fire, while heyashoku refers to dinner served privately in the guest room rather than in a communal banquet hall.
Table of Contents hide
Uruoi Kan on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hello, this is Hangover Meshi. With further business keeping me in Nagano, the inn I stayed at this time was Susobanakyo Onsen Uruoi Kan, located fairly close to Zenkoji Temple. It is a facility that also opens its baths for higaeri onsen (a day-use hot spring). Not that I should complain when someone else booked the lodging for me, ha, but looking at the exterior, I had the impression that it might feel like staying at a slightly rundown sento (public bathhouse), ha. Yet once I went inside and looked at the room, it was quite clean and neat, and that contrast was really nice.
Dinner was to be held in a banquet space, and breakfast the next morning in the second-floor restaurant, apparently.
I went to take a quick peek at the second-floor restaurant, and there were plenty of delicious-looking dishes on offer; that raised my expectations a bit.
Starting with dinner, there is a large bowl of sakizuke (appetizers), along with meat and a soup bowl.
Just cut off on the far right is tomatoes simmered in syrup. They are sweet and delicious.
As for what is in the sakizuke: under the closed lid at the top left are figs simmered in soy; moving down, roast duck, edamame tofu with shrimp and nagaimo (mountain yam), and romano beans in sesame; wrapped up at the very top is a a small rolled tortilla; and right in the middle is sashimi of Shinshu salmon and iwana (char). Having freshwater fish for sashimi really feels distinctly like Nagano, which is wonderful! Delicious.
Then, opening the bowl at the bottom left, there were noodles! Lovely. It is okra soba. Being in Nagano after all, soba is delicious, ha.
Shioyaki of ayu (sweetfish grilled with salt). The salt is sprinkled a little heavily, but the sweetfish is delicious.
It was good, but unfortunately some time had passed since it was prepared, so it had gone a bit stiff, which was a shame.
Fresh off the grill, you could probably eat it right from the head. You can eat the belly of an ayu too.
Here and there, the meal is surprisingly stylish, ha.
Ratatouille wrapped in a crepe. The ratatouille inside is tasty, though not particularly Nagano-esque, ha.
The final dessert was lavish too!
Then, after sleeping and waking, breakfast time. We gathered at the restaurant on the second floor.
They told us fish would be served in this open space, and grilled Shinshu salmon arrived, but I forgot to take a photo, ha.
These well-simmered dishes are hard to come by at home, so that was great.
Natto (fermented soybeans) was all-you-can-eat, so you can get plenty of plant-based protein. Wondering what was in the bowl on the right, I opened the lid…
To my surprise, homemade tofu. You pour dashi broth over it to eat, and it is superb.
Not only does it have a silky smooth mouthfeel, but the flavor of the tofu itself comes through strongly. Delicious.
I wonder if tofu made where the water is pure just naturally tastes better.
So, I stayed for one night and had both dinner and breakfast. It was by no means luxurious, but everything was tasty and the portions were solid, so I was well satisfied. Truth be told, heyashoku (meals served in your room) is more relaxing and preferable, but finding the futon laid out upon returning to the room moved me, so eating in this kind of banquet setting might not be a bad option after all. The bath felt great too, making it a very pleasant experience.
Uruoi Kan (Ryokan (Traditional Japanese inn) / Gondo Station, Shiyakusho-mae Station, Nagano Station)
Tabelog dinner rating ★★★☆☆ 3.3
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
