CAUDA

The restaurant is about a 30 Km drive from our house but we decided to venture out that way. The food was worth it. We were waiting to get in when the restaurant opened for dinner. We ordered a few different dishes; a seafood paella with oysters from Hiroshima, charcoal grilled wild venison from Hok...kaido, charcoal grilled lamb skewers, bagna cauda with fresh, locally sourced vegetables and mushrooms, and a few other items. The food was wonderfully prepared right in front of us and nicely presented. They use good quality japanese charcoal for the grilling and it gives a fantastic flavor to the meats and the vegetables cooked over it. The Hokkaido venison was a special that was only available for the month of October and was, by itself, worth the trip (our planned second trip to the restaurant this October was thwarted by a Typhoon so we’ll have to wait till next year). The venison was tender and full of flavor. The paella was cooked as we watched and came out piping hot. It was nicely al dente and the oysters were added at the right time to be juicy and buttery. The bagna cauda was delicious to the point that I could not resist swiping the last bit with my finger much to the chagrin of my wife (she did, however, acknowledge that it was too good to waste). All in all, a fully satisfying dinner. The only downside from our perspective is that, like most Izakaya style restaurants in Okinawa, this one allows smoking. Luckily, our plan to be there as the restaurant opened paid off because the first patron to light a cigarette did so as we were ending our meal.

Visited October 2017

This was my second visit. First was in March 2014. Both times I thoroughly enjoyed my visit. Most of the grilled foods, sushi and salads are crafted in front of the customer. As I was sitting at the counter in both occasions, I had a "front row seat". Meats were tender and cooked well. Seafood dis...hes and sushi were sumptuous. The staff are lovely and genuine. I cannot recommend this place enough. I only wish I was staying in Okinawa long enough to revisit, but will definitely go again when I'm back in town.