Ganso Hakata Mentaiju

Hakata’s gourmet specialties include tonkotsu ramen, mizutaki, motsunabe, torikawayaki, Hakata udon, and many others. I thought of spicy cod roe. So, let’s go to a restaurant where we can eat spicy cod roe! So, I chose a restaurant called Ganso Hakata Mentaiju in Nakasu Kawabata.

Why did I choose this restaurant? It is, of course, a popular restaurant in Hakata, but also because it opens at 7:00 in the morning. Isn’t breakfast with spicy cod roe so extravagant? So one day during my stay in Hakata, I walked from my hotel to the Ganso Hakata Mentaiju around 8 in the morning. How good is the spicy cod roe in the real place? I was looking forward to going to the restaurant…

Surprisingly few restaurants in Hakata, the home of mentaiko? A restaurant specializing in mentaiko cuisine…Ganso Hakata Mentaiju is such a restaurant

Ganso Hakata Mentaiju was established in October 2010 at the southwest corner of Tenjin Chuo Park as a restaurant specializing in mentaiko cuisine. A restaurant specializing in mentaiko cuisine is a rarity, isn’t it? That’s because there have been many stores selling spicy cod roe as souvenirs in Hakata for a long time, but there had never been a restaurant serving the dish as a meal until then. Indeed, even if you search the Internet today, you will rarely find a restaurant that claims to be a “mentaiko cuisine specialty restaurant”. In other words, this restaurant is a rare find in Hakata as a mentaiko specialty restaurant.

When I arrived at the Ganso Hakata Mentaiju at around 8:00 in the morning, there was no line at the restaurant and I was able to easily enter without waiting in line, as expected on a weekday. The restaurant is a three-story building with a luxurious feel, the exterior walls of which are all covered with wood, something I have rarely seen before. The first and second floors of the building are used for the restaurant, which has a chic, Japanese-style atmosphere with a total of 79 seats. The exterior of the restaurant may give the impression that it is a little difficult to enter, but all the staff members are young, and you can enter the restaurant without any hesitation. Since the main dish is mentaiko, it would be tough to bring small children, but if you can eat mentaiko, it is totally normal to use the restaurant.

This is so extravagant in the morning! Mentai-jyu with 2 mentaiko (cod roe), the top menu item at Ganso Hakata Mentaiju.

What I ordered at Ganso Hakata Mentaiju this time was the ” Mentaiju Special” which is the restaurant’s top menu item. The price is 2,780 yen plus tax, which is quite a painful price for a morning meal, but it allows you to enjoy the extremely luxurious experience of getting two whole mentaiko…

After about 10 minutes of waiting after ordering, the Mentaiju arrived in front of me. The top of the Mentaiju is like this, with two large mentaiko (seasoned cod roe) on top of the rice laid out on the white stacked box. The Mentaiju Normal only allows you to choose raw Mentaiko, but if you order the Mentaiju Special, you can choose either raw or seared for the second Mentaiko (I chose seared for the second Mentaiko this time). You can also choose from three different amounts of rice: small 150g, medium 250g, and large 300g, so even large eaters will be satisfied.

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Let’s start with the raw one… The mentaiko is wrapped around a thin layer of kelp, which is designed to give you a cushion until you feel the spiciness of the mentaiko. The main raw cod roe underneath is honestly not that spicy. The raw mentaiko is moist, and you can eat it easily without any resistance in the morning.

In contrast, the seared cod roe has lost some of its moisture by being seared, so it is a bit tricky for thirsty thirsty people who wake up in bed.

Of course you can eat these mentaiko as they are, but they are at their best when eaten with the grilled seaweed spread on the rice and the shiso leaves as toppings. The spiciness of the mentaiko is neutralized, making it even easier to eat, while the fragrance of the seaweed and the cool aroma of the shiso leaves drift into your nose…but unfortunately, there is only a little amount of shiso leaves, so you could not enjoy this superb combination.

Another thing to note is the special sauce that comes with the Mentaiju. There are four levels of spiciness to choose from: basic, small spiciness, medium spiciness, and large spiciness, but since this was my first visit to the restaurant, I chose the basic sauce. However, this sauce was made to be sweetened with more sugar than necessary, and to be honest, it didn’t suit my stupid taste buds. Before ordering, I thought that it would be dangerous to add spiciness to spicy food, but since the mentaiko is not that spicy to begin with, it might be better to add more spiciness from the beginning.

The top menu of the Ganso Hakata Mentaiju like this, Mentaiju Special, frankly speaking, I think the price is high, but it is made to fully enjoy the charm of mentaiko. For mentaiko lovers, this must be the ultimate luxury. If you happen to visit Hakata in the future, please give it a try.

However, I feel that the number of items on the menu is a bit small for a restaurant specializing in mentaiko cuisine. In particular, there are only two main dishes, Mentaiju and Mentai-nikomi Tsukemen… It has been more than 10 years since the establishment, and I hope that they will add new menu items using mentaiko. I look forward to their continued growth and development!

Examples of other menu items at Ganso Hakata Mentaiju (prices do not include tax)

• Mentaiju – Normal – 1680 yen
• Mentai Nikomi Tsukemen (noodle soup): 1680 yen
• Mentai Salad 580 yen
• Mentai Soup 780 yen
• Two kinds of kombu-maki mentaiko (cod roe wrapped in kelp) 1380 yen
• Mentai pickles 580 yen
• Nishinakasu ryotei pudding 680 yen

There is a store specializing in boxed lunches and souvenirs inside JR Hakata Station… To get to Ganso Hakata Mentaiju, walk 5 minutes from the nearest station, Nakasu Kawabata Station on the Fukuoka City Subway Airport Line.

Ganso Hakata Mentaiju has a store specializing in boxed lunches and souvenirs in JR Hakata Station. It is a good idea to buy a box lunch here and eat it on the Shinkansen when you cannot fully enjoy Hakata Gourmet. Please note, however, that eating and drinking are not allowed inside the stores in Hakata Station. In addition to mentaiju bento lunches, the shop also sells souvenir products such as “kombu-maki mentaiko” and “mentaiju stewed tsukemen,” so please consider them as potential Fukuoka souvenirs.

Now, here are the details of the store…

From the neighboring Tenjin Station, it is an 8-minute walk.