Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch

There are many delicious and famous Motsunabe restaurants in Hakata, and the one I visited during my visit to Fukuoka this time is Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch. I chose this restaurant simply because it was close to Hakata Station, but a quick internet search revealed that as of February 2024, there are 32 Hakata Motsu Nabe Yamaya restaurants in Japan. Among Hakata Motsunabe specialty restaurants, it is probably fair to say that Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya is the most successful brand in the nationwide chain.

I visited the restaurant around 8:30 p.m. on Friday night to enjoy authentic motsunabe at the Hakata branch, the center of these 32 stores nationwide. This was the first time for me to eat motsunabe in Hakata myself, so I walked towards the restaurant very much looking forward to it. Well…

Even if you are alone, it is totally fine…Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch is a restaurant like this…

Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch is located under the elevated railway tracks, walking south along the tracks from the Chikushi exit of JR Hakata Station. The frontage of the restaurant is not very wide, but the space extends from there to the back, and according to official information, the total number of seats is 88, making it a fairly large restaurant. The atmosphere of the restaurant is like a casual izakaya (Japanese style pub), and it seems to be easily accessible for both solo customers and those with small children. Although the restaurant is located under an elevated railway, the sound of the train did not bother me at all, perhaps because it is well soundproofed, or perhaps because it is drowned out by the voices of other customers…

After taking a seat and looking at the menu, it seems that there are two types of motsunabe: “flying fish broth soy sauce flavored” and “Koku Miso flavored”. Both are priced at 2,200 yen per person including tax (an additional 400 yen per person is charged for an appetizer), and the menu says to order in quantities of two or more. But does that mean that a single person like me has to order for two servings to enjoy the nabe? No, that is not true. In most of these restaurants, if you ask the waiter, he will gladly take your order and say, “One portion is also available!”, and they will gladly take your order. In fact, They are preparing a course for one person. So, it would be a waste to give up on the motsunabe if you see the menu outside the restaurant and think, “Two servings or more…”.

First experience of authentic motsunabe at Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch with a set for one person in flying fish broth soy sauce flavored! So how was it?

This time, I ordered one of the two types of motsunabe sets at Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch, the “Agodashi Shoyu (flying fish broth soy sauce flavored)” set. The price, including tax, was 2,500 yen. Apparently, the 2,500 yen includes the cost of the appetizer, and I felt very lucky when I realized this at the time of paying the bill…

After ordering, it took about 5 minutes to receive the chicken skin ponzu and 3 kinds of small bowls of food. From left to right, the small bowls were mentaiko mozuku, spicy cod roe, and spicy takana, a combination of various Hakata specialties that could be enjoyed in a casual manner, which was very chic and thoughtful.

Five minutes later, the main dish of motsunabe arrived. I turned on the gas stove and turned off the heat just as the vegetables began to soften a little and the motsu changed color.

The finished dish looks like this. It is for one person, but it was quite hearty. In fact, there were 8 pieces of Japanese beef entrails in this dish. Of course, there are plenty of vegetables such as leek, burdock root, and cabbage! Women may be able to share this dish between two people.

Now, let’s share the nabe on a small plate and enjoy the dish… The beef was sweet and fatty and plump, and of course had no smell at all, just as I expected. The broth, on the other hand, was much lighter and more refined than I had imagined. Looking at the menu, I had imagined that the dashi broth would be made with the fragrant flavor of flying fish, but I was wrong. But it was not like that. Rather, the main flavor was the vegetable extract blended into the broth, giving it a gentle taste. However, since there are quite a lot of chili peppers in the soup by default, when you hit the chili peppers, the spiciness comes as if it stings your tongue. If you do not like spicy food, it would be better to ask the waiter to adjust the amount of chili pepper in advance.

Even if you finish all the nabe, this course is not over yet. The course includes a dish to finish off the meal. You can choose between two types of finishings: chanpon noodles and zosui (rice porridge). The restaurant recommends “chinpon noodle in soy sauce,” but I chose the zosui one out of sheer inertia.

Zosui is made in the kitchen, but it was a little different from that I had imagined and came out with no soup left in it. My impression was that it was more like risotto than zosui. But of course, that does not mean that it was bad. The synergy between the rice that had absorbed the gentle taste of the soup stock and the fluffy beaten egg created a texture and taste that made me feel relaxed. I left the restaurant feeling very satisfied with my meal.

By the way, you can order the “Agoodashi Motsu-nabe” (flying fish broth soy sauce flavored) for free if you use Rakuten’s “Furusato Tax Payment” service….

【ふるさと納税】 大人気 やまや もつ鍋 数量限定 リピート決定の声多数！ 国産 博多 あごだし 醤油味 ( 5 人前 ) もつ鍋 モツ鍋 もつなべ 醤油 あごだし 冷凍 冷凍食品 レトルト 博多 もつ 鍋 取り寄せ 牛もつ YT5 価格：9,000円（税込、送料無料) (2024/5/19時点) 楽天で購入

All-you-can-eat mentaiko rice and takana rice at lunch time! Hakata Motsu Nabe Yamaya Hakata Branch is a 2-minute walk from the nearest station, JR Hakata Station!

Hakata Motsunabe Yamaya Hakata Branch also offers a set meal menu at lunch time, and this set meal menu is also very reasonable. What’s so special about this set meal is that it includes not only rice, but also spicy cod roe, spicy takana (Chinese cabbage) and soup stock for chazuke? In other words, you can eat all the mentaiko rice and takana rice you want! Isn’t it too much? I think this is one of the restaurants that businessmen on frequent business trips should check out as a place to have a hearty lunch right after arriving at Hakata Station….

Now, here are the details of the restaurant…