Kumaneko Restaurant

On a business trip to Mie Prefecture, I visited a popular Chinese restaurant, Kumaneko Restaurant in Yokkaichi City. The restaurant was opened by the owner who trained at Chongqing Restaurant, a famous Szechuan restaurant in Yokohama Chinatown, and since its establishment in March 2011, it has been awarded Bib Gourmand in the 2019 Michelin Guide Aichi, Gifu, and Mie Special Edition, and in 2021, it was introduced in the TV program “Bananaman no Seshikkaku Gourmet” and in In 2023, it was selected as one of the 100 best Chinese restaurants in the West in the “Tabeog” list.

But the location of this restaurant is a bit far from the city. When it was founded, it was operating in downtown Yokkaichi, but in October 2023, it was relocated to the suburbs. Fortunately, the Kintetsu train runs nearby, so even I, who do not have a car, was able to go to the place to visit the store. I tried my best to visit Kumaneko Restaurant, and let me tell you what kind of restaurant it was…

As expected of a popular restaurant, Kumaneko Restaurant is located in the suburbs of Yokkaichi City, yet attracts a considerable number of customers…

Kumaneko Restaurant is located in Takatsuno, a suburb of Yokkaichi City. This area is a bit far from residential areas, and it is so quiet that it could be said that there is “nothing” around the restaurant.

I arrived at the Kumaneko Restaurant at around 10:30 a.m. one weekend. It was quite cold, so I went to the pachinko parlor in the back to warm up and returned 15 minutes later. When I revisited the restaurant, I was alone in line at the storefront, but it seemed that customers started to gather around this time in cars and on motorcycles. By 11:00 a.m., when the restaurant opened, there were at least 20 people in line…as one would expect from such a popular restaurant.

The interior of the restaurant is simple and unadorned, and there is an atmosphere that even those with small children do not feel weary, as is the case at chain restaurants. However, the restaurant has only 21 seats in total, including 13 counter seats and 2 tables for 4 people, which is small for a suburban restaurant. In terms of the restaurant’s structure, it is more like a ramen shop than a Chinese restaurant. Therefore, I feel that it is easier to use for a lone customer like me than for a group of customers.

Bean Curd and Dan Dan Noodles are the two main items on the menu! So, which should you order at the Kumaneko Restaurant? That is the big question…

Well, the Kumaneko Restaurant‘s specialties are Bean Curd and Dan Dan Noodles, both in the vein of Chongqing Restaurant. In fact, the restaurant’s menu includes Chen Bean Curd, Black Sesame Dan Dan Noodles, Soupless Dan Dan Noodles, and Taiwanese Ramen, so much so that you could almost call it a restaurant specializing in Bean Curd and Dan Dan Noodles.

Now, there is one big problem here. For a stranger like me, who is likely to have a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with this restaurant, which one should I eat? I had been wondering about this for a long time when I was waiting to enter the restaurant. It would be a disaster if I made the wrong choice and left the restaurant with a sense of regret. If I made a bad choice, I would have to go back….

In the end, I decided to order both the Bean Curd and the Dan Dan Noodles this time. Actually, I was planning to go to Matsumoto no Rairaiken for tonteki after this, but I wondered if my stomach would be okay. Well, even if I can’t eat Tonteki, I can visit Matsumoto no Rairaiken at a later date since it is easier to get to from the city center…

Dan Dan Noodles (Szechuan dish of noodles)

The Dan Dan noodles were brought to the table first. The soup is lightly coarse and has a rich sesame flavor. When putting it in the mouth, the aroma of octagonal horns wafts softly to the nose. Dan Dan noodles commonly eaten nowadays are arranged for the Japanese market, but the Dan Dan noodles here, while looking the same, makes you think, “This is a little different!”. The spiciness is like “medium spiciness,” which is fine unless you are a person who “can’t stand spicy food at all!” If you don’t have a problem with spicy food at all, you can eat it normally. 

The noodles soaked in this soup are straight thin noodles with a rich wheat texture. The noodles are well mixed with the thick soup and have a sticky texture in the mouth. Also, I like that the bok choy topping was really crispy. I dissolved the pure miso-flavored meat paste in the soup and enjoyed changing the flavor, finishing the dish in no time.

Bean Curd

Then, when I had finished half of the Dan Dan Noodles, the Bean Curd was ready and brought before me. It looks quite filling, with the tofu strewn all over the place.

In fact, this Bean Curd is made of well-drained cotton tofu, which makes the bean curd look more like a tofu meal than a beverage type. To be honest, I thought, “I didn’t need white rice this time because I had the Dan Dan Noodles…”. The garlic aroma in this dish is very stimulating, and when putting it in the mouth, it spreads to the nose. The spiciness of the Bean Curd may be milder than that of the Dan Dan Noodles.  However, when eating it all the way through, you will feel a slight numbness on your tongue from the Chinese pepper. If you don’t like numbness, I would rather recommend the Dan Dan Noodles.

Check the restaurant’s blog before visiting! To get to Kumaneko Restaurant, walk 11 minutes from the nearest station, Takatsuno Station on the Kintetsu Yunoyama Line.

Kumaneko Restaurant is like this, but it is unfortunate that it is often closed temporarily. Since the restaurant is located in the suburbs, it would be a real shame if you were to find out that the restaurant is closed even though you went to the trouble of going there. You can check the temporary closing information on the restaurant’s blog. If visiting from far away, be sure to check this blog in advance!

Here are the details of the restaurant…