Food tour in Niigata, Japan! A gourmet guide to 10 foods to eat on your trip to Niigata

Food tour in Niigata, Japan! A gourmet guide to 10 foods to eat on your trip to Niigata

Today, I spent a day eating around Niigata Prefecture. I thoroughly enjoyed Niigata’s abundant local sake, specialty rice, and seafood from the Sea of ​​Japan. Please enjoy your day in Niigata. Good morning. I will have breakfast in Niigata right away. This is where I came first. Below the exciting “Freshly made.”… This is a specialty store for rice balls from Niigata, a rice-producing region. I came to “Nigiri Rice Niigata Ekimae Branch” near Niigata Station. I bought a meal ticket at the entrance and waited for a while. It’s come, it’s here♪ The perfect visual for breakfast. The ingredients are “Negitoro mayonnaise” and “salmon cheese”. Both are said to be popular products. The price was 490 yen including miso soup. Start with miso soup. Delicious…Miso soup is definitely the best thing to have in the morning. The rice balls are made with green onion mayonnaise. Yes, it’s delicious♪ It’s soft to the touch and has just the right amount of softness. The rice alone is sweet and delicious. Negitoro mayonnaise also goes well with rice. There’s a little bit of salt, but it’s not at all unsatisfying. I was able to enjoy an ideal breakfast. Next is salmon cheese. There are a lot of ingredients inside. This one has a strong cheese flavor. The salmon is also rich and satisfying. I am very satisfied that I have already achieved my goal of eating delicious rice in Niigata. I wanted to eat delicious rice in Niigata, Japan’s number one rice producer. It starts at 8am and is perfect for breakfast. Ah, it was delicious… Thank you for the meal! It was a good start. After a quick meal, I completed my morning work. Well, we will eat various things during lunch. The first place I went to was “Suzakaya Soba Niigata Ekimae Branch” near Niigata Station. I came here to try Niigata’s specialty, Hegisoba. Hey, even the smallest size starts at 1.5 servings. I chose the “Hanamaki Tefuri” with seaweed (1080 yen). First the soup and condiments. “Hegi soba” has also arrived♪ There is seaweed all over the soba noodles. There are neatly folded bundles of soba noodles lined up. Now, let’s have it♪ As you can see, these soba noodles are quite long. Yeah, it’s delicious. It goes down easily and can be eaten easily. “Hegisoba” seems to use a seaweed called “Funori” as a binder. This makes the food go down smoothly and gives it a chewy texture. This soba looks like it would be good to eat as a finishing touch. The “Hegi” in “Hegi Soba” refers to the bowl in which the soba is placed. “Hegi” is a corruption of “hagi,” and it is called “Hegi soba” because it uses peeled wooden boards. The condiment here was wasabi, but some restaurants also use mustard. It seems that wasabi was used as a substitute in areas where wasabi could not be grown, such as Tokamachi, where “Hegi soba” is often eaten. Even the same soba has many different shapes depending on the region. At the end, I had a relaxing soba soup and finished my meal. Next we came to the nearby “Aji no Kiwami.” The sign in front of the store says “Murakami Beef.” Murakami beef is a brand of beef from Niigata. For lunch, you can also try Murakami beef at a reasonable price. I ordered the large Murakami beef set (2300 yen). I’ve been waiting ♪ Seafood is good, but I really want to eat meat too. Let’s start grilling the beef tongue right away. It is also a luxury to use the net during the day. I think you have a lot of patience, but I always feel like I’m quick to turn the meat over lol. The rice and miso soup are ready. Is it about time? I’ll have it then♪ It’s delicious♪ It has a nice texture. After all, eating meat makes you happy. Okay! Let’s bake Janjan♪ Kalbi is definitely delicious too. This is also served with sauce…. Ah, it’s delicious…so delicious. The fat is delicious. I want as much rice as I can. Still, it’s surprisingly not boring and feels refreshing. Let’s grill two loins together. This is also delicious♪ The flavor of the meat fills your mouth. I feel that good meat is especially delicious when it comes to lean meat. There’s definitely not enough food lol. From noon, we immersed ourselves in a luxurious feeling with Niigata prefecture brand beef. I just want a beer. So, I’m planning to try Murakami beef with beer again in the evening. This kind of luxury is unique to business trips. Thank you for the meal! After leaving the store, I came to the south exit of Niigata Station. We aim for a shop located about 5 minutes from the station. It feels good to walk when it’s sunny. I came to “Miyoshiya Ekiminami Keyaki-dori store”. At this restaurant, you can enjoy the light soy sauce ramen, one of Niigata’s top 5 ramen. Even though I haven’t eaten it yet, just the visual makes me want to say “nostalgic” lol. The clear soup looks delicious. And the ingredients are simple too. A soup as gentle as you can imagine. The soup stock works well and it’s delicious. It’s a soup that you won’t get tired of even if you drink it every day. I feel like I always want to be next to fried rice. The noodles are thin and beautifully curled. When you hold it with chopsticks, it feels soft like somen noodles. It’s soft and goes well with the soup. I was soaking up the flavor of the soup. By the way, Niigata’s top 5 ramen are other than simple soy sauce ramen. Apparently there are back fat, rich miso, dark ginger soy sauce, and curry. Of course, Niigata is a big city. For example, light soy sauce is made in Niigata City. The authentic areas for backfat ramen seem to be scattered, such as Tsubame City. I think you can probably eat most of them in Niigata city. Plus, it seems that mapo noodles are said to be the 6th Niigata ramen. Niigata has quite a variety of ramen. I think I’ll look for it in Tokyo as well. Anyway, this seems to be a pretty popular store. The menu only includes the “Chinese soba noodles” (600 yen) that I’m currently eating, gyoza, and a drink. They also have chashu men and bean sprout soba, but they are pretty simple. Even so, locals keep coming in. You’ll probably want to eat it regularly. Personally, I want to deliver videos that make you feel relieved, like this ramen. I finished the meal feeling an unrelated sense of familiarity lol. Thank you for the meal. Well, after this, I’ll do some work in front of Niigata Station… After finishing all my plans, I went to the place I was interested in inside the station. The place I came to was “Ponshukan”. There is one at Ponshukan where a drunken doll like this stands at the entrance. This “Ponshukan Kizake Bansho”. It’s a must-see spot for sake lovers, with 93 Niigata sake breweries gathered together. For 5 coins (500 yen), you can drink a small amount of your favorite brand. I immediately got a coin and a choko and went inside. This system is also exciting. Inside is an impressive sight with vending machines of various brands lined up in rows. It’s amazing to think that this is all Japanese sake. The characteristics of each brand are also detailed. First, let’s try Hakkaisan, a Niigata classic. First, set the choko mouth. Insert a coin and press the button. I’ll have it then. Yes, it’s delicious♪ It’s light and goes down your throat easily. Let’s try some other things. The one I was at a loss for was Kamo Nishiki, made by Kamo Nishiki Sake Brewery. Also, Hiki Sake Brewery’s “Tsuru no Tomo.” They don’t seem to be selling either. Does that mean you can only drink here? I wasn’t sure which one to choose, but this time I chose Tsuru no Tomo. The reason is the location, Kamo Nishiki is on the first tier above and Tsuru no Tomo is on the third tier. The first and second tiers are at eye level, but the third tier requires you to bend down, lol. I thought it might be difficult to get selected if you are unconscious. I would be sorry if there was a difference depending on the location, so I chose this one this time. Is it more mellow than Hakkaisan? The difference is easy to understand and interesting. However, there are many different brands. There are also brands with innovative names and labels for sake. This “DHC Sake Brewery” is well known for manufacturing cosmetics and supplements. I heard about this later, but it seems that the president wanted to try making sake. Now that I think about it, I remember that DHC was doing a lot of different things. Day-trip hot springs at DHC Akazawa Onsenkyo in Izu Highlands offer spectacular views. So, I also tried DHC Sake Brewing’s “Kasan”. This is surprising, it’s quite sweet. Still, it’s not hard to drink and I think it’s delicious. There are other brands that use two medals. We also have some plum wine. Plum wine is obvious, but the color is completely different. This plum wine was also refreshing to drink but quite sweet. The last one is “COWBOY YAMAHAI” by Shiokawa Sake Brewery. I decided to try an unusual brand. It says “JAPANESE SAKE” and it is definitely Japanese sake. I’ll enjoy having this. Oh, what’s amazing! The moment I put it in my mouth, the first thing that came to my mind was “cow.” A cow scurried by for a moment, and then I calmly turned around and saw that it was grain. It was the scent of This is interesting, apparently it was developed as a sake that goes well with steak. It had such a unique taste that for a moment I thought it was meat-flavored sake. Anyway, it’s nice here. You can enjoy the little differences. You can also learn about Japanese sake, so it is recommended for people who don’t like alcohol. There was also a machine where you could warm the sake yourself. I was able to enjoy Niigata’s sake to the fullest, albeit for a short time. Thank you for the meal! Even so, it was a luxury to drink from noon. After walking around the Ponshukan, I returned to the hotel and worked until night. Now, let’s eat until we’re full at night. The first place I came to was Sekitori Higashibandaicho branch. This is a restaurant where you can eat half-fried chicken, a B-class gourmet dish in Niigata. The price of half-fried chicken seems to be around 1,000 yen depending on the size of the bird. However, on this day I was only doing takeout. We decided to take out and eat at the hotel. The price on this day was 920 yen. I put the half-fried chicken in my bag and headed for the next restaurant. The person who came was “Mengoro”. As the name suggests, I came to this ramen shop for the second time today. Following lunch, I came to try one of Niigata’s five major ramen dishes, the back fat soy sauce ramen. I ordered “Rich Back Fat Isonori Ramen” (860 yen) and waited for about 5 minutes. Wow, that’s a huge volume… There’s a lot of backfat, and it’ll probably fill your stomach. The seaweed seaweed looks delicious too, so I’ll have it. Let’s start with the soup. Ah, it’s delicious…I feel like my body was craving something like this. Although it looks like it has a lot of back fat, it is surprisingly light and easy to drink. It has the richness of soy sauce and is delicious. I also like these thick noodles. It goes well with the soup and is delicious. The noodles are plump and satisfying to eat. The crunchy onions are also a nice accent. Even so, it has an addictive taste that keeps you going with your chopsticks. I get fat at night, but sometimes I just want to eat ramen. However, it is surprisingly easy to eat, and it looks like it would be good to have at the end of the night. The eggs absorb plenty of the soup and are definitely delicious. Since I was hungry, I ate it all in one go. I thoroughly enjoyed the second of Niigata’s top five ramen♪ Next, as we had planned for lunch, we headed to a restaurant where we could eat Murakami beef. I came to this shop near Niigata Station. but… I couldn’t get in because it was full… This is… completely unexpected. So, I went to the next store in tears, feeling like I was being held back. Anyway, I’m glad I ate Murakami beef for lunch. I took a quick look inside the store and saw a lot of autographs from famous people. That store certainly seems to be popular. For some reason, I feel like someone told me, “It’s too early for you to open that restaurant.” lol. Hoping to get my revenge someday, I next came to a pub called “Isohachi.” It looks like you can eat a lot of Niigata’s specialties here. First up is beer (572 yen). I can’t start without this♪ A nice combination to enjoy. The snack is “Yellowtail Sashimi” (430 yen). Furthermore, I ordered “Sawara Sashimi” (430 yen). It’s so delicious…the taste of beer is the same all over the country. I also have high expectations for yellowtail sashimi. This is delicious too. I love that it’s thickly sliced, but the fat is outstanding. Come to think of it, I completely forgot that I ate Sawara yesterday. I’m sure I’m expecting something delicious. Yes, it is definitely delicious♪ After all, it’s nice to be able to relax at an izakaya. When I’m drinking, I tend to forget the time and relax. Once we had settled down, we looked at the menu and found a selection of rare Japanese sake. This is Abe Sake Brewery’s “Our Sake Vol. 7” (460 yen). It looks like cloudy sake. I also ordered “Niigata minced meat” (560 yen). It’s surprisingly refreshing and delicious♪ You might like this. The producer’s face is on the label. It is said to be a brand that brought together brewers from various breweries and took on the challenge of creating new types of sake. Niigata minced meat is also juicy and delicious♪ Apparently they use meat from Niigata and Koshihikari rice. The texture of the crispy batter is so good that you can eat it forever. We have also added “Fried tofu from Gosen’s Higuchi tofu store” (320 yen). Furthermore, this is a sake-like brand called “59 Takachiyo” (460 yen). Apparently they use pink yeast. The aroma is refreshing and different from ordinary sake. This is also interesting, as it looks like it tastes more like wine than sake. If you drink this without knowing it, you might not realize it is Japanese sake. The taste is sweet and fruity. The fried tofu is crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. It has a different texture from Tochio’s fried tofu and is delicious. I was then offered sake, and I entered my third glass. This is my 7th stock in one day lol. The brand name is Himenoi (460 yen) and it seems to taste like lemonade. This color is also not colorless and transparent. Wow, the sake really has a sour taste like lemon… This one still has more of a sake feel than “59 Takachiyo.” Still, it’s refreshing and easy to drink. It was a strange taste that I experienced for the first time. Lastly, I ordered “Oboro tofu cold tofu” (638 yen). Anyway, it was fun to drink some rare Japanese sake. Afterwards, I wanted to try more different dishes. I’m starting to get hungry, so that’s all for today. Well, I think it’s time to wrap up today. The last place I came to was Kappougi in front of Niigata Station. “Onigiri Echigoya” is open inside the store. I wanted to end with rice balls after all, so I saved it for last. I saw this restaurant on TV and wanted to come. Apparently, you can also eat kappogi dishes along with the onigiri. It’s a visual that looks great in the morning, but also at the end of the day. It’s delicious… I feel more at ease after drinking alcohol. By the way, I chose the cod roe (280 yen) for the onigiri and the wakame (200 yen) for the miso soup. The rice is delicious too. I’m sure I’m full, but it’s strange because I feel like I could have eaten two or three more. It’s open until 11pm, so it’s the perfect place to end your evening. And when I looked around the store… There was a record of the number of rice balls eaten. The highest record is 32. I slowly finished one piece, horrified by the unimaginable record. After we finished eating, they served us warm hojicha. Ah, it was delicious, and we ended our meal at a restaurant worthy of Niigata… ・・・・・・． Unfortunately, I forgot to fry half the chicken. I’ll try again. Then again. I can’t sleep until I eat this. I forgot to stop at the convenience store, so I hurriedly bought more beer from the vending machine in the hallway. Alright, let’s start the half-fried chicken party! First of all, it’s quite heavy. It’s amazing, if you look at it like this, it’s muscular. I’ll have it then♪ Oh, this is so delicious! The flesh is moist and soft. And it’s sprinkled with curry powder. The crispy skin with a curry flavor is extremely delicious. This is the perfect accompaniment to beer. While I was waiting, there were people ordering 5 or 6 take-out chickens. No wonder this is so popular. I’d like to eat inside the store next time I go. Well, it’s almost over, but did you enjoy the famous dishes? I’ve talked a little bit about my memories of Niigata before. A long time ago, I went to Niigata, which is 300km away from Tokyo, on a motorbike for no particular reason, just using local roads lol. I’ve been to Niigata several times since then, but I wasn’t really aware of the famous gourmet food there. This time I decided to make various plans. However, there were other restaurants besides Yakiniku that were closed and I couldn’t get the timing right. I hope to have the opportunity to visit you again. Well, I think I’ll end this with a video of the bird. Thank you for watching until the end. Please check it out next time! Niigata Gourmet TourComplete. Souvenirs. Souvenirs are available inside the Shinkansen ticket gate. “NewDays” had a lot of things. If you stop by here for now, you won’t have any trouble finding souvenirs. I didn’t buy it this time, but “Sanko’s Salted Salmon” is delicious and I recommend it. This time, I was interested in “Kaki no Tane”. Although it is a sweet that can be eaten all over the country, the manufacturer, Naniwaya, has its headquarters in Niigata. So, I bought it as a Niigata souvenir. And there are many types. The chocolate combination particularly caught my attention. It goes without saying, but persimmon seeds are pitch black. It has a glossy texture that makes it easy to see that it is coated with chocolate. Ah, it’s a persimmon seed. It has the familiar spiciness, but the sweetness of the chocolate stands out. Is it like a persimmon seed version of sweet and salty potato chips covered in chocolate? Personally, I like sweet and salty flavors, so this was my favorite flavor. Strawberry chocolate is less shiny than chocolate and has a persimmon seed flavor. The taste is strongly reminiscent of strawberry chocolate. If you look at it like this, the coating is quite thick and has a lot of strawberry chocolate taste. It’s less spicy and the persimmon seeds feel lighter. There are many other unusual species, so be sure to look for them when you go to Niigata. Please also see the next video!

🎞️ Next video（Fukuoka）→ https://youtu.be/tgOLRY0BPCg
🎞️ Previous video（Aomori）→ https://youtu.be/XSgtSz-BIAI

Hello! This time, I went on a gourmet tour of Niigata prefecture, which faces the Sea of ​​Japan. In addition to seafood, there are also local sake, brand beef, ramen, and other Niigata specialties, so please enjoy until the end.

🔶 Previous Niigata food tour here

🎞️ Japan Tour videos
・Hokkaido Trip → https://youtu.be/II-Vfva3OgQ
・Hokkaido / Sapporo Food Tour → https://youtu.be/3-BAlkmdNXk
・Aomori Food Tour → https://youtu.be/XSgtSz-BIAI
・Niigata Food Tour → https://youtu.be/ubpOOnUJ78c
・Kanazawa Food Tour → https://youtu.be/Pr2x2o_pi_A
・Tokyo / Asakusa Food Tour（vol.2）→ https://youtu.be/OEDnH_yrhXE
・Chiba / Choshi Tour → https://youtu.be/Rk8BHprlYmU
・Nagano / Kamikochi Tour → https://youtu.be/u2CQrevXIyA
・Nagano / Kurobe Tour → https://youtu.be/NhdrQu6SKUo
・Shizuoka Food Tour → https://youtu.be/G1u1AVitGUI
・Nagoya Food Tour（vol.2）→ https://youtu.be/4gyLKC3rWIg
・Gifu / Okuhida Tour → https://youtu.be/bK0CRysCsX4
・Gifu / Takayama Tour → https://youtu.be/pLi5z-PX7II
・Shiga Food Tour → https://youtu.be/wPe8MJJXABM
・Kyoto Food Tour（vol.3）→ https://youtu.be/YaSrN6HrCDw
・Osaka Food Tour（vol.3）→ https://youtu.be/m9beExZ7Zdc
・Okayama Food Tour → https://youtu.be/2mAw-5yPb6Q
・Hiroshima Food Tour → https://youtu.be/d-TtW-pZuPo
・Fukuoka Food Tour → https://youtu.be/42I9Jdyg3iU

🔶Timeline
0:00　Digest
0:32　The Niigata food tour starts!

0:45　Nigiri Mai (A specialty shop where you can eat delicious rice balls in the morning)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/rHYDVrdHUcivWrN49

3:16　Suzakaya Soba Niigata Ekimae (Enjoy Niigata’s specialty hegi soba)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/nDpUrFfK6kdffgEe6

5:17　Aji no Kiwami (Quick lunch of Niigata’s brand beef, Murakami beef)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/pSNtGzPZH3eT5UWR8

8:30　Sankichiya Keyakidori (One of the top 5 ramen in Niigata, a famous shop for light soy sauce ramen)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/oTvTpAtutRtFtbm46

11:35　Ponshukan Kikizake Bansho (93 sake breweries from Niigata prefecture are gathered inside Niigata Station. You can compare 5 brands for 500 yen)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/8BSKaMBvJQ28U1pr9

16:40　Torisenmon Sekitori Higashibandaichoten (A restaurant where you can eat Niigata’s B-class gourmet, fried chicken halves. The tender chicken with curry flavor is exquisite.)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/k7XneRxxuVak5iT18

17:23　Mengoro (Enjoy one of Niigata’s top 5 ramen, back fat soy sauce ramen. Open until the morning, so it’s a great way to finish off a night)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/us59HZLkuD8WLhrJ8

19:22 【Reference】Yakiniku Tacchan (A popular restaurant where you can eat Murakami beef yakiniku)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/QqNCL58e1qXK2HoGA

20:08　Isohachi (An izakaya where you can eat all the Niigata specialties. They also have a lot of unique sake that tastes like wine or lemonade)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/2jrbsEkeDDLAQ6bt7

24:00　Onigiri Echigoya (A rice ball specialty restaurant in front of Niigata Station that is perfect for the final meal. It is located inside the izakaya “Kappougi”)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Bsw5yL1BxBj4Cd7L7

28:20 【Souvenir】New Days Mini Niigata 2F No. 3 (A souvenir from Naniwaya’s unique series of persimmon seeds)
https://maps.app.goo.gl/zDQSFASabEtczXH89

#japantravel #japantravelguide #japanvlog #japanesefood #niigata #japantravelguide

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・The title, description and subtitles may be incorrect due to automatic translation.
・The video is based on the information at the time of filming and editing, and may have changed by the time you view or visit the site.
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