Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru - Superb Nodoguro Meshi in 3 Ways!
Nodoguromeshi
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Nodoguro (Akamutsu) also known as Blackthroat Seaperch aka Rosy Seabass in English, some even term it as the “King of White Fish”. They can only be caught along the coast of the Japan Sea. Guess what, Kanazawa is along the coast of that sea, and that means super fresh Nodoguro fish right in Kanazawa.
Well…I actually didn’t know so much when I first shortlist this shop, as I mainly do based on the reviews and scores. But this time I was quite amused by fish photo they used in their menu (refer to the photo below).
3 ways of eating the Nodoguromeshi
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Condiments for the 2nd eating style
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Nodoguromeshi served in an iron bowl
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Macro shot of the Nodoguro and the searing from the blow torch
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Pickled Vegetables
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
As-is Style
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Mixed with sesame seeds, spring onion, and wasabi style
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Broth Style
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Nodoguromeshi (¥3000)
I came in to dine without much expectation of this restaurant, mainly don’t have much experience regards to such dish (3 different ways at it some more) and fish.
Statement before the actual review:
BUT, upon eating the first bite of the rice and fish it is BLOODY GOOD AF! It is right down my alley man!
First Style - As-is
You can taste the full natural taste of the seared fish; sweet and slightly salty (from the sea salt and/or the sea itself), tender and very fatty meat but won’t make you feel greasy or too over. ATAS kind of fatty meat feeling la.
When eaten together with the rice, especially some part of it is slightly charred (when it was blow torch together with the fish) makes it balanced and multidimensional. Imagine sweet, salty taste, tender and fatty texture from the fish, plus the slightly charred rice which makes it crispy to eat with the fish.
Second Style - Mixed with the condiments (sesame seeds, spring onion, and wasabi)
This elevates the multidimensional feeling and taste to the next level with the inclusion of:
Sesame Seeds - Adds slight earthy taste and crunch texture to the food.
Spring Onion - Adds a different flavour profile to the food.
Wasabi - Adds a strong and fresh spice to the food.
This is my favourite style out of the 3.
Third Style - Broth Style
This brings down all the action in the second style by a notch, but with the rich and flavourful (sweet and salty from both the fish and the sea) Nodoguro broth.
With this, it makes it like eating an awesome fish porridge with condiments, but the porridge has absorbed all the wonderful taste from all the ingredients.
This style will be the perfect food for a cold rainy day.
This is Poka’s favourite style out of the 3.
My ranking of the 3-way: 2nd Style -> 3rd Style -> 1st Style
Poka ranking of the 3-way: 3rd Style -> 2nd Style -> 1st Style
To be honest, whichever way is still very much awesome. It’s great because we have the opportunity to taste the Nodoguro fish in 3 different ways in 1 dish.
Rating: 4/5
Nodoguro
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
I believe it should be portobello mushrooms
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Sliding door to Nodoguro heaven
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Bar Seats
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
We are fortunate to get seated at the bar seats (my favourite seating spot in Japan restaurants), where I can get to see all the actions.
Some menu items on blackboard
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Shoe Lockers
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Painted Nodoguro
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
Overall
I think I said what I could say in the dish review already, and during the writing of this post which I also did more research regards to Nodoguro. Apparently, it is counted as a luxury and pricey fish especially to non-Kanazawa locals, as it is rarer to get to eat it outside of Kanazawa.
Oh, another story to add on, we actually like it so damn much that we wanted to eat it again two days later, but unfortunately upon arriving at the restaurant, the queue (as per the paper waiting list) for that day was around 60 people…and that was 15 minutes before the restaurant opening time.
We decided to give it a pass as gut feeling tells us that the queue will be around 2 hours wait, and we are quite tired that day from lots of walking and exploring.
Now both Poka and I are really missing this dish a lot, and along our Japan trip we do have a few other restaurants we queued for 2 hours too…(stay tuned for it)
Shop Front
Nodoguromeshi Hompo Itaru
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Address: 石川県 金沢市 柿木畠 2-8
Opening Hours: 12pm-2.30pm, 5.30pm-9pm Monday to Saturday.
Payment Method: Cash and Cards
Website: http://www.itaru.ne.jp/kakinoki.htm
Tabelog: https://tabelog.com/en/ishikawa/A1701/A170101/17009467/
(Last visited: October 2019)