November 12, 2025 Breakfast at Itsuki Inn Dinner at Itsuki Inn
We woke up and Suzette turned on the hot water in our private indoor bathing tank.
Then at 8:30 we joined four or five other members of our tour for breakfast. Today’s breakfast was more traditional with a bowl of rice and a clear soup, a small cup of miso soup with reconstituted dried tofu, a slice of grilled salmon, two slices of Omelet, a piece of fish roe in a casing, a small bit of bean paste, two lightly pickled cucumber, several bowls with an assortment of pickles, a bowl of fresh salad, and a small bowl with several pieces of hamachi brushed with a miso sauce plus green tea and choice of regular tea or coffee.
It was a pleasant breakfast that was so filling that neither Suzette nor I felt hungry until dinner at 7:00.
After breakfast several hiked up to the top of Mount Yufu hiking approximately 9 miles round trip from the Inn and ascending to the peak at 5,195 feet from the Inn’s elevation of approximately 1750 feet.
There are several strong hikers in the group. The three strongest hikers, Bob, Mateo, and Billie climbed to the summit
After breakfast Suzette and I returned to our casita and took a long soak in out bathing tank. I was able touch the end of the tank with my head inclined on the outer edge of the tank so could anchor myself and completely relax and even doze for a few minutes.
We then got dressed and left the Inn at 11:30 and walked through rice fields to the Stained glass Museum. It contained a lovely collection of painted and stained glass in an old two story house next to the Saint Robert Church.
After visiting the seven or eight rooms with stained glass in the house we walked next door to the church that reminded me of one of the stave churches in Norway with its tall wooden towers.
Here are pictures of some of the stained glass collection and the
church beside the house.
We next walked through more rice fields to a Buddhist Temple that was surrounded by graves, but we saw no people.
I bought a coke near the Museum and then we walked to a beer brewery, but it was closed, so I stopped on a bench in front of the brewery.
Luckily within about five minutes a taxi drove by. We flag it down and we’re driven back to the Inn.
I rested and napped and Suzette hiked to another temple near the forest that surrounds Mt. Tufu.
Dinner - Then at 7:00 we walked to the Main Lodge where the dining area was for another private meal tonight. Robin and Kitty joined us.
There were several unique elements in tonight’s kaiseki meal that made it more interesting than the first meal two night’s ago.
The first was introduced in the first course of Appetizer: Peanut Tofu.
As we found out later, this course featured a block of peanut tofu garnished with a sliver of pink shrimp, a slice of pickled white lotus root and a sliver of lightly blanched green okra on its sides, and on top a small thin slice of radish on which were a clutch of tiny orange salmon roe with a small dollop of greenish gray wasabi in a lovely bowl.
When the chef was kind enough to join us for a few minutes later during the meal I asked him if he created the peanut tofu and he humbly answered,”Yes” He had made the fresh tofu with the finely chopped peanuts.”
Perhaps you have, but I have never eaten freshly handmade peanut tofu. Clearly he thought it a special dish worthy of featuring as the lead appetizer. It impressed me immensely and foretold of special elements to come.
Second Course. Hassun. This is the course that features a lot of local seasonal ingredients on a rectangular tray, tonight decorated with yellow ginkgo, reddish brown magnolia leaves, and Japanese red maple leaves showing their fall colors. The items included a small square plate with two slices of impeccably tender blue fin tuna garnished with micro greens, a long skinny plate with a row of four items, a slice of creamy shrimp mousse between two slices of white sandwich bread toast, a pile of shredded turnip garnished with a thin slice of local citrus, and a rice ball covered with a slice of cured salmon with the characteristic square stem of a persimmon on the top that was an imitation persimmon, and a pile of spinach mixed with a thickened white cream garnished with a small pickled wild plum that was the color of umiboshi but was different according to our waiter.
Next to the thin plate was the my favorite, a broiled oyster covered with a cheese topping, but none of those items were the most unique items. The most unique items were two slices each of two other fish at the edges of the tray. One was thin translucent slices of red snapper like those served two nights ago but tonight accompanied by a small pile of a locally produced brown sea salt that had a unique brackish flavor that enhanced the flavor of the red snapper. Finally on the opposite corner of the platter was the second unique item, two thick slices of hamachi (Yellowtail) topped with two slices of chive, a slice of carrot for color, and a bead of thickened soy that was was only hours from the sea, that was still tough with all of its cartilage intact. I have never had a fresher piece of yellowtail. For one who eats a lot of yellowtail, I was amazed at at the difference the freshness made, a new experience.
Third Course - Covered Dish - There is a dispute among members of our group as to the ingredients and composition of this dish. All are in agreement that the broth was shark fin soup flavored with chrysanthemum leaves, baby enoki mushrooms, and perhaps several slivers of onion.
There was a large dumpling that may or may not have contained ground pufferfish in the batter. There definitely was a small ball of poached fish supported on top of the dumpling by a snow pea.
Fourth Dish - Seasonal Dish - baked Spanish Mackerel filet coated with sweet miso brown gravy wrapped in a brown magnolia leave tied close with a toothpick. The fish was mild and the brown sauce enveloped it in sweet soy and mirin flavor. It is difficult for me to dissect these dense sauces because my knowledge of all the ingredients is limited as to the vast ingredients available to a high end Japanese chef. Let me say, it was a deliciously mild piece of Spanish mackerel accompanied by 1/2 of a shiitake mushroom and two okra spears.the sauce was light and very pleasant.
After the Seasonal Dish the Executive Chef Bando Ryo visited our cubicle and our waiter who is Japanese from Malaysia, whose English was excellent, translated our questions. The chef said he worked in Vietnam as a chef before coming to this property and he created the peanut tofu that he made.
Fifth Dish - Grilled Dish - Oita Wagyu Beef. I have never tasted a more tender piece of grilled beef than the Wagyu beef tonight. There appears to be a point when the fat volatilizes but does not become rendered and flow out of the beef. That is how the beef tasted to me.
We ordered two liquors, one was citrus - lime and the other was plum flavored. They were interesting with the beef but rather sweet.
Sixth Dish - Taste of Kyushu - Rice Bowl - one chose fish and the others chose Simmered cooked beef. The beef was the marvelous Wagyu beef.
It was served with a cup of soup flavored with two strips of dried tofu and finely minced aosa nori (this is a soup mixand a bowl of pickled vegetables.
Seventh Dish - Dessert - Panne Cotta with a wedge of poached apple and a drop of raspberry coulis on top for an incredibly light dessert.
We finished dinner at 9:00 and retired to our casita to sleep.
Bon Appetit
