Near Kanazawa Omimachi Market] "Noto Nigiri" made by a salt shop owner - Yamazato no Saki

  • Ishikawa
  • Eating
Photo courtesy of Yamazato no Saki

OPEN April 15, 2023

Hello! This is the Hokuriku Editorial Office. We visited an onigiri (rice ball) shop located right in the middle of Kanazawa's Omemachi Market, Higashi Chaya-gai, and Kenrokuen Garden. Yamazato no Sho" is an onigiri specialty restaurant where local ingredients are made with local rice.
A variety of onigiri with different ingredients are lined up in the showcase. The Hokuriku editorial staff purchased the following onigiri this time: "grilled rice ball with ishiru", "yellowtail and yuzu", and "fugu no ko nuka mayo".
Isiru is a fish sauce produced in the Noto Peninsula and is known as one of the three major fish sauces in Japan along with Shotsuru from Akita Prefecture and Ikanago soy sauce from Kagawa Prefecture. Puffer fish roe is one of the local dishes of Ishikawa Prefecture, where the ovaries of the puffer fish are pickled for several years to remove toxins.
The "fugu no ko nuka mayo" has a texture similar to that of soft, chewy cod roe, and a delicious, deep flavor that is unique to the fermented, brined "fermented" food. The rice balls were a perfect match for the Noto rice, and tasted great even when cold.

Many local flavors

Photo courtesy of Yamazato no Saki
There were also many other ingredients that allowed us to enjoy the taste of our hometown, such as ume rice balls made of top-quality pickled plums (Misuzu) using pesticide-free shiso and "DENEN" (deep fried beach salt made by a traditional method in Okunoto), sukiyaki rice balls of Noto beef, which is a brand of beef, and rice balls of Goroshima Kintoki, one of Kaga's vegetables. The onigiri are made with rice balls made from Goroshima kintoki, one of Kaga's vegetables.

Eat-in (1st floor counter)

Photo courtesy of Yamazato no Saki
At the eat-in restaurant, you can enjoy a set meal consisting of two rice balls, pickles, and miso soup. When we visited at lunch time, the restaurant was crowded and local high school students were enjoying their rice balls with relish.

The reservation-only lunch is a highlight!

Photo courtesy of Yamazato no Saki
On the second floor, you can have lunch "Noto no Nyuban" (Noto's Lunch), which is served by reservation only. The set includes noto-nigiri (rice ball), Noto's local cuisine, and dessert, and you can enjoy not only onigiri but also side dishes from the mountains and sea of Ishikawa Prefecture.
>>Reservations for lunch can be made here<<

In a relaxing machiya

Photo courtesy of Yamazato no Saki
Of Kanazawa's old townscape, Owari-cho was once the commercial center of Kanazawa, with its many merchant houses. The name "Owari" is said to have originated from the merchants whom Toshiie Maeda, the first feudal lord of Kaga, summoned from his birthplace, Owari Arako, to live here. Why don't you enjoy the hometown taste of Ishikawa Prefecture in a renovated machiya (townhouse) that once stood in Owari-cho?
Tags related to this article
Previous post Back to list Next
related articles