Gifu/CHUNO Region's Gastronomy
This is definitely not a complete list of restaurants, but just some of the recommendations of restaurants that are popular with the Gifu JETs.
Gifu Station
Gifu Station has a variety of different restaurants, cafes and izakayas within the station!
- Starbucks: Great to grab a coffee, a sandwich and use the free WiFi (must sign up for an account using other WiFi before you can access Starbucks WiFi).
- Showa Shokudo: A Showa themed Izakaya in Gifu Station with all-you-can drink for only ¥1000 per person for two hours, including self-serve umeshu!
Central Gifu
The area around Gifu Station tends to be the central meeting area and hub for eating and drinking in the region, and as such there are tons of great places to check out.
- Watami: A popular izakaya, located right next to Meitetsu Gifu Station with traditional Japanese izakaya dishes and a reasonably priced nomihoudai.
- Yanagase Beer Garden: A bit of a walk from the station down to the Yanagase area, but well worth it for the summer rooftop beer garden. All-you-can-eat bbq and all-you-can-drink self serve with a variety of options, this place is a favorite for many JETs.
- Da Achiu (ダアチュ) : Delicious, legitimate pizza.
- The Golden Chicken : Rotisserie chicken restaurant.
- Rasamanda: An Indian food restaurant, inconveniently located right between Nishi-Gifu and Gifu Station, but the food makes up for it. The décor is pretty great as well, with beautiful, large wooden chairs and tables.
- Hana No Mai : An izakaya with good all you can eat and drink menus that are popular for parties and gatherings.
- Nomads : This bar is situated just behind Loft and Meitetsu Gifu station. It's cozy, has a great atmosphere, a TV, and nice bar staff.
- El Paso : A Tex-Mex joint in a small space with friendly staff and wacky decor. It’s a bit on the expensive side and the restaurant is pretty small, so booking in advance is advised. *Recommendation: the Burritos leave something to be desired, so go for the Quesadillas or the Fajitas. But if you are looking for Mexican food, it’s honestly probably worth making the trip down to Desperados in Nagoya instead.
Tamamiya- Dori (玉宮通り)
Many young Japanese and foreigners alike are likely to be found in Tamamiya-dori, often referred to as “drinking street”. It’s a small street running north of Gifu JR station. The simplest way to get there is to walk along the overpass leading from the second floor of the station to the right, at the Circle K convenience store turn left and go down the stairs to reach the ground level. Turn right and follow this street north.
- Yell! Ale! Gifu! : On the street parrellel to Tamamiya-dori, Gifu's go to craft beer bar. It has a really nice atmosphere and a large selection of craft beer on tap. They are constantly changing the selection, so you can always expect to find something new. However, like most craft beer in Japan, it is a little more pricey than your average beer. They also do a couple different nomihodai course options, one with the entire beer selection, and one self serve (though the selection is only three beers).
- Guild: Just off of Tamamiya-dori, they have some craft beer both bottled and draft, as well as a pool table and a generally good atmosphere for chatting with locals.
- Bierhall : Built like a narrow hallway and it serves beer (though a limited selection). Bierhall also has a handy book-swap corner where you can take one and leave one. They also put on a pretty good St Patrick’s Day party every year.
- Scrum : Located just above Bierhall, Scrum is a New Zealand themed rugby bar. The most important games are played here on the TV and one can sample a wide range of brews from around the world. There’s usually a few pool sharks are in attendance.
- Alffo: This is a kind of hipster bar with a chill atmosphere with DJs and a view over the park. The food here is a little lacking in volume but the drinks are good, and the crowd is really friendly. It’s a good place to meet hip, young Japanese people. It is located on the second floor across from the Gifu Bunka Center.
- Tora : An izakaya on the main food street with the best karaage we have ever had! It also does all you can eat and drink menus that you have to book at least one day in advance.
North of the Nagara River
- Sushiro : A chain 100 yen conveyor belt sushi restaurant popular with JETs who love sushi but are on a budget. They also can do take-away!
- Dohtonburi : A chain Okinomiyaki restaurant. Even though it’s a chain, the place still has a good atmosphere and does excellent food.
- Café Turquoise: A Turkish café with delicious pancakes. On nice days you can eat out on the roof and soak up the sunny weather.
- Indo Nagara: All you can eat Indian curry for only 1000 yen (take out curry and naan for only 800¥)! The food is pretty mediocre and the options are limited but you can’t beat the price.
- Indo Dinigu Himaraya: More expensive Indian food than the previous option, but it is so much more delicious with many more options.
Nishi-Gifu area
- Benigoma: A really popular spicy tonkotsu and sesame ramen place popular with the locals. The teachers at my school make special lunch trips from across town to visit this place!
- Ichiran: A famous tonkotsu ramen chain restaurant where you fill out a sheet to personalize your ramen order. It has separate booths for people looking to slurp in silence.
- Sushiro: A chain 100 yen conveyor belt sushi restaurant. It’s right next door to a close supermarket to the Nishi-Gifu apartments, so it’s really convenient if you want to drop in for a quick dinner when getting groceries! They also do take-away, but it does take 20 minutes, however you can order and then do your shopping.
- Marugame Udon: Sanuki udon is made fresh in front of your eyes which you can choose to be served either hot or cold. You can then top it off with your own selection of self serve tempura before paying at the end. Fast food, but really fresh and delicious!
- Tulsi Indian: One of the best Indian restaurants in Gifu which is reasonably priced and also that provides all you can eat naan bread if you eat in and order a set meal! They’ve also just started selling Thai food too, but it hasn't yet been tested by any of the JETs.
- Rustico: A trendy bread shop with nice lunch sets.
Motosu
- Shintai Menbo: One of Motosu’s many ramen shops, but conveniently located just around the corner from where the Motosu JETs live.
- Swagatam: A great Indian restaurant that’s also just around the corner from the Motosu JET apartments. It also does take-away using re-usable containers.
- Neo Kaido: A delicious mom-and-pop yakiniku restaurant that’s hidden away in Motosu’s backstreets.
- MALera: At any of the delicious restaurants and food court shops in the shopping mall! Popular eats include the all-you-can-eat and drink Shabu Shabu, Saizeriya for their stupid cheap wine (its not that good but can't beat the price), and the Hawaiian restaurant for some delicious pancakes.
- Mihara: An adorable café restaurant for lunch, with an outside dining patio right on the river, making it the perfect place to enjoy the fall and spring seasons.
Kitagata
- Shanimuni: One of the best ramen restaurants we’ve ever eaten at! There is a heated debate between JETs as to which dish is better; the tsukemen (a type of ramen where you dip your noodles in a rich broth instead of it coming premixed in one bowl) or the pork maze soba (a deliciously garlic filled tonkotsu ramen). This gem was discovered upon a local’s recommendation and is known to locals as one of the best ramen shops in the area.
- Sushiro: A chain 100 yen conveyor belt sushi restaurant that’s super popular with JETs due to its good quality and super low price.
Gujo
- Hachiman Craft Beer Kobokobo - 郡上八幡麦酒 こぼこぼ : A craft brewery in Gujo Hachiman with a cozy atmosphere to relax with a beer. You can also purchase their brews on tap at Yell!Ale! in Gifu City
- Colombaccio - コロンバッチョ : Brick oven Pizza
- Local Deli - ロカデリ