Hannari is a small restaurant located on a back street in Viola Tamachi. "Hannari" is a Kyoto dialect word meaning elegance or sophistication, and true to its name, the restaurant offers elegantly seasoned Japanese cuisine at reasonable prices. The owner uses seasonal ingredients that he personally procures from the market every morning, and the dishes mainly consist of seafood, such as sashimi, grilled dishes, and tempura, with the owner serving the recommended dishes of the day. They also have a wide selection of alcoholic beverages, from Isojiman, a local sake from Shizuoka, to local sakes from all over Japan, and various kinds of shochu, so the owner will select the perfect drink to complement your meal. On this particular day, while passing by Hannari between meetings in town, we noticed a weekly special menu item, "Grilled Eel Set Meal," at the entrance. We were so surprised—"Eel set meal for 900 yen!?"—that we couldn't hide our astonishment and ended up leaning forward, opening the door, and going inside (lol).
The restaurant is a neat and tidy place with 6 counter seats and two tables seating 4 people each. And once again, I bumped into Mr. Kurokawa from Maruhachi Real Estate. We really do run into each other a lot (lol). Since we were there, we decided to have lunch together at a table. Their lunch menu is very reasonably priced, with a Japanese set meal for 1,000 yen where you can choose 2 dishes from 6-7 options, and a daily special set meal. There are many offices in the area, so it seems to be a popular spot for office workers. This time, without hesitation, I ordered the weekly special, the "Grilled Eel Set Meal" for 900 yen, and the daily special, the "Bonito Sashimi Set Meal" for 900 yen♪
Daily special: Bonito sashimi set meal, 900 yen
The beautifully colored and glossy bonito is carefully skinned and served with plenty of ginger and green onions. It has just the right amount of fat, making it a perfect accompaniment to rice!
Weekly special: Grilled eel set meal, 900 yen
For a 900 yen eel set meal, I expected at best to get half an eel, but to my delight, I received a generous half-and-a-half portion—a pleasant surprise! The eel, steamed and grilled in the Kanto style, was wonderfully tender, and dipped in a sweet and savory sauce, it was absolutely gorgeous. I enjoyed it with plenty of sansho pepper powder!
The grilled eel set meal comes with sashimi of sea bream and tuna! Even though the eel alone would be more than enough, it also includes a small bowl of sashimi! (Amazing!)
The side dish that comes with both set meals is "marinated sweetfish and mozuku seaweed in vinegar."
We've lightly fried some sweetfish, which are in season right now, and marinated them in a nanban-style sauce with just the right amount of acidity. The small bowl in the back is a traditional Japanese dish: mozuku seaweed salad. Vinegared dishes are so refreshing and provide a welcome tang to a body tired from the summer heat!
The small side dish that comes with both set meals, "Sweet Potatoes Simmered in Honey and Lemon," is also gently sweet, and the lemon flavor makes it a refreshing dish.
The rice that comes with both set meals.
The soup that comes with both set meals is "Nameko mushroom and wakame seaweed soup."
Both set meals come with "chawanmushi" (steamed egg custard).
The chawanmushi (steamed egg custard) had a prominent sweetness. While the side dishes were generally lightly seasoned, the chawanmushi was a stark contrast, with its sweetness standing out. Perhaps this is a flavor unique to Hamamatsu? And yet, it's such a generous portion for this price. Apparently, they can offer it at such a low price because they purchase eel in large quantities. This is a limited-time set meal available until July 22nd (Monday), the Day of the Ox in summer. Why not visit and try it to beat the summer heat?
Hannari
222-25 Motoshiro-cho, Naka-ku, Hamamatsu City TEL: 053-456-4008
Opening hours: 11:00-14:30, 18:00-24:00 Closed: Sundays
