Six Lightly Sweet Treats to Try Among Minami-Echizen Town’s Natural Beauty!
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With gorgeous coastline, mountain peaks, and green villages, Minami-Echizen Town in Fukui Prefecture is a true treasure trove of nature.
In this town, even time itself seems to slow down and enjoy the scenery.
One of the joys of travel, or even just going for a drive, is trying the local cuisine.
When you out on a stroll and want to take a breather, nothing hits the spot like a sweet–but not too sweet–treat.
We have picked out a few of our favorite Japanese and Western not-too-sweet sweets.
These unique local bites are made with unique local ingredients.
If you try mixing it up a bit with both Japanese-style and Western-style delights, you may never get bored no matter how much you eat!
Stop in and enjoy them for yourself.
Japanese Gems
Kanmidokoro Temari
Happiness by the mouthful. Simple handmade tofu shiratama dumplings.
Imajo-shuku is a charming historic post town on the Hokkoku Kaido road. Tucked away in one corner is Kanmidokoro Temari, a sweet shop that specializes in shiratama dango (round mochi-like dumplings). Each shiratama is made with a mixture of select mochi rice flour and tofu. These soft and chewy treats are large and round like temari balls.
A wide range of lightly sweet shiratama sweets are on offer, including mitarashi dango sprinkled with shichimi spice mix, anmitsu, and parfaits. Try the healthier “kuromitsu kinako” (500 yen), which is sprinkled with kinako (roasted soybean flour) and cane sugar then drizzled with brown sugar syrup. The fragrant kinako and rich, natural sweetness of the brown sugar syrup spread through your whole mouth with every bite. You can get your dango to go too, if you like.
This pleasant space is a renovated hundred-year-old traditional Japanese house. Take a load off and enjoy some Japanese sweets while admiring the nostalgic and calming atmosphere–not to mention the lovely garden just outside the window.
Information:
Kanmidokoro Temari
76-31 Imajo, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui Prefecture
Tel: 0778-45-1112
Hours: 11am-5pm (closes earlier if sold out)Closed: Mondays and Tuesdays
Instagram/kanmidokoro_temari
Kokoan Handmade Soba
Cute and lightly sweet handmade ohagi.
Kokoan is a handmade soba noodle shop that has been in business for three generations in the Nanjo area of Minami-Echizen Town. Although it is a soba shop, today we are recommending you try the four-color ohagi (600 yen per box), which is only available on weekends and holidays. The round box contains four different kinds of cute, bite-sized ohagi (balls of mochi rice covered with azuki sweet bean paste).
The first in the set is the classic and simple tsubuan (course sweet red bean paste). Next, the fragrant and flavorful kinako (soybean flour), made from local soybeans. Next is the hasu-matcha-an-kinako (lotus, matcha, red bean paste, and kinako), which includes powdered lotus leaf from the area’s famous lotus. Last but not least is the hana ohagi, which is shaped to resemble a prominent flower of the current season. For example, the hana ohagi is shaped like cherry blossoms in April, hydrangeas in June, lotus from July to August, and poinsettias in December. The gentle sweetness of the azuki beans and the soft and chewy texture combine for a delicious treat that you can’t get enough of. Fun to look at and fun to eat, they’ll brighten any mood.
On Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, you can find the four-color ohagi set at the Market Me corner in the roadside station Minami-Echizen Sankairi at the Nanjo rest area on the Hokuriku Expressway. It is accessible from both the expressway and ordinary roads.
Information:
Roadside Station Minami-Echizen Sankairi
39-2-2 Makidani, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui PrefectureTel: 0778-47-3690
Hours: Market Me 9am-8pm, Food Hall Me (varies by store)Closed: open year-round
Get it here too!
Kokoan is located along the road east of National Route 365 in the Nanjo area of Minami-Echizen Town. Accepting reservations by phone.
Information:
Kokoan Handmade Soba
12-16-15 Higashidaido, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui PrefectureTel: 0778-47-3988
Hours: (Lunch) Wednesday – Sunday 11:30am-3pm (last order 2pm)
(Dinner) Wednesday – Thursday, Sunday 5pm-9pm (last order 8pm)
(Dinner) Friday and Saturday 5pm-11pm (last order 10:30pm)Closed: Monday and Tuesday (sometimes closed on Sunday nights)
Instagram/koukouan.473988
Imajo D51 Farm Shop
Yomogi anmochi (mugwort-flavored mochi filled with sweetened red bean paste) handmade locally.
Imajo D51 Farm Shop, located on National Route 476 in Minami-Echizen Town’s Imajo area, sells fresh and delicious vegetables born from the clear water and climate of this mountainous region with its large temperature fluctuations. On Sundays only, simple, traditional Japanese sweets handmade by local ladies can be found here as well.
We recommend the handmade, additive-free yomogi mochi (180 yen each), made with wild mugwort harvested deep in the mountains of Imajo and the town’s own Tancho brand mochi rice. Take a bite and experience the rich aroma and flavor of the hand-kneaded mugwort. The chewy, sticky mochi goes perfectly with the slow-cooked homemade, soft and fluffy sweet bean paste.
Local women roll each of these by hand, who chant, “Be delicious!” This simple deliciousness will have you coming back for more. Sold in limited quantities only on Sundays, you can reserve five or more by phone.
The Imajo D51 Farm Shop is stocked with the season’s freshest local veggies and is a great place to learn about local food ingredients.
Information:
Imajo D51 Farm Shop
9-13 Imajo, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui Prefecture
Tel: 0778-45-0451Hours: Monday through Friday 10am-2pm, Saturday, Sunday, and public holidays 10am-3pm
Closed: Tuesdays (closed in February and March)
Get it here too!
In addition to the Imajo D51 Farm Store, yomogi anmochi are also sold in limited quantities on Sundays at the Market Me sales corner of the roadside station Minami-Echizen Sankairi at the Nanjo rest area on the Hokuriku Expressway. Accessible from both the expressway and ordinary roads.
Information:
Roadside Station Minami-Echizen Sankairi
39-2-2 Makidani, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui PrefectureTel: 0778-47-3690
Hours: Market Me 9am-8pm, Food Hall Me (varies by store)Closed: open year-round
Western Wonders
ORION BAKE
A roll cake with a gentle flavor that will satisfy chocolate lovers too!
Orion Bake is a cafe located in a quiet corner of Imajo surrounded by mountains and fields. All of their offerings are handmade using select ingredients that are healthy for the body.
We recommended the chocolate chip roll cake (450 yen), which has a moist and chewy cocoa dough on the outside and a light chocolate cream on the inside. Crunchy chocolate chips mixed into the cream adds a nice accent. The mellow sweetness of the beet sugar leaves a clean aftertaste. Just one bite and the next will soon follow, and before you know it, your plate is clean. One male customer even commented, “I could eat the whole roll!”
While the chocolate chip roll cake can be enjoyed all year round, they also offer limited-edition roll cakes made with seasonal fruits such as cherry in spring and shine muscat grapes in summer.
The building was a former nursery school that was painstakingly renovated by the shop’s owner, yet mostly still looks the part. The warm and nostalgic atmosphere of the shop allows you to enjoy a relaxing time with sweet treats.
Information:
Orion Bake
49-3-1 Furuki, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui Prefecture
Tel: 080-5857-4605Hours: 11:30am-5pm (last order 4pm)
Closed: Wednesdays and Thursdays (temporary closures are announced on Instagram, subject to change during winter)Instagram/orionbake
PIZZERIA ROSSO
Dreamy original desserts made by a former pastry chef.
Pizzeria Rosso is a cozy pizza restaurant located far from the hustle and bustle in a quiet corner of the Imajo area of Minami-Echizen Town under a mountain. The Matsumoto couple, who had run a pastry shop in Kyoto for many years, moved here and opened the shop in 2018. Each pizza is baked in a custom-made stone oven with carefully selected ingredients. After your pizza, you must try is the warm fig chocolate brownie & beet sugar milk gelato parfait (550 yen) for dessert.
Warm fig chocolate brownie and frosty and mild milk gelato finished off with a topping of sweet and sour raspberry sauce and crunchy fruit granola. The handmade masterpieces found here–the taste, the aroma, the presentation–are hidden gems to say the least. The desserts change with the seasons, making you want to come back again and again.
Originally a vacation home, this cabin was renovated with the help of friends and locals. This is the perfect place to get away from it all and enjoy the natural beauty right in front of you.
Information:
Pizzeria Rosso
19-59 Nagasawa, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui PrefectureTel: 0778-67-4833
Hours: 11am-3pm (last order 2:30pm)
Closed: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays
Echizen no Sachi: Hoyatei
Local soft serve ice cream with lotus leaves.
Echizen no Sachi: Hoyatei is located inside Minami-Echizen Sankairi Roadside Station in the Hokuriku Expressway Nanjo Service Area (southbound).
It can be accessed from both the expressway and ordinary roads.
The Nanjo area of Minami-Echizen Town produces the most lotus flowers, a symbol of Japan, in the country.
The specialty lotus flower ice cream (400 yen) is light green from the lotus leaf powder.
It’s not too sweet and has a refreshing taste. Good till the last bite.
It’s perfect for taking a break on a nice drive. When you want to eat something a little cold but not too sweet.
Not available in winter.
At Hoyattei, you can also get original local dishes to go that can only be found here. Yamauni is a traditional condiment from Fukui that can be tried here with their yamauni takoyaki.
Information:
Echizen no Sachi Hoyattei (Inside Minami-Echizen Sankairi Roadside Station)
39-2-2 Makiya, Minami-Echizen-cho, Nanjo-gun, Fukui PrefectureTel: 080-6857-4151
Hours: 10am-7pm (may have reduced hours depending on the season)
Closed: open year-roundInstagram/hoyattei_nanjyoten
