Maison Owl is an auberge/restaurant at Yamaguchi, Japan. Mostly French inspired with Japanese touches. It is possible to dine here without staying overnight.
It’s quite popular on Japanese social media for the aesthetic design of the restaurant and room. It is a man made cave structure designed by Junya Ishigami.
Hiarata-san is the chef owner and the space took nearly 10 years to realize. He used to run Restaurant Noel before opening Maison Owl.
The restaurant and stay is designed as an underground cave and has unique tempered glass that were made in China as no one in Japan made sizes that large.
The cost for dinner + pairing and accommodation with breakfast was 380,000 yen.
- Gougere with cheese
- Cuttlefish with yellow beet and shirasu on monaka
- Home made brioche with Vanilla Butter from Papua New Guinea
- Tiger pufferfish with citrus and caviar
- Pacific Saury
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Soupe de Poisson with baguette and yeast
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Two year aged potato
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Tilefish with fritters
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Wagyu beef
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Tarte tatin
I thought the food was quite good and unique. While the techniques weren’t the most advanced, I thought they brought out the natural flavors of the ingredients well. The breakfast was quite delicious as well.
The wine pairing was the worst part and not good value for money. I brought the Cristal Vinotheque for corkage.
It’s also fairly pricy but most high end hotels in Tokyo and Kyoto are getting crazy for pricing so this isn’t so bad all things considering the unique experience.
The restaurant has some poor reviews from locals as they think something this ‘pretentious’ shouldn’t be in the neighborhood, as it doesn’t serve local needs at all. Others have said the chef is quite arrogant but he was nice enough at the counter and during breakfast.
by balldem824