Heroes on the Half Shell – Where to get in-season Oysters in Nagoya

Jan 24, 2022

Heroes on the Half Shell – Where to get in-season Oysters in Nagoya

For those of us who are used to the climate control comforts of central heating, double glazing, and insulated buildings coming as standard, winter in Japan – where these are mostly alien concepts – can be a time to yearn for other seasons. Fortunately, a few things can make up for the seasonal chill, and one big one is winter, the oyster season.

The Japan Inland Sea around Hiroshima provides most of the nation’s kaki [oysters], with the Ise Bay also being a high producer. There are many places around Nagoya into which they are imported, meaning that there are some amazing spots where you can enjoy this delicacy. And what’s more, whether fried, grilled, steamed, or – less commonly that you might expect – raw, they won’t cost an arm and a leg, as they would back home.

The Oyster Bar

Just a seven-minute walk from Nagoya Station in Lucent Tower, Oyster Bar is a great place to get fried, grilled, and steamed oysters all year round. Furthermore, if you become an ‘Oyster-life Family’ [kaki seikatsu kazoku] member, you can get up to 50 percent off food and drink on the first of every month.

Where: 6-1 Ushijimacho, Nishi Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: tyu.co.jp

Oyster Room

Most restaurants in Japan serve oysters cooked somehow, but Oyster Room dishes them up raw, just as you might find back home. Located in the LaChic Department store in Sakae, Oyster Room is a calm, sophisticated bar that serves raw, deep-sea oysters on the half shell. Why not pair your snack with one of their excellent white wines?

Where: Nagoya, Naka Ward, Sakae, 3 Chome−6−1 LaChic, 8F (map)
Website: oysterbar.co.jp

Kakikoya Fever

Including the word ‘fever’ in the restaurant’s title that serves a dish famed for allergic reactions is perhaps not the wisest of marketing tools. However, if you are crazy about oysters, maybe you should forgive that faux pas. Kakikoya Fever, in Kasamori, three stops from Nagoya on the Kintetsu Line, does an all-you-can-eat oyster course raw or grilled oysters for just 2,980 JPY, meaning you can gorge until your heart’s content. Be aware, however, at this price, they are more likely to be Chinese oysters than Japanese, but unless you are an expert, can you tell the difference?

Where: 2-28 Matsubacho, Nakagawa-ku, Nagoya-shi (map)
Website: r.gnavi.co.jp

Yanagibashi Market

What can be more extravagant than breakfast oysters? If that’s the way you roll, then head on down to the Yanagibashi Market, where the fresh seafood catches come in every morning. If you arrive some time after 9 in the morning, when the roaring trade has died down but before it closes for business at 10, you can stroll around the market and take your pick of some of the freshest oysters imaginable.

Where: 4 Chome-11-3 Meieki, Nakamura Ward, Nagoya (map)
Website: marunaka-center.co.jp

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Image: By jennifer durban via flickr.com [CC BY-NC2.0]
Image: By kslee via flickr.com [CC BY-NC2.0]
Image: By Kirk K via flickr.com [CC BY-SA 2.0] – modified