I arrived at Naha Airport at half past 1, rented a car straight away, and drove directly to Iju no Hana in the pouring rain. It is a well-known restaurant visited by many entertainers and celebrities.
The Iju no Hana Set Meal at lunch (pictured; 9 lunch dishes; ¥1,250) is the restaurant’s most popular set meal. It presents 9 different Ryukyuan dishes, allowing diners to sample a broad range of Okinawan flavors. The food is very gentle and tastes natural.
The 9 dishes, clockwise from the upper right of the photograph, are mozuku seaweed, jimami tofu, nakamijiru offal soup, fuchiba jushi, kombu (kubu) irichi, brown-sugar kuzumochi, dressed bitter melon and pineapple, and dressed pig’s ear. The bitter melon and pineapple dish has a wonderfully refreshing flavor. I had never eaten bitter melon this refreshing before. Apparently, bitter melons at this time of year are greenhouse-grown and therefore less bitter. The nakamijiru is made with a broth of kombu and ginger and has such a refined flavor that it is hard to believe it is an offal dish. I fell in love with it immediately. I also recommend the fuchiba jushi, rice cooked with mugwort leaves in pork stock. In fact, everything is delicious!
The staff, who serve guests in Okinawan kimono, are also very kind. Some of the other diners even seemed to have distinctly Okinawan features, adding plenty of exotic atmosphere. Beside the entrance are habu liquor and smoked sea snake.
This is my top recommended restaurant.
Iju no Hana (Ryukyuan cuisine)
Telephone: 098-857-0309
Address: 1-15-20 Gushi, Naha, Okinawa
Hours: 11:30–15:00/18:00–22:00
Closed: Tuesdays
Access: 5 minutes by car from Naha Airport
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