Pork Garlic Saute - 1300 yen It was my first visit in a while, and it was still delicious! This time, I ordered the pork sauté. It came with potatoes, corn, and peas on the side. The pork sauté was very thick and satisfying to eat. The garlic flavor was really appetizing. The sauce was a refreshing Japanese-style sauce. The sizzling sound on the hot plate was irresistible! The pork was juicy and the outside was crispy. It was so delicious! It's always difficult to choose from the menu when I come here!

I discovered a delicious Western-style restaurant♪ I ordered the Mix Grill for 1,450 yen, which came with a side salad. I also ordered rice for 250 yen and corn soup for 400 yen. The omelette rice and gratin also looked delicious. It seems like a restaurant loved by the locals♪ I was surprised to see many elderly people dining there.

On this day off, I went to Urakawa town in the evening. First, I went to AERU to take a refreshing bath, and then did some shopping mainly for the Bon festival. I had to wait in line at the cashier for about 15 minutes (^^; For dinner, I originally planned to have soba, but the target restaurant happened to be closed, so I ended up visiting Saffron D'or nearby after a long time. It turns out it had been a year and a half since my last visit. There was a party of about 15 people in a private room, and they were ventilating well. The table seats also had signs saying "reserved", showing that the restaurant was as busy as ever. Of course, I sat at the counter. Despite looking busy, I received the menu and ordered the usual omurice (large serving with demi-glace sauce) after considering the pasta dishes. I watched the kitchen staff work while waiting. In about 10 minutes, the open-style omurice and demi-glace sauce arrived. By the way, you can also choose ketchup here. I first tried a bite of the chicken rice on its own, which was delicious. Then, I opened the omelette and gradually poured the sauce over it. The combination of chicken rice, omelette, and sauce was superb in taste and texture. The perfect fluffiness of the omelette is the work of a professional. The large serving was quite filling. I used up all the sauce and finished my meal feeling satisfied. However, the water never came, and I hesitated to mention it because the staff seemed busy, so I endured it. It was a bit disappointing, but the deliciousness remained unchanged (^^)d

I stayed at Yushun Village AERU and asked the front desk for a recommendation on a local restaurant as I wanted to eat out in town. I declined the seafood restaurant suggestion and asked for a Western-style restaurant, which was recommended as a famous local spot. It was located on one of the main streets, with a neighboring Western restaurant. They opened at 5:00 PM, and I had onion soup and pork sauté. The sauce was served separately and was delicious. When we ordered the shrimp fry to share, it came with 4 pieces. The rice was also tasty, and the service was quick, leaving us feeling satisfied. It's a recommended spot for when you want a break from seafood during your Hokkaido trip. Thank you for the meal.

Urahoro Town! When I work in this area, I started having lunch in Urakawa. Oh! I used to eat in Shintoku (Shinhidaka Town) before, but surprisingly there weren't many good restaurants there. I am currently exploring lunch spots in Urakawa (laughs). Today, I visited "Saffron D'or" as recommended by a local business partner! I ordered... I was torn between the regular menu items like Napolitan and Omurice and the lunch set (950 yen) with grilled chicken, but I decided on the lunch set. First, the soup was brought out. It was corn soup. It felt a bit salty, but it was delicious. Next, the grilled chicken and rice arrived. The grilled chicken was served with bacon, potato fries, corn, and some mysterious long beans (laughs). The chicken had a crispy skin and a fragrant aroma. The meat itself was lightly seasoned, maybe just with pepper? It was delicious with plenty of rich demi-glace sauce. The rice... I should have gone for the large portion, maybe? (laughs) The coffee after the meal was a small size and simply delicious. Thank you for the meal! Next time, should I try the Napolitan? Or maybe the Omurice? If I have the chance, I'll revisit for sure! ===========

Omelette rice (990 yen) was delicious with creamy eggs and flavorful demi-glace sauce. The portion was generous and satisfying. The restaurant had a cozy atmosphere and all the dishes looked hearty and appetizing.

On this day, I took a day off and decided to visit a dealer in Urakawa to have my car checked as I was concerned about its condition on the way back from Sapporo. After the inspection at the dealer, it was determined that a repair that could be fixed in about an hour would be carried out, and it was finished a little after 11 a.m. After finishing shopping at the supermarket, it was already past 11:30 a.m., so I decided to have lunch at the popular Saffron D'or. Despite being newly opened, there were already two groups of customers ahead of me, and another group came in right after me. It's truly a popular local restaurant. I sat at the beautiful wooden counter and ordered the daily lunch menu (chicken sauté) with extra rice (950 yen + 50 yen for extra rice). Soon, the corn soup was served. I enjoyed it with the crouton in the middle while checking my phone. The key is to make the interval between the soup and the main dish shorter. Even though I finish it in 5-6 minutes (laughs). About 3 minutes after the soup plate was taken away, the main dish was served. Sautéed chicken (thigh), bacon, and demi-glace sauce were served, accompanied by glazed green beans, potatoes, and corn. I always eat the corn first, carefully placing it on the fork with a knife (laughs). The chicken had a tender texture with any unwanted tendons removed, and the demi-glace sauce was simple and easy to eat. The sauce added juiciness to the chicken and bacon, making the extra rice disappear quickly. The lunch menu also included pork piccata and ginger grilled dishes, but I always feel like I eat the chicken sauté. Maybe I should try the regular menu hamburger once in a while (^^).

On the way back from Tomakomai, just like returning to Sapporo, I took a bath, did some shopping, and had dinner before heading home. However, dinner in Shiribeshi was a bit early (just after 5:30 pm). So, I decided to head back to Urakawa. As I pondered where to go, a long-time favorite restaurant in Urakawa came to mind. It was just before 6:30 pm when I arrived at Saffron D'or and found a parking spot easily. Upon entering, I noticed that the private rooms were occupied by a group. The table and counter seats had just been vacated. I chose a seat on the right side of the counter and ordered the "Omu-rice (omelette rice) in demi-glace sauce, extra large portion." I have been visiting this place at night for the past five years. Since I was sitting at the counter, I could see the process of frying the chicken rice - the ingredients were stir-fried in a pan, then the rice was added and colored with ketchup. The chicken rice was then served on a plate with an omelette on top, accompanied by a side of demi-glace sauce. I first tried the chicken rice on its own, and it was already delicious (although it's not listed on the menu). Then, I carefully spread the omelette and drizzled the demi-glace sauce over it (I prefer to add it little by little). The demi-glace sauce had a slight tanginess but didn't overpower the taste of the omelette rice. I kept spooning it up without hesitation. The omelette was perfectly cooked, not too runny, and the combination of textures between the chicken rice and omelette was fantastic. I finished the extra large portion easily, with the demi-glace sauce adding a nice touch. Although I have visited Saffron D'or many times, this is actually my first review post. Next time, I might try their shrimp rice gratin.

The menu at Kirara Tei offers a variety of options besides chicken pilaf, such as saffron, cream stew with young chicken, cream stew with shrimp, spaghetti with cheese, and steak. The day I visited, I chose chicken pilaf, but my wife wanted cream stew with young chicken, which would take longer to prepare, so she switched to macaroni gratin. It was delicious. It would be even better if there was a smoking area. Overall, the food was great, but all the restaurants in Urakawa seem to have the same issue.

There is a restaurant located just off Route 235, towards the sea. The parking lot can fit 3-4 cars right in front of the store, and there are also a few more spaces across the road diagonally from the store. Inside, I was seated at a spacious table. I ordered the "Spaghetti with Melted Cheese" for 980 yen. There were a few other customers at table seats and a couple of solo diners at the counter. There seemed to be about 4 staff members working, and the kitchen looked quite large. The dish I received didn't have any standout flavors, but it was decent. The menu had a variety of options, including lunch specials, so I look forward to trying more dishes in the future.

A colleague recommended a restaurant to me. I quickly looked at the menu and ordered an omelette with demi-glace sauce without hesitation. It was lunchtime and the place was quite busy. After waiting for a while, I was served a dish with a plain omelette on top of chicken rice, instead of the wrapped omelette I was expecting. I wanted to make my own omelette rice. I broke the fluffy plain omelette with a spoon, poured demi-glace sauce over it, and silently finished the meal. The texture was light and fluffy, and the meal was a hit. It was a great find after a long time.

The hamburger was quite substantial. I was curious about the onion gratin that the person next to me ordered, but I didn't get to try either.

France and fried chicken (#^.^#)

In May 2018, I had lunch at the Western-style restaurant "Safrandor" in Urakawa Town, known for its kombu and thoroughbred horses. It had been five years since my last visit, when I had the gratin. This time, I tried the pork cutlet curry priced at 1,200 yen. I had a strange expectation for it, being over 1,000 yen, thinking it would be different from the usual cafeteria-style curry. The dish arrived with a donut-shaped mound of rice in the center, topped with curry sauce and a pork cutlet placed beside it. The pork cutlet was freshly fried and had a good meaty flavor, but it was slightly tough and lacked juiciness. It seemed like they may have rushed the frying process. The curry had a taste that leaned more towards store-bought rather than homemade, and it felt lacking for a Western-style restaurant curry. Perhaps this restaurant doesn't focus on their curry dishes. However, just like my previous visit, the place was bustling with local customers during lunchtime. It seems like Safrandor is the go-to Western-style restaurant for everyday dining in Urakawa Town.

It's been a while since I last came here. I love the demi-glace omurice here and crave it when I forget about it. I always make sure to reserve in advance because sometimes you can't get in without a reservation. It seemed like there were some reservations already, but since there were only two of us, they let us in without any issues. As always, delicious! Satisfying!