Every year I come here for Christmas ^_^ This is a restaurant famous for its Hormone Udon in Tagawa! Here, I always order a large draft beer! It's like three regular glasses combined, and the Hormone hot pot (^ ^) I come here every year, but I always forget how to eat it, so I wish they would explain it each time (^_^;) Once the pot is heated, you put in the Hormone, then add vegetables and tofu, pour the sauce, and cover it! Let it simmer and it's ready (^^) It goes really well with beer and warms you up in the winter, so I recommend it! You can also add kimchi if you like ‍♀️ Recently, it seems like the ordering method has changed to tablets. I'm a bit concerned about the service attitude of the girl on the second floor, as she tends to place the dishes on the table carelessly when serving them, so I hope they can improve on that.

Today, due to work, I visited Gotoji Temple in Fukuoka Prefecture! Fukuoka has been rainy all week...or rather, pouring rain... But despite that, I worked hard so I decided to treat myself to some delicious food! By the way...there was a dish that caught my attention in Tagawa... So, I searched on Tabelog and decided to head to this place! When I arrived at the restaurant, I saw a three-story impressive building... Inside, there were about six tables with sunken kotatsu on the first floor. I'm not sure what the second floor and above look like... I looked at the menu and although I was tempted by the lunch set, I stuck to my original plan and ordered the specialty dish of Tagawa! - Hormone Nabe Set (1,925 yen) I heard on TV that Hormone Nabe is a specialty of Tagawa! I haven't seen the actual dish yet...is it different from motsu nabe? With this question in mind, a shallow pot appeared first! Do we cook in this? It's too shallow for soup... Then, hormone, vegetables, tofu, and kimchi were served! There were about 4-5 types of hormone including small intestines and senmai... As it was my first time, I received a cooking lesson! First, I added the hormone and stir-fried until it turned white... Then, I added tofu and vegetables, seasoned with sauce to taste! (I was told it might be too spicy if I put everything in, so this time I only added half) Finally, I covered it, and when the vegetables became soft, it was ready! Now that the vegetables looked good, I tried it! First, I tried the main motsu... Hmm! It has a chewy texture! The more you chew, the more sweetness and umami... and then the contrasting spicy sauce! The sauce is like yakiniku sauce, but with a hint of sweetness! With this sauce, the sweetness of the vegetables also stands out... This is delicious... The vegetables include cabbage, onion, bean sprouts, leeks, green onions, and tofu, a surprisingly healthy lineup, right? Hmm, this is definitely different from motsu nabe! The soup is minimal, made from the moisture of the vegetables and the sauce! Because it's minimal, the umami of the vegetables and hormone comes out well... This soup is delicious... They know how to finish it well! Yes! Guess what...rice or udon is waiting! Haha The rice has absorbed all the delicious broth... I can easily imagine how delicious it is... This time, I was really hungry so I chose rice! I added rice, beaten egg, and green onions... Perfect finish! Haha The rice has absorbed all the flavor from earlier... I am happy... I thought the portion might be too much, but before I knew it, I finished it all! I can understand why this is called a specialty dish... I'm curious about the yakiniku hormone lunch, so I'll revisit!

I tried a hormone hot pot and yakiniku restaurant. The hormone hot pot was delicious, with hormone, vegetables, and sauce cooked together. It's a specialty hot pot from Tagawa. The yakiniku was also incredibly delicious!! I was very satisfied.

It's been a long time since I last visited this restaurant. The place is still clean and the service is friendly. We ordered various cuts of beef such as thickly sliced beef sagari, marbled upper kalbi, salted tongue, upper mino with a nice chewy texture, and top hormone with no unpleasant smell. The salted tongue was my favorite with its perfect thickness, texture, and saltiness. The marbled upper kalbi had a lot of fat which made it rich and flavorful, though a bit heavy for me. The salted coriander had a nice crunchy texture and was best enjoyed with salt. The kimchi assortment had tasty napa cabbage but the cucumber and radish were too watery. The oxtail soup was delicious with tender meat and flavorful broth. Unfortunately, they were out of heart that day, so I'll have to try it next time.

When I visited the Tagawa area for work, I went for lunch. It was easy to find the place as it was located just a short walk from Ita Station, with a sign that read "Asahiya" visible from the main street. Although the grilled kalbi and loin looked delicious, I decided to stick to my original plan and ordered the "Hormone Nabe Set". It was my first time trying it, but there were instructions on the table so I felt at ease. They heated up a large, flat pot on which we grilled the hormone meat. First, we put the hormone in, then added onions, cabbage, enoki mushrooms, bean sprouts, tofu, kimchi, and covered it. Once the vegetables were tender, it was ready to eat. We poured sauce over it, added red pepper or chili according to taste, and enjoyed the dish. The sauce had a sweet and savory sesame flavor. Since there were plenty of vegetables, it felt quite light. After finishing the meal, we added udon noodles to the remaining broth. The udon was delicious as well. It was a satisfying meal with a generous amount of vegetables, making it healthy and enjoyable.

Around 1 pm on a regular day, I felt like eating horumon (offal) after a long time, so I decided to go to Asahiya. This was my 5th visit to this restaurant. I usually come with friends or family, but this time I came alone. It's easy to enter even if you're alone. When I entered the restaurant, the staff guided me to my seat. There was only one other group of customers besides me, so it was quite empty. Last time I came for lunch, there were also only 2-3 groups. It seems like it's less crowded during the day compared to at night. When I came at night, it was quite busy and full. As soon as I sat down, I ordered the horumon set meal. The food arrived pretty quickly, in about 5-10 minutes. The horumon was not too greasy and easy to eat, and the sauce was deliciously sweet. I really liked the gentle flavors of the namul (seasoned vegetables) assortment. Also, they offer free refills of rice, which was great for someone like me who eats a lot. The meal was very filling and only cost 1000 yen, so it was cheap. I usually leave right after eating, but this time I ended up staying for about an hour, just relaxing. The customer who was there before me also stayed for a while. Since I usually eat a lot of yakiniku (Japanese BBQ), I think I want to try the horumon nabe (offal hot pot) next time. I will definitely come back again. ^-^

Hormone hot pot set for 1925 yen. The udon for the finish is incredibly delicious.

Autumn Moon and Kama City are connected by the rugged (national) Route 322. It used to be a narrow, winding road, but last October the Hatcho Tunnel opened, making travel more comfortable. So, why not take a drive and try the Tagawa specialty "Hormone Nabe"? I headed to Asahiya. Although the navigation system announced "arrival", I couldn't find the restaurant. It turned out the restaurant was about 30 meters into an alley from the main road, Route 204. The restaurant is a 3-story building. We arrived at 12:55. We ordered the "Hormone Nabe Set (1,750 yen, separate)" and the "Roast Beef Set (1,300 yen)" to share. The waitress informed us that they couldn't serve them together, so we chose to start with the Hormone Nabe. The Hormone Nabe is a dish where hormone (offal) marinated in barbecue sauce is stir-fried with vegetables and tofu on a hot plate. After a while, we were told the plate was ready, and we started cooking the hormone. Once the color changed, we added vegetables and tofu. When the vegetables were soft, we seasoned it with barbecue sauce and chili pepper and enjoyed it. The hormone was from various parts of beef and had no unpleasant smell. However, my companion, who was expecting something like tripe hot pot, was a bit puzzled. Hormone Nabe and tripe hot pot are completely different dishes. After finishing the Hormone Nabe, we grilled the beef from the Roast Beef Set on the hot plate. The beef was thick and beautifully marbled. It was delicious when grilled to your liking. The Roast Beef Set came with soup, salad, namul, kimchi, and rice. We had a satisfying meal with the Hormone Nabe Set and the Roast Beef Set. "Tagawa Hormone Nabe" is a dish that even Fukuoka residents may not know much about unless they are hormone enthusiasts. It was a great experience. Thank you for the meal.

Four of us came to the restaurant for a food challenge and we all ended up having four extra bowls of rice. We finished all the rice, sorry about that! It was delicious.

Lunch is a great deal! The marbled beef, such as kalbi, is well marbled yet inexpensive!

I wanted to eat meat for lunch, so I went to the restaurant I was recommended. The cost performance was good and the taste was really delicious. I ordered oxtail soup at the end, but it was a huge portion, like enough for two people, and no matter how much I ate, it didn't seem to decrease (lol). I was at my limit, but I ended up finishing it all... I'm scared of myself. Thank you for the meal.

For those who do not have a good knowledge of the area from Fukuoka to Ita in Tagawa, it may be difficult to find the restaurant without using a navigation system. I went to Asahiya to try their "Hormone Nabe," which is a type of hot pot dish. As a longstanding yakiniku restaurant, Asahiya had an impressive establishment. Even though it was late in the afternoon, there were many customers dining in private rooms. I ordered the "Hormone Nabe Set" for 1750 yen. The grilling net for yakiniku was removed, and a large iron plate was set up instead. I was impressed by this setup. The ingredients were brought to me, including intestines, beef stomach, beef diaphragm, beef tripe, and a vegetable assortment. The waitress taught me how to cook it. It was similar to motsunabe, but with no soup. Once the iron plate was hot, I put all the hormone meat, vegetables, and tofu on it. Then, I poured yakiniku sauce over it. It started simmering, and the vegetables became tender. It was the perfect time to eat. The smell of garlic and grilled hormone meat with yakiniku sauce was amazing. I scooped it onto a plate and enjoyed the hot hormone meat. The sweet seasoning stimulated my appetite. The soft intestines, chewy beef stomach, unique texture of beef diaphragm, and flavored vegetables allowed me to savor different types of hormone meat at once. It was a delight for hormone lovers. After enjoying the hormone and vegetables, I finished with a bowl of delicious ochazuke rice. It had absorbed all the flavors. It was a great way to end the meal. I left feeling satisfied and full. Hormone lovers might be able to finish two servings easily.

I heard from a friend that there is a delicious yakiniku restaurant, so we decided to go there with five kids. We ordered various dishes, but the tongue that came first was thin and not very tasty. The harami was okay, but the kalbi and loin had too much fat, so I only took a bite of each. The kids enjoyed it, but as for me, it wasn't to my liking. Getting old is tough! Things I used to enjoy now don't taste good, and things I used to dislike now taste delicious. It's all about age!

On March 1, 2016 (Tuesday) (1st day of Fukuoka business trip), Lunch (2). From Kokura, we headed towards Chikuhou. We drove south on Route 322. Chikuhou is known for its coal mines. And when you think of Chikuhou, you think of "Gate of Youth." The scenery is lined with low mountains on both sides. It somehow resembles Wales. You can also see mountains that have been ruthlessly excavated on the slopes. Are those mountains also slag heaps? There was a restaurant called "Izakaya Botayama" as well. ♪ Beyond the embankment of the Onga River, you can see three Botayama lined up in Tagawa City. We arrived in Tagawa, so it's time for lunch (2) (the previous one was lunch (1) (lol)). When I searched, I found out that there is a local dish called Tagawa Hormone Hot Pot. It was a dish that was the source of stamina for coal miners. I thought it sounded good, so I came to this popular restaurant. It's basically a yakiniku restaurant. It was exactly 3:00 pm when I parked my car in the parking lot and entered the restaurant, where there were two other groups of customers. I sat at a table near the front and ordered the Hormone Hot Pot Set (1750 yen). The set includes "beef offal, vegetable set, kimchi, udon or small rice." The unique-shaped pot in the middle was not filled with soup, but the hormones were already seasoned and when heated, the soup would come out. The pot warmed up, and the friendly woman at the restaurant made it for me. Well, she just added the hormones, vegetables, and a little sauce. The vegetables included cabbage, bean sprouts, green onions, onions, and chives. There was also tofu. She covered it and said, "Please enjoy it when the vegetables are tender." It takes about 3-5 minutes. She left some sauce and ground red pepper for me, saying, "If the taste is too light, please add more sauce. If you like it spicy, try this." And I tried the Hormone Hot Pot, which was quite delicious with a sweet taste. The hormones were also tasty. I'm not familiar with hormones at all, so I don't know the parts, but it was good. I can't really explain what was so delicious about it. The udon that followed was also delicious. It was a soft udon without much firmness, but the texture was good and it went well with the taste of the Hormone Hot Pot. The total bill was 1890 yen including tax. When I stepped outside, the setting sun was shining beautifully on the Asahiya building. Chikuhou was clear and sunny in the afternoon. There was no trace of the sadness and sense of closure that Shin and Orie must have felt. We continued down the Hikoyamagawa River, a tributary of the Onga River, and left this area behind. ♪ Shin-chan, Shin-chan, I'm all alone now. Tomorrow is the night butterfly of Kokura...

After work, I had the perfect opportunity to enjoy the local gourmet food, especially the famous hormone hot pot in Tagawa. I was taken to a popular restaurant where we quickly got a seat. I started with a refreshing draft beer, which tasted even better after a long day at work. We enjoyed grilled hormone meat first, without any sauce, just the natural flavor. The texture of the meat was delightful and paired well with the beer. And then came the main dish, the hormone hot pot. It was a simple yet elegantly designed iron plate with grooves. The broth was minimal but slightly sweet, adding to the overall flavor. The meal ended with udon noodles, cooked in a similar style to yakisoba. Overall, the hormone hot pot was quite delicious.

The Asahiya restaurant in the Tagawa-Iizuka area is known for serving a local specialty called "Hormone Nabe," which is believed to have been eaten by former coal miners to boost their stamina. The restaurant has a spacious yet homey atmosphere, with table seats that resemble private rooms and allow guests to enjoy yakiniku and hot pot dishes at a leisurely pace. They offer about 30 types of yakiniku, including cuts like loin, kalbi, and various types of hormone meats. They also serve pork belly and local chicken. - Hormone Nabe Set: 1,750 yen This dish is enjoyed by cooking beef offal and vegetables in a special iron plate-like pot. The Hormone Nabe comes with a special sauce that resembles yakiniku sauce and a spicy seasoning to enhance the flavor. Despite being a hot pot dish, it is not very soupy, and the unique local flavor sets it apart from teppanyaki dishes. The hormone meat is cooked thoroughly, making it tender and easy to eat, with a rich flavor and no unpleasant smell. The cabbage soaked in the sauce is soft and balances the sweetness of the cabbage with the spiciness of the sauce and chili peppers. Other ingredients like bean sprouts, tofu, onions, and garlic chives also absorb the flavor of the sauce well, adding a good balance of saltiness and richness. The set also includes udon noodles, which can be added to the pot, and the kimchi, which is light and slightly spicy, can also be added to the pot according to preference. - Garlic Foil Grilled: 300 yen This dish consists of garlic slices marinated in sesame oil and wrapped in foil. The warm and soft garlic has a mild flavor, but the quantity may be overwhelming for some. It has the expected taste of garlic and is a good accompaniment to the meal. The restaurant is conveniently located for visitors arriving by car, and they offer a non-alcoholic beer option, Kirin Free, for 400 yen. It is a great place to have a good time and enjoy a delicious meal.