I stayed at a hot spring for one night and decided to have lunch at Ichifuku, a place I had tried to visit before but was closed. We arrived at 12:30 and managed to get a table. I wanted to try the Katsudon with sauce for 900 yen, while my companion, feeling lazy to decide, ordered the Katsudon with egg for the same price. The dishes arrived in about 10 minutes. The Katsudon was topped with a generous amount of fried pork cutlet, dipped in sauce, with rice underneath. The pork cutlet was slightly tough to chew, especially the edges. The sweet and salty sauce paired well with the dish, and the seaweed added a nice touch. The miso soup was hearty with pork pieces, and the side dishes included simmered vegetables and spinach with sesame dressing. My companion's Katsudon with egg had a separate layer of egg on top of the crispy pork cutlet, which was delicious. The udon noodles made with locally sourced yam was also worth trying, although the 15-minute cooking time was a bit of a wait. Overall, it was a satisfying meal at this local eatery.

"Ichi-Fuku" is the main shop, but I decided to try Oshido today. I am dining alone and having lunch. I was told by someone from Tokachi that there is a place where I haven't eaten yet, which is quite helpful. The interior of the restaurant is beautiful, with a counter for 3 seats, 2 tables for 4 people, and 3 tables on a raised platform. Three elderly people are seated on the raised platform. I ordered the Salt Ramen for 750 yen, which seems a bit expensive to me, but I guess people from Tokachi would consider it cheap since they are wealthy. There is a TV in the restaurant, and the staff members are friendly and welcoming. Although there was only one customer before me, I had to wait quite a bit as the customer was still eating. The timer rang after more than 10 minutes. The noodles are a bit different, with a low water content, but the unique smell quickly becomes unnoticeable and I can enjoy it. The abundance of white leeks looks delicious, but I wish the soup was hotter. The seasoned bamboo shoots have a taste I'm not familiar with, and the boiled egg is too hard for my liking. The chashu is sliced thinly and has a strong flavor, almost too salty for me. The soup is soy sauce colored, and the chashu doesn't have a pure saltiness, it's rather light and has a nice umami flavor. It seems like the person helping in the kitchen is adding to the richness and umami, but not doing anything unnecessary. Overall, it's delicious, but I felt it was a bit overpriced at 700 yen."

Oketto (Oketo) Tarekatsu Don Kunneppu Town's neighbor, Oketo Town. Kunneppu is a town famous for its Tarekatsu Don, with "Fukuyoshi" said to be the origin. Here, "Ichifuku" also served Tarekatsu Don from around the same time as Fukuyoshi. I used to love Ichifuku's Tarekatsu Don, but it seemed they had to temporarily close the shop due to a lack of successors. I heard that a young couple decided to take over the business. When I visited after a long time, the interior of the shop was beautifully renovated and the menu was significantly revamped. I started with the classic Tarekatsu Don from before the renovation to investigate. The taste hasn't changed much, but it has been refined little by little. There were two side dishes that weren't shown in the photos, and they were also delicious. Furthermore, I tried the mini Katsu Curry, which wasn't available before, and it was so tasty with crispy Katsu. Ate too much! The view is from the hill in Kunneppu Town.

I went to a restaurant called Ichifuku for the first time! I walked around the town of Okido and came across a large restaurant that was open. I sat at the counter and looked at the lunch menu. The set meals were all over 1,000 yen, which seemed expensive. The only one that was 750 yen was the fried chicken set, so I was considering that when I asked about the daily special. They had soup curry today, so I decided to go with the daily special for 800 yen. It was ready in about 8 minutes and came with a side dish. The soup curry had a strong Japanese flavor with chicken as the main ingredient and seasonal vegetables like eggplant, carrot, zucchini, and bell pepper. The soup was a bit on the thin side, so I had to balance it with the rice. The side dish had a nice Japanese touch. I'm thinking of trying the fried chicken or grilled fish set next time, or maybe even the ramen. Thank you for the meal!

I had the Tarekatsu Don for lunch in Okido Town. I had gone to Katsuyama in the morning. The food is as delicious as ever, but there are hardly any customers whenever I come. I've been here many times, but I've only encountered other customers twice, and they were alone both times. I worry if everything is okay. It's a restaurant I really love because the food is so delicious. Personally, I enjoy the quiet and calm atmosphere, but...

I had a Tarekatsu Don at Orido Town after a long time. Today, I went to Katsuyama in Orido in the morning. The street trees have all turned colorful, and many leaves have fallen. It feels like autumn is deepening. The Tarekatsu Don was as delicious as ever. The restaurant is run by an elderly lady who serves with kindness. She always brings out cold water and hot tea. When you enter the restaurant and sit down, she always turns on the TV for you. There is actually a younger guy (maybe a young uncle?) in the back of the restaurant, who seems a bit socially awkward but is doing the cooking. Sometimes, he asks the lady to taste the food or gives him advice. Maybe he is still in training.

I will have the Tarekatsu Don at Ichifuku in Okido Town. I've been here two weeks in a row now because I love their Tarekatsu Don so much! I also enjoy the Tarekatsu Don at the famous Fukuyoshi in Kuriko Town and the up-and-coming Ekichaya, but there's something special about Ichifuku's Tarekatsu Don that I just can't get enough of. Maybe it's because the katsu is slightly moist and delicious, the sweet and savory sauce is perfect, or because it comes in a grilled bowl with a lid that completes the whole dining experience for me. Anyway, I'm going to enjoy another delicious Tarekatsu Don today!

In Okudo Town, I will have a Katsudon. The Katsudon in Okudo is a Tare Katsudon, which is thinly sliced tonkatsu on rice sprinkled with chopped seaweed and topped with a soy sauce-based sauce. You can enjoy the Okudo Katsudon at soba restaurants in Okudo, but my favorite is the long-established "Ichifuku" restaurant. The sweet and savory soy sauce-based sauce is light and delicious, and it complements the crispy tonkatsu sprinkled with chopped seaweed. By the way, neighboring Kunnebu Town is also famous for its Tare Katsudon. Some local residents who had never seen or heard of the typical Katsudon with egg on top until about 15 years ago would react with surprise and even disgust when told about it. This area is a major onion-producing region, especially Kunnebu, which is probably ranked first or second in the country by municipality, but Katsudon here does not contain onions.

Hidden gem with great value for money, delicious menu.

Since I was a child, I always thought that Katsudon with egg was the norm! But in the area around Kunneppu Town in eastern Hokkaido, Katsudon without egg is the norm!! I found out about this last year when I started Twitter and heard it from a follower. I finally managed to visit the recommended restaurant after a year. The top recommended restaurant was Fukuyoshi in Kunneppu Town, but unfortunately they are closed on Sundays. So, I went to another recommended restaurant, Ichifuku Shokudo in Okotomachi. It's located diagonally across from the Red Cross Hospital in Okotomachi, so it's easy to find. When I entered the restaurant, it felt like I had seen the interior somewhere before... Many of the customers who were there before me ordered Ebi Fry Don, but of course, I came here for the Katsudon, so I ordered that! And just as expected, it didn't have any egg on top!! It was a Katsudon with sweet sauce. At first, I thought it might be a bit too heavy because of the sauce, but it wasn't at all!! It was more refreshing than the Katsudon with egg, and I finished it all! Honestly, I felt like I could have another bowl, it was that delicious. When I paid, I noticed a sign! Oh, this is the restaurant that was on Hanatarenax! That's why it looked familiar!

The restaurant has sunken kotatsu seating, counter seats, table seats, and even a second floor. There are no child seats available. During a hot spring trip with my parents and boyfriend, we visited for lunch. It seemed that several groups arrived at the same time, causing a bit of chaos inside. We expected a bit of a wait, but eventually our orders arrived. My father had chilled noodles, my mother had pork bowl, my boyfriend had a large serving of miso vegetable ramen, and I had pork cutlet bowl. My cutlet bowl didn't have a raw egg on top, which I later learned is common in this area. The sweet and savory sauce over the crispy cutlet was delicious. My boyfriend's miso ramen had a sweet and light broth, lacking a bit in miso flavor. It wasn't very filling, so a large serving might be better for men. It was just right for my small-eating parents. Overall, we left satisfied and full.