GOURMET

Tempura at SARAKURA: Savoring the Seasonal Bounty of the Local Region, the Moment It Leaves the Fryer

Royal Masterpiece

RIHGA Royal Hotel Kokura
Japanese Restaurant SARAKURA

　On the first floor of the RIHGA Royal Hotel Kokura, sharing a level with the front desk and lobby, something shifts the moment you step inside and make your way through the entrance. The atmosphere quietly settles down around you…

　This is SARAKURA, a place devoted to Japanese cuisine and the seasonal ingredients that define it. The tableware and appointments have the refinement of fine craft, quietly evoking the layers of time and culture built up alongside the food itself. The restaurant has several distinct faces, among which is a counter dedicated exclusively to tempura. The sound of batter-coated seasonal ingredients slipping into hot oil, the practiced eye judging the precise moment each piece is done, the brief pause before it is set before you… Tempura is a dish whose value lies in being freshly fried. Here, we focus on tempura at SARAKURA and explore the secrets of its delicious flavor.

The sound as the item drops into the oil, the bubbles that rise to the surface. By reading these changes and lifting each piece out at precisely the right moment, the coating stays crisp and light, making its delicate texture stand out.

　The Head Chef is Yoshihide Nakamura, who was born in Fukuoka and raised in Kansai. He has devoted himself exclusively to Japanese cuisine since 2003, building his experience at the RIHGA Royal Hotel Osaka. In 2017, he was appointed Head Chef at Japanese Cuisine NANIWA at RIHGA Royal Hotel Kokura. Since then, he has pursued Japanese cuisine while focusing closely on ingredients from the local region. He has served as Head Chef at SARAKURA since 2020. “In Kansai, you can get just about any ingredient,” says Chef Nakamura, “but when it comes to freshness, Kokura has the edge.” With producers close at hand, he says he sometimes goes out to procure ingredients himself when necessary.

“Each person eats at a different pace. We pay close attention to that, timing the frying accordingly and cutting pieces into easier-to-eat sizes for older guests. Quiet, thoughtful touches like that matter,” says Head Chef Nakamura. It’s the kind of refined hospitality you can only expect from a hotel.

　Tempura is a dish that lets you enjoy the local seasonality of a place without unnecessary fuss. Because the condition of each item shows through so clearly, differences in freshness are easy to taste. In that sense, it is a cooking method that showcases the appeal of Kokura itself. Among local specialties, Ouma bamboo shoots are one of Kitakyushu’s signature ingredients. Grown in the Ouma district, where temperatures swing sharply between day and night, these bamboo shoots are known for their mild flavor and tender texture. They are highly prized by chefs, especially in Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe, and are regarded as one of spring’s iconic ingredients. Their season lasts only a short time in early spring. At SARAKURA, that fleeting seasonal flavor is brought out in a simple form through tempura. The restaurant also serves local vegetables and seafood that change with the seasons, all prepared as tempura.

The menu features a wide array of delicacies from the land and sea of Kyushu and Yamaguchi, including Ouma bamboo shoots, kuruma prawns, Japanese whiting, shirako (cod milt), tsubomina greens, and hanakkori (a cross between Chinese cabbage and broccoli).

　“The most important point is the degree of frying and the timing,” says Head Chef Nakamura. As he watches the condition of each item, he checks the state of the batter and listens to the sound it makes when it enters the oil, using both sight and hearing to judge when it is done. The whole sequence takes place before your eyes: preparing an item, coating it in batter, and lowering it into the oil. From the aroma that wafts up to the moment items are lifted from the oil, you can follow the entire flow without interruption. The flavor of the dish is layered with the associated sound, aroma, and movements. That experience is what makes tempura so appealing.

At SARAKURA’s tempura counter, you can enjoy freshly fried tempura while taking in its aroma and sound, along with the expert skills that bring out the best flavor in every ingredient.

　The ingredients used in tempura change with the seasons throughout the year. In spring, you can enjoy Ouma bamboo shoots and other spring vegetables; in early summer, young sweetfish; in autumn, pike conger eel and matsutake mushrooms; and in winter, shirako (cod milt). In each season, you can enjoy ingredients that can only be encountered at that particular time of year and in this region. While carrying on the long-standing culinary tradition of the RIHGA Royal Hotel, SARAKURA also values drawing on the past to create something new. That spirit is present not only in the cuisine, but also in the space and the service.

　What ingredients will you encounter next? That anticipation will make you want to return to this counter again. SARAKURA’s tempura leaves behind exactly that kind of lingering impression.

Tempura counter course

Lunch: From ¥8,096

Dinner: From ¥13,535

RIHGA Royal Hotel Kokura
Japanese Restaurant SARAKURA

Phone: +81(0) 93-531-1121 (representative)

2-14-2 Asano, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka

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*All prices include tax.

*All pictures shown are for illustration purposes only.

*Menu items are subject to change depending on the season and availability of ingredients.

*Opening Hours may be subject to change without notice. Please check the Opening Hours before visiting.

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