Back in 2017, the wife of a fisherman based at Nishitottori Port south of Osaka decided to open a restaurant to make use of all the fresh seafood that for one reason or another didn’t get sold and ended up being thrown away at the fishing port. Named after her husband’s ship, the Eishinmaru, the eatery became an unlikely hit, attracting foodies from far and wide who come to enjoy the simple, delicious and healthy home cooking.
First-timers will want to try the Omakase Nagura Teishoku set meal (from ¥1,100), which can be customised according to your choice of seasonal fish; on our visit, guests could pick from seven varieties including sea bream and yellowtail. Our simmered sea bream was firm and flavourful, and came with a serving of miso soup and sides centred on locally grown wakame seaweed. Other popular options include a fried prawn teishoku and conger eel with egg over rice (‘anatama-don’), but everything on the menu here looks delicious – we’ve already started planning a return visit. Nishitottori Port is about an hour from central Osaka by train, but lunch at Eishinmaru Nagura alone makes the trip worth it.
Note that reservations are essential for dinner and must be made by 2pm on the same day.