Stay here for the food – Japan’s No.1 hotel breakfast in 2017

By / MOOK Scenic Spots Editorial Department Compilation & Report
 
With the yen continuing to weaken and travel to Japan remaining popular, the "Rakuten Travel Breakfast Festival" hosted by a booking website has revealed its list of winners for "Japan’s No.1 Hotel Breakfast 2017" after a series of selections including online voting. Among more than 1,900 hotels, Fukuoka Prefecture's "Imperial Hotel" took the top spot; the runners-up were "Awajishima Sumoto Onsen Kaigetsukan" inn and "Hakone Yumoto Onsen Hakone Mon" inn.

The champion breakfast at Fukuoka Prefecture’s “Imperial Hotel” features nutrient-packed chawanmushi and refreshing yuzu vinegar jelly, paired with chicken hotpot broth made from chicken bones and vegetables simmered in a rich French-style “white stock.” It also includes a unique Mont Blanc salmon roe potato salad developed by a pastry chef. Judge Shunroku Kanda said: “The flavor of the potato salad is truly moving.”

The second-place winner, Hyogo Prefecture’s “Awajishima Sumoto Onsen Kaigetsukan,” elevated its menu by using local specialties such as anchovies and onions to make fluffy chirashi rice, served with a clear, sweet chicken stew filled with Awajishima ingredients. The generous toppings earned praise from judge Shunroku Kanda: “The fish is tender, the vegetables have an honest, delicious taste, and the aroma of lemon is captivating.”

Third place went to “Hakone Yumoto Onsen Hakone Mon,” which served homemade chewy tsukune along with an aromatic “Fuji Spring Water Pork Soup,” paired with Izu squid from Odawara and freshly harvested vegetables from the western foothills of Hakone. Judge Hamanouchi was full of praise: “The pork soup has the taste of handcrafted quality, and the tsukune is soft yet chewy. I could deeply sense the deliciousness of the ingredients.”