Introducing Kitakata
An old Kitakata saying reflects this town’s view towards commerce: ‘A man is not a man unless he has built at least one kura [a mud-walled storehouse]’. These days, the town’s 2600 coloured kura – now functioning as living quarters, sake breweries and workshops – are a perennial tourist attraction, as are its 120 rāmen (soup noodles) shops.
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Staff at the small tourist information kiosk (24-2633; 8.30am-5.15pm), left of the station exit, has copies of a small English-language map.
Sample the excellent local sake at Yamatogawa Sake Brewing Museum (22-2233; 4761 Teramachi; admission free; 9am-4.30pm, closed irregularly), five minutes’ walk north of the station.
At Ohara Brewing Factory (22-0074; www.oharashuzo.co.jp; 9am-5pm) staff play Mozart to the yeasts to enhance fermentation. A visit also includes a Mozart-infused tipple. Last entry is at 4.40pm.
Aizu-no-sato Youth Hostel (27-2054; 36 Hatakeda Kofune-aza, Shiokawa-machi, Kitakata-shi; dm from ¥3200), set among lovely old grounds with well-worn but comfortable Japanese-style rooms, is worth leaving the city centre for. The host is a Byakkotai buff, and a good source of area knowledge as well. The hostel is 15 minutes’ walk from Shiokawa station on the JR Banetsu-saisen line. From the station head straight until you hit the first light, then turn left and veer left again when the road merges into Rte 121. Cross the bridge and it’s on the left, tucked behind the owner’s sake shop.
The Kitakata Hotel (22-0139; 8269-2 Machida; s ¥5250), just across from the station, is a standard business hotel, clean but characterless, while Sasaya Ryokan (22-0008; Chūō-dōri; r per person incl/excl 2 meals from ¥8800/5500; ) offers traditional accommodation 1km north of the station.
Genraiken (22-0091; 7745 Ippongiue Kitakata City; sets from ¥800; 10am-8pm Wed-Mon, last orders 7.30pm) is Kitakata’s best-known rāmen shop, with a 70-year history and a devoted lunchtime crowd. Head south on Chūō-dōri and look for the red façade.
Last updated: Sep 18, 2008
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