When we reached Arden Hotel Aso in Minami-Aso, we didn’t have any high expectations. Lying in a village in Kyushu, Japan, the onsen hotel must have been neglected much throughout the pandemic judging by its peeling wall paint along the corridors. But its vast garden was well-kept and the resident rabbits look well-taken care of. The rooms are very clean though, and the food superb. The kitchen crew must have stayed along with the garden staff. This you can tell by the quality of its kaiseki dinners. As for the onsen and hot spring baths, we had the area nearly all to ourselves. A choice of indoor and outdoor onsen, as the mood dictates. Swell!
Arden Hotel AsoThe Garden is perfect for strolls and meditative breaks. Be prepared to meet the resident rabbits!
In winter, it’s agonizing to decide whether to try the outdoor onsen and hot spring baths or to simply check out the indoor onsen. Just walking from the hotel in yukatas to the spas within the complex — a very short walk, actually — can be an ordeal because of the freezing weather. But the indoor onsen is far from being a poor choice. My only complaint is that I could hardly tolerate the hot temps as I dipped in. That is why the outdoor onsen makes so much sense!
No cams allowed inside so these are photos from the hotel website.
We all enjoyed the onsen prior to dinners and breakfasts while we were here. And in the afternoons soon after our day excursions, the gardens provided some perfect breaks for meditation or just me-times. Our spacious rooms looked out to these gardens and the autumn foliage added much to the garden’s charm. In spring and summer, these gardens seem perfect for weddings. I can imagine round tables littering the beautiful rock garden, the food and cocktails served under the maple trees, a string quartet just around the garden rocks and many rabbits jumping around the lawn.
These are the covered corridors towards the outdoor onsen. Used by both humans and rabbits. Cocktails in spring/summer temps should be good here. This looks out to the garden.
And yes, I mentioned kaiseki dinners. The breakfasts were good too! If one’s skipping the day excursions, staying in for these meals could even be a treat! Our first was topped by Aso beef, a kind of wagyu that may not be of the same quality as your Kobe or Matsusaka beef, but Aso comes from Akaushi cattle raised in this area. You’ve just got to try it!
Aso Beef is this omakase’s highlight! While the Aso beef shabu shabu is good, I was drawn more to the sea bream carpaccio here. And that tempura is really gooooooood!
This Fish Market smelt soooo good. I was adamant to put oysters on the bed of my tongue as soon as I landed in Sydney and those cravings just had to be satisfied. I didn’t expect there were so many oyster choices! Good thing our food guru friend’s instructions were simple enough. Get the smallest oysters. Have the Balmain Bugs cooked with Singapore Chili. Then throw in a piece of lobster, calamari, grilled salmon and octopus on skewers, and some sashimi and Kani salad to start with.
Frankly, I couldn’t tell rock oysters from Coffin Bay oysters (yeah, what a name for a bay that yields really good oysters). Nor whether they were sourced from Sydney or Merimbula. I can only tell the Pacific Oysters are the largest, yet nowhere as large as those served to us in San Francisco, California. Enjoyed these appetizers way too much, along with the freshest tuna, salmon, scallops and other fish sashimi. I could have stopped there and gone home real happy but those bugs are still a-cooking! And the salmon and octopus a-grilling!
Balmain Bugs in Singapore ChiliGrilled Salmon and Octopus with Lobster Mornay
Heaven landed in Nicholas Seafood Bar in Sydney Fish Market in Pyrmont. Next to our table is a band of athletic men feasting on scampi and bottles of wine. They were happy to down their alcoholic delights and the scampi was just an excuse to keep their stomach linings warm and not empty. In fact, they hardly touched them as they got busy with their spirits. Not so with us 3 Oriental ladies who feasted on all these lovely seafood finds like there’s no tomorrow.
An hour and a half passed and we were bursting at the seams. Even before we capped our lunch with a cup of our favourite brew, I was already planning on setting this gastronomic treat as a Sydney tradition. Unforgettable. Each morsel a culinary delight. All that for 3 ladies with discerning tastes. Please don’t judge us 🙄
My first reaction is why? How? This indigenous mammal has graced many homes as pets. Like the rabbits. But here, it has been a staple Andean dish for 5,000 years. They are actually rodents, more furry and cute! But here in Peru, they are either fried or roasted and called CUY. In some, they are served much like the suckling pig or cochinillo.
Tried this in Cusco, with ceviche (trout) on the side. They love their potatoes here so that makes up the carb component of one’s meal. I don’t know. Didn’t think I’d try it but then cuy is a Peruvian delicacy most locals would say no one should miss. But we opted for the better-looking cuy chaktado (fried under a stone) vs the roasted cuy on skewers found in most markets.
I like their ceviche with corn kernels (big kernels, long thin kernels) but I’d pass on their tamales and pisco sour. The tamales is too bland and the pisco sour too strong. In Lima, we’ve tried their lomo saltado and that’s ok. Won’t really crave for it. And no I won’t be ordering ice cream for dessert here. The texture and flavor just don’t make the cut. Nor would I order suspiro — a blend of egg yolks with condensed milk, cinnamon and port topped with meringue. Suspiro is simply too sweet for me. Each time it was served, I only managed a couple of teaspoonfuls. But I do like the variety of fruits we tried at the Food Market. Especially their custard apple, called chirimoya.
Do i have a favorite dish? I’m not particularly fond of meat but their salads, especially the avocado and lima beans as well as the variety of potatoes complete my meal. Trout is good too. And the quinoa soup is divine! For the carnivores, cuy fried or roasted, chicharrones (fried pork rinds), alpaca chops and lomo soltado should be IT!
Peruvian cuisine has survived many many years. The many varieties of potatoes and potato dishes, the big fat kernels of corn, those bigsized peanuts all pre-date the Incas. Our local guide kept reminding us the world owes Peru for its potatoes, now eaten all over the world. Through the years, Peruvian cuisine blended Andean ingredients with the Spanish and African to produce Creole cuisine. Then the Chinese came, and the craving for fried rice a la Peruviano gave way to chifa. The world-famous Nikkei cuisine blends Peruvian with Japanese cuisine — anyone cares for sushi with pisco sour? No wonder Peru — Lima, in particular — is home to many inspiring and aspiring chefs. A real food haven where many restaurants rank among the best!
lifeisacelebration 