When I was in Fujikawaguchiko on day 8 of my 2016 Japan trip, my dinner plan was to eat hōtō at the super awesome futuristic igloo-like structure (it’s actually cloud shaped but looks more like igloo to me) of Hōtō Fudō’s Higashi Koiji Store. However, luck were not on our side as they were sold out for the day (as early as 5pm!). So, we went to their Kawaguchiko Station Front Store. And… they were sold out too! Wow, are their hōtō really that good? I really wanted to find out.
The next day (day 9), after our visit to Oishi Park and Kindaruma, we went to Hōtō Fudō (Kawaguchiko Station Front Store) for lunch at 12.20pm. This time there were no hiccups. Yay! It was our last meal at Fujikawaguchiko before we depart to Tokyo. We didn’t went to the Higashi Koiji Store this time as the taxi fare from yesterday’s night were quite pricey. So, we settled for the store nearest to us.
Hōtō Fudō (Kawaguchiko Station Front Store).
Now, you must be wondering what the heck is hōtō? Hōtō is a local stewed noodle dish of the Yamanashi prefecture. It consists of thick flat noodles cooked with vegetables in miso soup. Sounds so simple but very tasty. Many restaurants in Fujikawaguchiko serve this dish. In fact, some of us ate hōtō the night before too at Fujiyama Cafe (right after our disappointing Hōtō Fudō adventures).
From were I sat. The main entrance is on the right (with curtain).
Zashiki seating. Soon, more customer arrived and this area was occupied as well.
Cute Mount Fuji spice jar.
Metal trivet with Hōtō Fudō logo. I wish I can bring the metal trivet home. Hehe Most restaurants serve hōtō in hot pot and therefore a trivet is the most appropriate thing.
English menu. As you can see, there are not much variety in the menu. No problem though because I bet most will go for hōtō anyway. And yes, they serve horse meat sashimi (basashi).
Dessert and drinks. We didn’t order any. Just get the complimentary water and hot tea.
Our order arrived after about 10 minutes of waiting.
Inari sushi @ 431 yen. Inari sushi is always a good thing.
Hōtō @ 1,080 yen. It’s a pretty large bowl. We ordered 3 bowls and share between four of us. I love everything about it. The umami-ful miso broth is really rich and the best thing is the noodles suck it all up.
Yup, you need a large ladle to spoon everything into your mouth!
While the food is really good, I gotta echo what others in the www had echoed before; that is the staffs at Hōtō Fudō are not really a smiley bunch. If, only the service is on par with the food, it’ll only make the dining experience more sweeter.
Hōtō Fudō signboard. I find its logo really fascinating. It’s just a simple design and yet meaningful. It took me quite awhile to figure out the meaning behind it. I’m guessing ㅅ represents Mount Fuji 🗻 and ㅇ represents a bowl of hōtō 🍲. Do you know what I saw initially? ㅅ and ㅇ look a lot like Hangul (Korean alphabet) of ㅅ (shiot) and ㅇ (ieung). Haha
Address:
ほうとう不動 (河口湖駅前店) Hōtō Fudō (Kawaguchiko Station Front Store)
3631-2 Funatsu
Fujikawaguchiko-machi, Minamitsuru-gun
Yamanashi
or
山梨県 南都留郡富士河口湖町 船津 3631-2
Tel: +81-555-72-5560
Opening time: 11am-7pm, daily
Nearest station: Kawaguchiko
Map:
2 Comments
I’m craving for a hot bowl of noodle soup! *sluuurp*
Anytime is good time. 😉