Murataya

Order sake one go at a time, tell the owner what you like, and let them suggest a bottle. At Murataya, that makes it easy to discover unfamiliar labels and find your next favourite. The one-go pours include local sake such as Nabeshima, Yamama, Jikon, Haneya, Hiwata and Kaze no Mori, with the selection changing daily. Visitors have described asking for a recommendation based on their preferences, or sharing a half-go each between two people. The changing line-up makes each selection a one-time encounter; the same label may not be there on another visit. Even if you are new to sake, you can start by saying whether you prefer a sweeter or drier style.

The food ranges from savoury small plates to grilled dishes. One visitor recalled the moroko simmered in soy for its sweet-savoury flavour, pleasantly bitter innards and gentle kick of Japanese pepper. The menu also includes homestyle dishes such as okara with 7 ingredients, mackerel simmered in miso, and chicken with bracken fern. Reviews mention soup, simmered dishes and okara among the memorable plates, making these options well suited to grazing over drinks. Visitors have also paired their sake with octopus from Akashi dressed with spring onion and ponzu, and salt-grilled yellowtail collar. Starting with the octopus and moving on to grilled fish offers a change of flavour as the drinks continue.

For a final dish, there is Shinshu eighty-percent buckwheat zaru soba. One visitor ordered it after drinking and wrote that they enjoyed the restaurant’s soba. The drinks list is broad: alongside sake, visitors have enjoyed whisky and shochu. Murataya in Tengachaya is an izakaya for dining in. It is open Tuesday to Saturday from 18:00 to 23:00 and closed on Sundays and Mondays. It may suit a relaxed evening of trying local sake one go at a time, with small plates and a final bowl of soba.