NISEKO DINING GUIDE

DREAMING OF ART AND FOOD AT HOKKAIDO LUX RESTAURANT L’ENFANT QUI REVE

luxniseko - 2015-10-18

Niseko Mountain View Coffee on LuxNiseko Alpine

THE BARN BISTRO NISEKO BY ODIN

NISEKO MILK KOBO

Niseko Japanese Restaurants are not surprisingly one of the biggest categories. From casual Yakitori, Yakiniku, Udon and Izakayas up to higher end Kaiseki, Sushi and Soba

French Restaurants range from casual bistros and brasseries up to Michelin starred Haute cuisine in classic and contemporary forms. Sources from Hokkaido’s impeccable wild natural landscape and well trained farmers.

Italian Restaurants include basic pizza to Neopolitan pizza, casual trattoria and fancier Ristorantes within global hotels. The level varies wildly but there is certainly something for everyone here.

Asian restaurants are one of the fastest growing categories in Niseko in part due to the large percentage of tourists from Hong Kong, China, Singapore and Malaysia. Quality varies as much as variety with the better restaurants usually located within the new brand of high-end hotels being built in Niseko.

Cafes are everywhere in Niseko but great coffee is harder to find. Fortunately a few local artisans are changing that and the quality is now approaching the best of Tokyo. The best tea houses are usually a package deal with bakeries and hotels leading the way.

Great bread is the hardest gourmet product to find with most hotels settling for mediocre quality and the investment to high for a dedicated artisan bakery. There are a few surprises though but usually they are located in out of the way areas.

Bars and Pubs are mainly located in Hirafu where all of the action is. They have been around since early days since skiing and apres ski drinks go hand-in-hand. There is a nice range of quality and selection available whether beer, wine, sake or whiskey is ones preference. Luxury experiences are almost always located in Hotels whereas standalone pubs cater to the younger crowd.

Curry is ever popular in Japan and comes in a wide variety of flavors to go with the ethnic orignins of the dish. It is no doubt a defacto menu choice for lunch and can be found on most hotel restaurant menus as well as fusion restaurants and izakayas.

Burgers are now a global staple food and Niseko is no different. With beef usually sourced from Australia the big hotels are the most likely place to find a burger. A few hotels even offer a higher-end domestic beef burger within their yakiniku restaurants albeit without the bun.

Niseko offers a good variety of choices for travellers wishing for either Western or Aian style food. Niseko has four main ski areas each of which has its own unique restaurants. Hifaru and Niseko Village seem to be the most dominant of these, with Annupuri having more of a Japanese following. Each option comes with a set of advantages and disadvantages depending on the traveller’s needs and wishes. We will try to sort out the choices and match them with the type of traveller most likely to benefit from each option in the following Niseko Dining Guide .