The Hakuba stars looked like something out of a fairy tale our first night this season. We finally made it to the well-visited town in Nagano, Japan after traveling the whole day. The crisp of the snow temperatures of Hakuba greeted us so naturally, we wanted some grilled anything.
I was super happy that we visited our brother the 
Roasted garlic is one of my favorite side dishes in yakiniku so I started with that. One whole garlic with each bite of beef is ideal for me so not many people speak to me closely after these types of meals, LOL.
I'm accustomed to ordering the recommended sets so everyone can defeat their appetites and ordering ala carte dishes.
One dish, in particular, is the beef tongue. I normally don't eat this part of the cow but in Japan, it's extra soft and tender so it's one of the first ala carte dishes I love ordering.
The main set offers a variety of different cuts of beef and most of them melt in your mouth.
Quite a strange way to think about beef but beef in Japan is that delicious to me. I'm trying to cut down on my red meat intake at my age but in Japan, I tend to give some restaurants a pass with thumbs up.
I ordered some egg drop soup and some veggies just to make me feel better, LOL.
It's was a great first night surrounded by our family getting warmed up for the next days to come. The restaurant had a friendly staff and the interior design reminded me of many other wonderful yakinikus I've feasted at over the years. It's connected to one of the town's great onsens so I may drop by again after a rough day of snowboarding.
As we left, I was reminded of how full I can get and reminded of how beautiful a Hakuba night can be. As I looked up at the sky feeling accomplished, I told myself, "...this is why I love yakinikus in Hakuba."
Authored & photographed by: