Hondori Sasa

With roots in the ancient Jomon period, the irori was once a ubiquitous part of Japanese architecture. Essentially a fireplace set in the center of the home, the irori was the burning heart of a Japanese house: the primary source of heating and also the place where meals were prepared. Today, most houses no longer have irori due to space constraints and more modern heating (and cooking) appliances, but the irori experience is still very much alive and well at Hondori Sasa in central Hiroshima. The restaurant is secreted away down a back alley just off the famed Hondori shotengai shopping street. Much like a traditional Japanese home would have been, the entire restaurant is built around a central irori grill, where a small army of chefs expertly grills seasonal ingredients using traditional methods that are difficult to find today. Whether the food is grilled over straw, directly over charcoal, or slow-roasted with a distant heat source, the taste ends up subtly different — and Sasa’s chefs are second to none at each of these cooking methods. Using a staggering variety of fresh-caught fish from the Seto Inland Sea and other ingredients from the surrounding Setouchi region, they expertly grill each one to perfection. While not strictly an irori-grilled menu item, a highly recommended offering is the overnight-dried seafood. Drying seafood overnight deeply concentrates the natural flavor and gives it a uniquely chewy texture, making the eating experience distinctly unique from eating fresh-caught seafood. Just a stone’s throw from Hondori Station and four blocks from the Atomic Bomb Dome and Peace Park, a meal at Hondori Sasa is the ideal way to wrap up a day of sightseeing around central Hiroshima City — especially in the colder winter months, where the comforting warmth of the irori is made all the more pronounced. When it was more common, irori grilling was a highly communal experience, and so it remains at Sasa. Take a seat at the counter to taste the seasons of Hiroshima. Enjoy the sounds of the gently crackling flames as this ancient culinary art warms both the body and soul.