Best ryokan in Japan for foodies: Okuhita Onsen Umehibiki offers the ultimate luxury dining experience

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**Why** There’s a secret many first-time visitors to Japan aren’t in on: the best food in this country is not always served in big-city restaurants. Some of the most enjoyable, high-quality meals you will find in Japan are served at private tables in small rural hotels, subtly luxurious places where you will never know the chef’s name, you will never be told of any culinary philosophies, and yet you will be served a sprawling and incredibly skilful meal of local, seasonal produce prepared across a range of classic styles.

 Okuhita Onsen Umehibiki.

This is what you get at a ryokan, a traditional accommodation style usually based around a hot-spring onsen, found throughout Japan. There are thousands of these ryokans, most of which serve set-menu breakfasts and dinners, and though the dishes themselves will vary wildly, the quality will not. One of my recent favourites is Okuhita Onsen Umehibiki, a ryokan set among pine forests and plum orchards in the hills of Kyushu. Meals here are served to yukata-clad guests in view of manicured gardens and forested hills, the ultimate luxury in a world that never seems to slow down.

**Order this** No need to order. Dinners at Umehibiki are long, multi-course affairs that are decided by the kitchen according to the produce of the day. Expect dishes that run the full kaiseki gamut, from raw and pickled ingredients to steamed fish, grilled beef, and finally a nabe, or hot pot, of duck meatballs with local mushrooms. A tasting set of Oita Prefecture sakes rounds out a truly memorable meal.

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 Exquisite dishes.  Guest room at Okuhita Onsen Umehibiki.

**Eat it here** In Sydney, enjoy sprawling, modern kaiseki on a private table at Garaku at Prefecture 48 ( [p48.com.au](http://p48.com.au/)). In Melbourne, sample this style at Tomo-An ( [tomoan.com.au](http://tomoan.com.au/)). And in Adelaide, try a range of Japanese dishes at Kappo Izakaya ( [kappo.au](https://kappo.au/)).

**More** Okuhita Onsen Umehibiki is at 4587 Oyamamachi Nishioyama in Hita, about a 1½-hour drive from Oita Airport in Kyushu. Luxurious Japanese-style rooms with private, open-air onsen baths start from $1200 a night for two people, including Japanese breakfast and kaiseki-style dinner. See [umehibiki.jp](https://www.umehibiki.jp/)

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- [Foodie travel](https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/topic/food-and-wine-l5p) - [Japan](https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/topic/japan-b1c) - [Asia](https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/topic/asia-lf7) - [North-East Asia](https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/topic/northeast-asia-lkj)