Nigiwai Market opened in June 2018. It has been operating as one of the stores since its opening. The owner, Ms. Sakurako Katahara, whose family is a tuna broker, herself buys fish at the auction at the fishing port every morning. She prepares her dishes with the intention of using the freshest (high quality) fish and fresh vegetables so that customers can enjoy them in their most delicious state. The name of the restaurant is derived from her parents’ store name Marushige and her father’s name.

I started the restaurant to promote local production for local consumption.

Previously, Sakurako had trained as a chef at a Japanese restaurant in Osaka. She received an invitation to open a restaurant at Nigiwai Market just as she was beginning to think seriously about returning to Nachi-Katsuura. She said, “I had been away from Katsuura for a while, so I didn’t know much about the city, and I thought it would be the best place to promote local production for local consumption to tourists.” Next to the market is a fishing port, and there are many farmers in town. When he thought about how he wanted to make it easy for both tourists and locals to eat vegetables and fish, this was the best place for him to do so.

Sakurako, who likes to travel to various places, also has an interesting point of view. She says, “I thought it would be interesting to have facilities like this near fishing ports all over the country. They usually have breakfast and other meals, and both locals and tourists come to these places. It’s fun to talk with the locals and see all kinds of things.“

While there is a need for such facilities throughout Japan for both tourists and locals, Nachi-Katsuura did not have such a facility. That is also why Sakurako decided to open a restaurant here, starting with a breakfast set meal, when she first returned to her hometown.

The fun part of buying at the auction is that things don’t go as expected.

There is a fishing port next to Nigiwai Market, where tuna and other fish are landed every day except when the port is closed. When you pass by the fishing port early in the morning, the echoing announcements of the tuna auctions and the huge amount of tuna attract you so much that you can’t help but stop in your tracks. Shigeno’s tuna and local fish are also auctioned off at this fishing port, and the owner, Ms. Sakurako, buys the local fish herself every morning.

She says that she started going to the auctions after returning to Katsuura, and that the more she went to the auctions every day and touched the fish every day, the more interesting it became.
“I bought a fish that I thought was good and it wasn’t so good, or I bought a fish that I thought wasn’t so good and it was good. Of course, there is also the problem of my own discernment, but it is interesting to see how it can exceed that. There are also individual differences even among the same type of fish, and the season and the remainder of the season are always changing, so it is interesting to see how the taste changes and how the fat is applied. It is also interesting to see what kind of fish tastes better when it is aged, and what doesn’t,” said Sakurako happily.
When you are working directly with nature, things do not always go according to your own experience. But that is why it is so interesting, and I felt Sakurako’s respect for fish and nature.

I’m not dressed to the nines. But it’s particular.

Ichiba Gohan Shige offers a variety of menu items, including rice bowls, sashimi set menus, and breakfast set menus. Each dish is exquisitely seasoned, neither too strong nor too light. In fact, the flavors are so gentle that you can’t help but feel relaxed when you eat them. What is Shigeru’s speciality?

“Additive-free. Local production for local consumption as much as possible. I don’t make elaborate dishes. Basically, I make food that I wouldn’t get tired of even if I ate it every day. There are people who stay here for a while on business trips and come here every day. They come every day, sometimes for breakfast and lunch. I’m also particular about the fact that these people come every day and don’t get bored.”
Many people tend to eat a lot of stimulating foods and fried foods when they are in tourist spots or on a trip. This stance may be the reason why Ichiba Gohan Shige’s taste is so reassuring to tourists, locals, and long-term visitors alike.

They also insist on being additive-free and locally produced for local consumption as much as possible. Ingredients and vegetables used for set meals are procured from farmers in town to the extent possible. On some occasions, farmers in town deliver vegetables directly to the restaurant. In addition, they also buy from farmers in neighboring cities, the Kumano area, and even as far away as Wakayama Prefecture. However, they also try not to overdo it, and not all of their produce is additive-free, organic, or pesticide-free.

They don’t decorate their products in a strange way. But you can feel their commitment. That may be why I feel relieved when I eat them and want to eat them again.

(A few words from the staff member in charge)

Rumor has it that the miso soup is delicious. The dashi broth is so particular that you will want to eat as many cups of it as possible. When you eat at Shige, pay attention to the miso soup.

What I value in running the restaurant is respect for the ingredients.

Finally, I asked Sakurako what she values most. She replied, “Respect for the ingredients. chose her words carefully, but said,
“Respect for the ingredients. I don’t know but I know the farmers who produce the ingredients, and I can see their faces. My grandparents were farmers, so I know how hard it is. I want people to eat hot food warm and cold food cold in the best possible environment. That’s why we don’t cut up sashimi and other dishes. You can make things as easy as you want, but in the end, that is just for your own enjoyment. It’s not good for the customers, and it’s not good for the ingredients.“

At Shige, he checks the amount of rice customers eat, but it is not because he does not want them to come back without enough to eat because of the money involved, but because he is thinking of the people who make the food. It is because of the underlying respect for the ingredients and the producers that Shige’s food has a sense of politeness and gentleness.