The delicate and poetic meticulousness of Japanese food combined with the uniqueness and novelty of cuisines from other countries has created Gero - a small town with the great cuisine.

Let's explore the food "network" in this city together!

1. Hida beef rice bowl – a famous specialty

Hida beef cattle, which has black hair and are raised in Gifu, is one of the 4 best breeds of cattle in Japan and has become a specialty in this prefecture.

Once you set foot to Gero – Gifu, the first dish you should try is Hida beef. And the "Hida beef rice bowl" in "Senda" restaurant will surely satisfy your taste buds, no matter how much of a picky eater you are.

Located at 569-1 Yunoshima, Gero, Senda restaurant is only 900m from Gero Station. In other words, we are only about 3 minutes by car away from the famous specialty of Japan - Hida beef!

This is the set I ordered: a salad, side dishes, sesame, wasabi, green tea, and of course: a bowl of Hida beef rice.

According to the restaurant's instruction, to fully enjoy the Hida beef rice, first we should have the beef rice without adding anything else to revel in its original taste. Fat streaks made the meat soft without being too dry or fatty. Also, the beef was marinated with the restaurant's secret sauce, thus possessing a special salty and sweet taste that can trigger anyone's appetite.

Next, you can mix the rice with sesame or wasabi if you like it spicy. Finally, the frugal taste of green tea combined with beef rice will put a great end to this journey and help us remember this flavor forever.

With only 1750 yen excluding tax, we can enjoy one of the 4 best beef in Japan. What a wise choice! I'm sure no one will refuse this option, right?

2. Cold soba noodles – a summer treat

In the summertime, instead of a hot bowl of ramen with fish broth or bone broth, Japanese people usually choose cold Soba noodles.

The Housen restaurant located opposite Gero City Hall has made a name for itself with soba noodles. During the lunch break, despite the hot weather, there are always long lines of people waiting to enjoy the cold noodles to chase the summer heat away.

I am no exception. When I got here, I also ordered a soba set. The zaru soba set includes a tray of soba noodles, vegetables tempura, pickled cucumber, kinpira*, rice, and miso soup.

*Kinpira : shredded vegetables (often burdock, lotus root, seaweed, carrot) sauteed with shouyu, mirin, sake and sugar

Instead of broth, cold soba noodles are served with mentsuyu sauce, a frugal sauce with not-too-strong taste and is very suitable for the food. This zaru soba set costs 900 yen excluding tax.

3. Spicy curry – a different touch in cuisine

Curry is a dish originating from India but has recently become a familiar dish for Japanese people.

In Gero, you can enjoy this signature dish in Omugane-sha. This place probably has the most original curry flavor since it was opened by a group of Indian people living in Gero.

The first time I came here, I ordered the Ladies Set that costs 1350 yen including tax. That curry set includes salad, BBQ, rice, curry (you can choose 2 flavors) and dessert. I chose avocado chicken curry and medium spicy seafood curry.

The avocado chicken curry was fragrant, buttery and absolutely delicious. It is suitable for those who have not tried curry before and are not familiar with Indian spices. The seafood curry was a bit more spicy with a stronger taste, perhaps due to the addition of some typical spices.

Oops! I almost forgot the bread with the odd name that made us embarrassed. This flour-made bread in Indian style was called as Naan.

Don't make the same mistake we made. We asked:

- Nan desuka? ( What is this?)

And they answered: "Nan desu" (This is ). Wasn't it so funny when you asked "What is it" then got an answer like "It is ", huh?

We thought so at first but turned out that thing is called "Nan". Therefore, do not forget the name of this bread!