Address - Miura-gun, Hayama-machi, Horiuchi 947 Telephone - 0468 76 3639 Menu - In Japanese CC - No

Najima is out of the way even if you live in the Shonan area, yet I feel it's something you shouldn't miss because it has, without question, the best sashimi I have ever tasted in twenty two years in Japan.
Please note that my one and only love, who is Japanese and not a naive gaijin like me, fully agrees with me.
You will need these words of encouragement because Najima is not only far, but difficult to find too. Ask the owner for directions.
You will understand immediately that coming wasn't a waste of time: the atmosphere is traditional, relaxing, stylishly old-fashioned. When there's music, it's subdued.
Alas, although the staff are friendly to foreigners, the menu is not. Not only it's written in Japanese, but in the splendid but incomprehensible cursive our hosts love so much: if you don't read Kanji, go with a friend who does. The menu is usually written on a blackboard, and changes with the season and with the mood of the cook. Everything is as excellent as it is beautiful, but you don't have to limit yourself to sashimi: there's tenpura, grilled fish, fish stew, and all the beer, sake and shochu you want. Prices? Adequate. For all these marvels, you won't have to pay more than five thousand yen with drinks. Lunch sets cost 1800 yen.
February '03