Saturday, December 12, 2015

Sightseeing in Izu: The 400-year old Bora-Naya Restaurant (ぼら納屋)

Bora-Naya restaurant with the original fisherman's hut in the right corner

During my recent trip to Izu we stopped by an old restaurant with an almost 400 year long history called Bora-Naya (ぼら納屋) on our way to visit the Jougasaki coast (城ケ崎海岸). The original Bora-Naya was constructed in 1627 as a fisherman's hut, during a period when bora fishing was extremely popular.

The entrance to Bora-Naya

Bora fishing in the area continued until 1964, but both the number of young fishermen and bora kept getting fewer and fewer. The historical Bora-Naya has been restored and now serves as a restaurant where it is possible to enjoy fresh fish (their dishes with splendid alfonsino 金目鯛 are especially popular) and shellfish from the coastal waters of Izu.

Here is some local tourist information about the restaurant:

Bora-Naya was constructed by the Kii family (near the present-day Wakayama) in 1627. Later, several extensions and structural alterations were carried out on the building. The bora (striped mullet) fishing industry operated under the protection of the Tokugawa Shogunate. During the seasonal migration of the bora, the villagers would live here and while repairing their boats and nets, went out fishing with the signal of a trumpet shell or flag.

It has been said that bora caught here were sometimes taken to distant Edo to enliven the dining table of Tokugawa Iemitsu, who was the third generation Tokugawa Shogun.

The restaurant also has a pool right outside the main building, so for guest visiting during the summer it is possible to combine the visit with a refreshing dip in the pool.

From Bora-Naya's homepage

Basic information

Name of Restaurant	Bora-Naya (ぼら納屋）
Address	〒413-0231　静岡県伊東市富戸837 837 Futo, Itō-shi, Shizuoka-ken 413-0231
Access	①By bus from Itou Station (伊東駅) ②By foot from Jougasaki-Kaigan Station (城ヶ崎海岸駅)
Business Hours	October 21 to March 20: 09:00-16:00 March 21 to October 20: 09:00-17:00 / Closed on Thursdays.
Parking	120 cars（Free parking for 2 hours if you eat at the restaurant）
Homepage	http://www.boranaya.com

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Anette

About Anette
Anette came to Japan as an exchange student in 2010, met the love of her life and got stuck. From her base in Tokyo she writes about her experiences as a full-time worker in Tokyo and about her travels in Japan and abroad. She's a free-spirited adventurer who enjoys both the great outdoors and her urban lifestyle.