Then I looked out the window and saw a magnificent Western-style house.

WILDCAT HOUSE Wildcat House from Kenji Miyazawa's "The Restaurant of Many Orders

WILDCAT HOUSE YAMANEKATEN ("Wildcat House"), a restaurant named after Kenji Miyazawa's children's story "The Restaurant of Many Orders," is located in Hanamaki City, Iwate Prefecture. There are many gimmicks here and there that will make Kenji fans, and even non-fans, feel excited if they know the story!

The rest of this article may spoil the fairy tale, so if you don't want to read it, please skip ahead.

Wildcat House Wildcat House

At first glance, it looks like a church. The sign at the entrance reads "Anyone is welcome to come in. Please feel free to come in. I have seen or heard this line somewhere before.


When you enter the restaurant with an empty stomach, you will first find a souvenir store, and then a restaurant further in the back. The restaurant is equipped with three doors to prevent escape in case something happens. At the entrance, there is a sign that reads, "We know you have a lot of orders, but please be patient.



I looked to the side and saw cream, salt and perfume in jars on the table. It looks like these are applied or rubbed into the body (your choice).

Wildcat Suiton Set" and "Acorns and Wildcat Lunch

As we took off our jackets and hats and took our seats, we were greeted by a menu of delicious-looking dishes made with local ingredients. The menu includes a wide variety of dishes such as "Ihatove Set Lunch," "Iwate Pork Loin Set Lunch," "Wildcat Soup," and many more. This time, I ordered the popular "Wildcat Suiton Set" (1,200 yen) and the "Acorns and Wildcat Lunch" (1,200 yen, weekdays only until 11/8).


The Wildcat Suiton Set includes the restaurant's handmade suiton, grilled rice balls with special miso paste, salad, and pickles.


The bowl is filled with vegetables such as shimeji mushrooms, maitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, green onions, and burdock root. The soup is smooth and crisp, and the more you chew, the more the rich aroma of wheat passes through your nose. The broth is rich and elegant, but the taste of Hanamaki, the hometown of Hanamaki, will sink into your stomach.



The grilled rice balls are savory and flavorful with miso, just the right amount of salt and umami!


The Acorns and Wildcat Lunch, on the other hand, is a lunch set that seems to be a recreation of Kenji Miyazawa's children's story "Acorns and Wildcat". It comes with sautéed Shirogane pork, mushroom gratin, rice balls made of cereal and grilled with miso, and dessert and fruit in a black cat cup.


The sauteed Shirogane pork is moist, tender, and juicy, with a sweet fatty flavor. It is a delight to eat it alternately with the acorn-roasted rice balls with fragrant nori seaweed.



The cup dessert that I thought was a pudding was an orange mousse. There is a thick orange sauce inside. Sweet, tart, fresh and delicious! The hat-style cookies are also crunchy, savory, and mouthwateringly delicious.



We finished with a refreshing fruit. Watermelon and grapes that can be eaten with the skin.


Yamanekataken is located in the parking lot of the Kenji Miyazawa Memorial Museum. You can see the museum just across the street when you leave the restaurant, so you can visit after filling your stomach or after immersing yourself in Kenji's worldview at the museum.

However, when you finish eating and rub your swollen stomach, you may start to wonder, "Will Wildcat eat me from now on?" You might feel safer if you visit the memorial hall first, just in case. (What?)