ROCK" in Kiyosato, Yamanashi Prefecture

To satisfy the hunger of gourmets all over Japan, there are many restaurants in various parts of the country that serve a "bomb" of food. One such restaurant is "ROCK" in Kiyosato, Yamanashi Prefecture. It is highly rated with more than 3.5 stars on the food log (at the time of writing), and is so popular that there is a line of customers on weekends and during consecutive holidays.


A must-try is the " Bacon & Fire Dock C urry" (1,570 yen), which will make you gag just looking at the picture. It is a dish of beef curry topped with huge bacon and extra-thick sausage, "the meat! It is a dish that is "the meat! It is so large that you may be intimidated for a moment, but it is so delicious that you can eat it without a second thought.

ROCK Beef Curry + Bacon, Sausage and Onsen Tamago = "Bacon & Firedock Curry

The "Bacon & Fire Dock Curry" is the famous "ROCK Beef Curry" that has been loved for more than 30 years, topped with bacon, sausage, and an onsen egg. It is also served with a generous portion of salad.



Let's get down to business! I tried to bite into a sausage, but the skin was so thick and elastic that it was hard to stick a fork into it. Somehow, I managed to grab it and bite into it with all my might...


The inside of the fish is stuffed with plump, juicy meat! The juices and spicy seasoning invite beer...!


The bacon is about 6 to 7 mm thick. The bacon is about 6 to 7 mm thick, yet it is crispy and soft, and the more you bite into it, the more the sweet fat slowly seeps out. It's mouthwatering and simply delicious!


The black curry, which gives the impression of being slowly stewed, has a pleasant spiciness of about medium-hot that lingers in the mouth. The curry is filled with a thick, beef-like beef that melts in your mouth and releases its umami flavor. The melted onsen tamago (hot spring egg) is also a delight to dip into the curry.

The curry is also topped with a small piece of "raisin butter," which is melted into the roux, adding a mild saltiness and the richness of milk to the curry.

Huge dessert "HOT Apple Crisp

ROCK also has an amazing dessert menu. Take the "HOT Apple Crisp" (800 yen), for example. If you order it lightly, just to satisfy your hunger, you will regret it.


This is a riddle-like sweet with a cold top and a hot bottom. It is a warm apple pie with a layer of cool ice cream, whipped cream, fruit, etc. on top of the warm apple pie on the bottom. It is served in a huge cocotte dish.


First, you start with the cool top portion of melon, grapefruit, and kiwi fruit, vanilla ice cream, pie, and whipped cream, then dig deep to reveal the warm, thickly stewed apple and pie.


The moment when the warm and cold layers meet is the greatest climax of this sweet. The deliciousness of the cool melted ice cream mixed with the still hot apples goes without saying...! The pie on top is "crispy" and the pie on the bottom is "melty" - the exact opposite textures can also be enjoyed.


The pie is packed full of ingredients, and is both tasty and satisfying. The volume is quite large, so if you want to eat it as an after-dinner dessert, it would be just right to share it with two or three people.

Premium ROCK BOCK, the world's No. 1 original beer

Lastly, from the alcohol menu, the "Premium ROCK BOCK" is a must-try. This original beer won first place in the world in the 2015 Bock category at the International Beer Cup (IBC), a beer judging competition sponsored by the Japan Microbrewers Association (I'll spare you the details, but I hear it has won various other awards as well).


Bock, by the way, is a type of lager beer (bottom-fermented). It is characterized by its malt-derived sweetness and strong aroma, with a weak hop aroma. The alcohol content is slightly high at around 7%.

Premium Rock Bock is a "work of confidence" created by a craftsman who has been involved in beer brewing at Kirin Brewery for more than 30 years, and who perfected it in Yatsugatake, a mountain with delicious water after his retirement. This beer uses 1.4 times the amount of malt as usual and is fermented and aged slowly for about 9 weeks. It has a rich malt flavor, bitterness, savory aroma, and mild richness, and goes great with meat dishes!

There is also a sales corner in the store, where you can purchase Premium Rock Bock and a wide variety of hams and sausages. Unless you are a local, it is not easy to visit this place, and you can buy various kinds of souvenirs to take home. And if you're looking for a gift for your booze-loving friends, they'll love it too!