If you want to eat seasonal lobster and seafood dishes, go on a houseboat! Toba Seafood Yakatabune Okita

Article production / Mie Travel Ambassador Rio Nishioka

Narrator/voice actor living in Mie Prefecture. We are disseminating the charms of Mie Prefecture with a focus on Ise-Shima, where I was born and raised.

▼Table of contents

• Enjoy seafood and Toba sightseeing all at once on Mie Prefecture's only houseboat!
• Let's get on board!
• Extraordinary experience on the houseboat Okita!
• Houseboat Ise lobster course
  • Appetizer dishes
  • grilled lobster
  • steamed lobster
  • Assorted grilled shellfish
  • Secret menu!? Ajillo
  • Finishing with seaweed porridge
  • Chef's homemade dessert
• Special abalone sashimi too!
• Children's rice ball set
• Enjoy cruising on deck
• What Chef Sasaki values
• Click here to make a reservation!
• access
• summary

Enjoy seafood and Toba sightseeing all at once on Mie Prefecture's only houseboat!

Yakatabune Okita is the only houseboat in Mie Prefecture!

Even though I was born and raised in Ise, this was my first time eating seafood on a houseboat!

I headed to the boat dock with excitement.

Blessed with the weather, it's the perfect day for cruising♪

The boat dock for the houseboat Okitasan is from Toba Station, passing in front of Toba Marche, and heading straight towards Sadahama Parking Lot 3, you will find the sea, and there is the boat dock!

(Although it is nearby, please note that the boarding area is not Toba Marine Terminal.)

We recommend parking your car at Sadahama Parking Lot 3.

Click here for detailed access and parking fees.

Let's get on board!

Basically, you have to make a reservation in advance, so you don't need to go to reception, just go directly to the boat pier 15 minutes before departure time!

Once on the boat, take off your shoes and go to your tatami room.

There are 8 sunken kotatsu tables that can seat up to 6 people, so the entire ship can accommodate 48 people.

Chef Sasaki said, ``We hope that not only tourists but also locals can use it casually for welcome and farewell parties, year-end parties, and other gatherings.''

When the children entered the ship, they were surprised to see that there was a normal tatami room inside the ship, but they looked like they had a lot of fun (lol)

As soon as we boarded the ship, it started moving.

The boat immediately took us to a place where the waves calmed down so we could eat our meal in peace, so I didn't get seasick!

Extraordinary experience on the houseboat Okita!

At Yakatabune Okita-san, you can enjoy seasonal dishes made with locally sourced ingredients.

This time, the Ise lobster fishing season in Toba Bayhad just been opened on September 15th, so we decided to have the Ise lobster course.

First, the chef brought a live spiny lobster in front of me!

He is very energetic and moves around a lot.

``It's rare to come across live spiny lobsters, so we offer this kind of experience to our customers.''

If you order the Ise lobster course, please hold it in your hand and do your best to take a photo!

(I also did my best to take pictures.)

Although my son was a little scared of the live spiny lobsters, he seemed happy to learn how to hold them.

As you can see, the Yakatabune Okita-san is sure to have a lot of excitement even before you eat it.

Now let's introduce the dishes!

Houseboat Ise lobster course

This time's "Yakatabune Ise Shrimp Course" is

​8,450 yen (tax included) per person (boarding fee included)

One whole spiny lobster from Toba, Mie Prefecture is used, half of it is grilled, and the other half is famously steamed on a houseboat.

This is a great value course where you can enjoy two ways to eat one fish.

From here, we will introduce each dish of the Ise lobster course menu!

Appetizer dishes

First, appetizers are served. In this interview, we served Western-style grunt carpaccio and Japanese-style sashimi.

The dishes are made with seasonal ingredients, so it's fun to see what will be served when you go.

grilled lobster

First, a half lobster was brought to us.

The meat is so shiny that I would love to eat it as sashimi, but I'd like to grill it first!

I am very grateful that the Nakai does all the baking.

It can be difficult to go with children, and you may end up overcooking.

Fresh lobsters that were still alive are being grilled right in front of you.

The first thing I noticed was the scent.

The fragrant aroma of spiny lobster will whet your appetite.

When you take a bite, the tightly packed meat is firm and elastic.

Every time I took a bite, I could feel the sweetness and taste of the ingredients themselves.

When I sprinkled it with sudachi, it was refreshing and delicious!

It was truly a luxury to be able to enjoy it piping hot while feeling the aroma of freshly baked food.

It's so delicious that it disappears in an instant (lol)

Houseboat specialty steamed lobster

Next up is houseboat steaming, which you can only taste here...!

(The earthenware pot is said to be a custom-made item made by Banko-Yaki in Yokkaichi!)

The moment you open the lid, the steam rising and the simmering lobster will definitely get you excited!

The first thing that struck me when I took a bite was how delicate and fresh it was.

The steamed lobster meat is so fluffy and soft that it can easily come apart with your chopsticks.

It was delicious with ponzu sauce.

The spiny lobster soaked in steamed soup is mellow and flavorful.

I was particularly impressed by the freshness that spread throughout the body.

I ate a single lobster in two ways.

"Yaki" can enjoy the rich aromatic taste,

The "steamed" dish was soft, moist, and had a delicate flavor that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Both are great, so be sure to try this great value spiny lobster course!

Assorted grilled shellfish

This is an assortment of grilled shellfish that is included in all courses.

Very large giant clams, turban shells, and scallops were brought to us.

The waiter will quickly grill it for you while pouring his secret sauce on it!

The flavor of the soup stock is irresistible. Each one is delicious and impressive.

I liked the scallops best with corn and green onions.

Secret menu!? Ajillo

Although it is not listed on the menu, we even received ajillo as a service! 

It seems that the chef offers customers not just typical Japanese seafood dishes, but also as a playful way for customers to enjoy seafood in a different way.

There might be a pleasant surprise like this when you go!

It suddenly felt more like "seafood" than seafood.

When the pot is brought to us, the tatami room is instantly filled with the scent of garlic and olive oil.

The head chef who can serve not only Japanese food but also Western food is wonderful!

My sons enjoyed eating French bread (lol)

Finishing with seaweed porridge

Return to normal menu. After enjoying various dishes, the rice porridge was warm and had a gentle flavor, and was really delicious...!

``You can get a second helping,'' he said, so I ended up asking for another because it was so refreshing.

The tea that came with it was also delicious and I felt relieved at the end.

After this porridge, we will go up to the rooftop deck and enjoy cruising, and then have dessert at the end!

Head chef's homemade dessert

When we returned from outside, the final treat ♪ dessert was prepared.

``Apple compote'' handmade by the head chef.

Special abalone sashimi too!

Yakatabune Okitasan also has an abalone course.

The season for abalone is summer, but it is available all year round. For this interview (late September 2023), a part of the course was specially shown.

・Yakatabune Abalone Course 8,450 yen (tax included) per person (includes boarding fee)

This is raw abalone sashimi!

When you eat fresh abalone that has been frozen with ice as sashimi, it has a crunchy texture, and the more you bite into it, the more delicious it becomes.

After roasting it a little on the stove, it became soft and delicious.

The bowl was also very cool.

There are various other courses available.

・Yakatabune lunch grilled shellfish course (large clams, turban shells, scallops, etc.) 4,800 yen including tax (including boarding fee) per person

・Houseboat meat course (meat + grilled shellfish platter) 7,800 yen (tax included) per person (includes boarding fee)

・Yakatabune Steamed Oyster Course [Winter Only (November to March)] 5,950 yen (tax included) per person (includes boarding fee)

You can enjoy various dishes according to the season and taste♪

Children's rice ball set

To make it easy for the children to eat, they provided a set (500 yen) of handmade rice balls and sausages.

This also came with pudding ♪ The extra large sausage was grilled with spiny lobster (lol)

I was very grateful for the various thoughtful things they did, such as asking me if I had any allergies before offering the food.

Enjoy cruising on deck!

When I think of a houseboat, I have the image of a party at night, but the houseboats in Toba are mainly served during the day♪

Once the meal has settled down, everyone puts on life jackets and goes up to the rooftop.

The sea is sparkling, the wind is pleasant, and it's a beautiful day!

Now is probably the best time to go outside, as it's neither too hot nor too cold.

They seemed to have timed the boat's operation to coincide with the timing of the boat's operation, and they called out to me from afar, saying, ``Right now, you'll be able to watch a demonstration show of diving divers from MikimotoPearlIsland!'' I was also able to see a few Ama divers.. This makes all tourists happy.

What Chef Sasaki values

Lastly, I spoke with Chef Sasaki.

Chef Sasaki always used the phrase, ``I want to offer guests an extraordinary experience.''​

It's a seafood restaurant, but they create a Wagyu beef course for those who don't like shellfish but want meat, and the menu is designed with the customer in mind.

If requested by a customer, they will also prepare a bouquet of flowers as an anniversary present or surprise.

Why not consult with us on your anniversary or important day?

Click here to make a reservation!

Reservations can be made online or by phone!

TEL 0599-25-7133

　　　  090-1563-7780

[Telephone reception hours] 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

If you have any questions about small group reservations, reservations/estimates for various groups, etc., please feel free to contact us! is what they said.

[About cancellation]

If you cancel after your application has been submitted, the following cancellation fees will apply.

3 days ago: 30% of usage fee

The day before: 90% of the usage fee

On the day: 100% of usage fee

(In the case of private rental, it will be handled separately.)

access

Access by train

● When you arrive at Toba Station  From there 7 minutes walk

Walk from Kintetsu Toba Station towards Toba Marine Terminal, and when you see Sadahama Parking Lot 3, you will find the pier at the back.

Access by car

● Once you arrive at Ise Expressway “Ise IC”, it takes about 15 minutes by car.

From Ise IC, take National Route 42 via Ise Futami Toba Line and head towards Toba Marine Terminal.

summary

This time, we went with a group of people ranging from 2 years old to people in their 80s, and we were very satisfied with the content, which was delicious and enjoyable for all generations!

The friendly head chef and waitress were also very helpful.

If you have small children with you, you might get bored with a long course meal, or you might get too noisy and pay attention to other customers. You don't have to worry about that because the extraordinary experience is so much fun. I felt it was very easy to go even with children!

I heard that currently 90% of the customers are tourists from outside the prefecture. Is it difficult to buy a houseboat? It can be easily enjoyed even by locals who feel that I would like you to know that.

It can be used for leisure and dinner parties for 6 or more people, so please feel free to contact us.

Be sure to try out a variety of seafood dishes, Toba sightseeing cruises, and great-value courses on the houseboat Okitasan!

On Instagram (@rio_nishioka), we are also posting a reel video of this time's "Yakatabune Okita".

Please take a look.

 

 

 

 

 

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Rio Nishioka Narrator 🎙 A post shared by Mie (@rio_nishioka)