5 cafes on Iriomote Island where you can enjoy special sweets and delicious food
Iriomote Island, located in the Yaeyama Islands, was registered as a World Heritage Site in 2021. This island, where you can fully enjoy the rich nature, also has many gourmet spots. Here are five recommended shops where you can take a break during your trip, from among the unique cafes where you can enjoy specially selected sweets and delicious meals.
1Boy from Iriomote
A cozy cafe right in front of the harbor
This cafe is proud of its carefully hand-dripped coffee. There is also a covered terrace and outdoor seating, so you can relax while looking at the greenery. The coffee is an original blend by the barista, and comes in three types: light roast, medium-dark roast, and extra-dark roast.
The "Hateruma Island Brown Sugar and Brown Syrup French Toast" is cooked until golden brown in a skillet and served piping hot. The brown sugar syrup produced on the neighboring island of Hateruma gives it just the right amount of sweetness, and it's very filling. They also have "hot dogs," "tapioca milk tea," and "honey cinnamon chai."
Enjoy a pleasant coffee time surrounded by greenery
Breakfast dishes such as the "Morning Plate" and "Croque Madame" are popular, as are lunch dishes such as the "Jerk Chicken Plate" and "Mushroom and Hamburger Cream Sauce Doria." It's also fun to chat with the friendly owner, who is a surfer.
The name of the restaurant was chosen because the adults who came to visit the island were enjoying themselves as if they were boys and girls again, and they wanted people like them to continue to come and visit. It is located right in front of Uehara Port, so it is recommended to spend your last moment on the island relaxing before boarding the ship.
- Boy from Iriomote
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https://www.instagram.com/mskraion/
Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Taketomi-cho Uehara 559 Uehara Hall MAP
About 3 minutes walk from Uehara Port
9:00-17:00 (Food last order 14:00)
Tuesday
090-7592-5592
free
2nanasi café
A Vietnamese cafe overlooking a beautiful cove
This cafe is located right in front of a quiet cove in Shirahama, the westernmost village on Iriomote Island that can be reached by car. You can enjoy sweets such as Vietnamese "chè" and Taiwanese "douhua", as well as meals such as "pho", "banh mi" and "Taiwanese soup".
"Mango and coconut milk che" is a luxurious cool dessert filled with plenty of mangoes, a specialty of the island. The owner's husband runs a farm, and the mangoes and pineapples he grows are used in the sweets and juices. "Vietnamese coffee" is a local style sweet coffee with condensed milk.
Step inside the store and you'll find yourself in a different world on Iriomote Island.
Meals include "fresh spring rolls" and "Vietnamese-style chilled somen noodles." There is also a wide selection of drinks on the menu, including "pineapple juice," "shell ginger tea," and "homemade ginger ale."
The interior of the shop has an Asian atmosphere that makes you feel like you've been transported to another place, and the owner's sense is overflowing in the decorations and accessories. Relaxing music plays and time seems to flow slowly in this space, and some people actually stay there for hours before going home. Don't miss the woodworking works, handmade T-shirts, and souvenirs by local artists.
- nanasi café
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- https://www.instagram.com/nanasicaphe/
- 1499-54, Iriomote, Taketomi-cho, Yaeyama-gun, Okinawa Prefecture MAP
- About 30 minutes by car from Uehara Port
Take the bus from Uehara Port, get off at "Shirahama" and walk for about 4 minutes- 12:00-16:00 (LO 15:30)
- Sunday, Monday
- 090-6898-0352
- free
3Cafe Rico
A traditional Japanese cafe where you can enjoy homemade sweets
This cafe is located in Hoshitate, a quiet village where rows of traditional houses remain. You can enjoy healthy snacks and drinks made with seasonal produce from the island. The sweets change with the seasons, and in winter they offer "Bite-sized Mont Blanc" and "Sweet Potato Yokan." Both are made with brown sugar from Iriomote Island, and have a gentle flavor that allows you to enjoy the taste of the ingredients.
They also have several kinds of baked goods that are free of butter and eggs on the shelves every day. They use organic and natural ingredients whenever possible, and they also purchase organic coffee, which they roast carefully in-house.
A relaxing tatami space with a view of the garden
The homemade "enzyme juice" uses seasonal fruits and wild plants that are close by, such as guava, mulberry, and shakato. Since moving to this village, the old ladies in the neighborhood have been teaching her a lot about wild medicinal plants and herbs.
The owner, who used to work at a natural cafe, has been choosing healthier ingredients and making snacks by hand as much as possible, especially since having a child. He serves his favorite foods on the menu at the cafe. Shaved ice is also available in the summer.
- Cafe Rico
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- https://www.instagram.com/caferico_toneriko/
- 969 Uehara, Taketomi-cho, Yaeyama-gun, Okinawa Prefecture MAP
- Approximately 20 minutes by car from Uehara Port
- Take the bus from Uehara Port, get off at "Hinata" and walk for about 5 minutes
- 13:30-17:00 (until 16:00 in winter)
- Irregular holidays
- 080-9850-7053
- free
4Asian Obanzai Momokaka
A restaurant with a multinational atmosphere
This restaurant serves Asian-style meals and snacks with spices from China and Taiwan. The meals change weekly and come as a one-plate meal with soup. For example, the lineup includes ethnic side dishes such as "Taiwanese-style stewed chicken wings," "Street-style stir-fried Sichuan peppercorns," and "Vietnamese-style refreshing eggplant."
The "Homemade Lemonade" is made with plenty of pesticide-free lemons grown by farmers on Iriomote Island. It has a refreshing taste and is perfect for hot days. Beer and coffee are also available.
Gentle and simple homemade snacks
The "coconut dumplings," which are handmade every day, are filled with gently sweet black sesame paste. The "donuts" are plain and chewy. Both have a simple taste.
The kanji for "Hyakkakuka" is the Chinese word for passion fruit, and the owner, who has Chinese roots, thought it would be nice to incorporate something Chinese into the store name. The store is located inside the souvenir shop "Sonai Chikuiza" in the Sonai village, which is said to be the oldest on the island, and many island souvenirs are lined up.
- Asian Obanzai: Hyakka
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- https://www.instagram.com/momokakasia/
- Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama District Taketomi Town Iriomote 896-1 Sonai Chikuiza MAP
- Approximately 20 minutes by car from Uehara Port
- Take the bus from Uehara Port, get off at "Sonai" and walk for about 5 minutes
- 11:00～16:00（L.O.15:00）
- Sunday, Monday
- 050-5275-0268
- free
5Wildcat Curry Research Institute
A cafe where you can eat authentic Indian cuisine with a fragrant spice
This Indian food cafe is run by a former assistant at a cooking school run by an Indian chef. The spices are authentic, pounded in an Indian stone mill to bring out their aroma.
The plate, which uses an abundance of island ingredients such as vegetables, herbs, and fish, is always a different menu, with two types of curry and four or five side dishes. There are apparently about 100 types of curry in the repertoire. There are some that are spicy but light and not too hot, so even children can eat them.
Warm up with Indian snacks and chai
The "samosa" is handmade from the skin up, and the fillings on this day were island lemon and potato. The soft dough is complemented by the fluffy texture of the fillings and the strong spices. The "chai" contains peppercorns grown on Iriomote Island, and is an exquisite combination of several types of spices. Bags of "chai masala" are also sold, making it a great souvenir.
"I want to convey that by using spices, you can enjoy the different flavors of island ingredients," says the owner. Cooking classes are also held, and you can join even while traveling. Check the schedule on Instagram.
- Wildcat Curry Research Institute
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- https://www.instagram.com/yamanekocurry/
- Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Taketomi-cho Uehara 584-1 Cross River MAP
- About 5 minutes walk from Uehara Port
- 11:00～14:00（L.O.13:30）
- Open about 10 days a month (check Instagram for opening days)
- free
