Deer sashimi? Wild boar yakitori? Probably not the first thing that comes to mind when looking for food in Kyoto. But a visit to a hunter’s izakaya by the name of Okariba might make you change your mind. Outside the restaurant you are greeted by a humourous sign which sets the tone for the rest of the evening:
The interior is most definitely something straight out of the forest: it looks like a wooden hut, with dim, incandescent lighting to give you that in-the-middle of nowhere feel.
Needless to say, the food here is an honest, hearty affair: strong flavours, almost unapologetic in its robustness. I’d strongly recommend you try the wild boar yakitori skewers – moist meat, with just the right amount of charred-ness, topped with a salty-sweet sauce.
The deer sashimi – melt in your mouth, fatty deer whose fat is slightly nutty and sweet – it tastes like a gamey cross between beef carpaccio and iberico ham. When dipped in the sweet soy and ginger dip – it is a mouthwatering preposition.
To counter-act all the meatiness, a hoba-yaki is highly recommended. Basiscally, vegetables and mushrooms, mixed with a sweet miso sauce, gently grilled atop a hoba leaf. The result is a smokey-sweet moreishly additctive vegetable medley. Just try it for yourself.
Tasty but not as spectacular was the grilled salmon-trout but a good fish option nethertheless. Actually, both the fish and hoba-yaki get an added taste dimension when mixed with each other.
Prices are very reasonable, especially considering how unique this place is and the quality of the food: when all this is washed down with some beer, your bill will only come up to around 2000 - 2500 yen per person.
Obarika
43-3 Okazaki Higashitenno-cho, Sakyo-ku, Residence Okazaki 1F, Kyoto
+81757517790
Opening hours: Tues – Sun 17:00 – 22:00. Closed Mondays
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