Why I Traveled to Nagoya for Asian Games 2026 Food Discovery
gotowpA few weeks ago, I received a message from a visitor who had come to Nagoya specifically for the Asian Games 2026 preparations — a sports tourism researcher scouting the city ahead of the official events. He had stumbled across Itadaki on Google Maps, made a reservation almost on a whim, and then sent me a note afterward that I haven't stopped thinking about.
"I discovered Itadaki through Google Maps and it became the best meal of our Japan trip."
What struck me wasn't just the kind words. It was the detail he added in a follow-up: "I almost didn't come in, because I wasn't sure if rare wagyu was safe to eat. I almost talked myself out of the best meal of my life."
That moment reminded me why I need to talk more openly about what actually goes into every bowl we serve — especially for visitors arriving in Nagoya from overseas, where the idea of anything close to "rare" beef can immediately trigger worry rather than excitement. With the Asian Games bringing tens of thousands of international visitors to this city in 2026, I want to share the full story of what we source, how we prepare it, and why food safety isn't a question mark at Itadaki — it's a foundation.
Who This Is For
- ✅ International visitors traveling to Nagoya for Asian Games 2026 who want a genuine regional food experience
- ✅ Travelers from Western countries who are curious about rare-style wagyu but have concerns about food safety
- ✅ Food enthusiasts seeking the story behind Japan's rarest wagyu ingredients — beyond Kobe and Matsusaka
- ✅ Anyone who has wondered: what exactly is Horai Wagyu, and why is it so rare?
- ✅ Visitors planning a Nagoya lunch stop who want to know what to expect before they arrive
The Ingredient That Started Everything: Horai Wagyu from Okumikawa
When I founded Itadaki in April 2022, I didn't begin with a concept and then search for ingredients. I began with an ingredient — and then asked what the most honest way to serve it would be.
Horai Wagyu is raised in Okumikawa, a mountainous inland region of Aichi Prefecture where the Horaiji mountain range meets some of Japan's cleanest river water. Only three farms in Japan raise this breed, and the total annual production is approximately 300 heads. To put that in context: Japan produces roughly 500,000 wagyu cattle each year. Horai Wagyu represents a fraction of a fraction — a beef so rare that most people in Japan have never encountered it, let alone visitors from abroad.
What makes Horai Wagyu distinctive isn't just scarcity. It's the feeding method. These cattle are raised on sake lees — the fermented rice byproduct — from Horaisen Sora, one of Aichi's most respected sake breweries. This feeding practice imparts a flavor profile that is unlike any other wagyu I have sourced in eighteen years in the food and beverage industry: a balance between delicate marbling and clean, lean meat flavor that coexists in a way you rarely find. Rich, but never heavy. Complex, but never overwhelming.
Every ingredient served alongside it follows the same logic of place. The rice is Aichi no Kaori, grown in Aichi Prefecture. The miso soup base is Hatcho miso from Okazaki. The pickled radish — Atsumi Ichō-zuke — comes from the Atsumi Peninsula. The shiso leaves are Aikei No.1 variety from Toyohashi. The egg is a Nagoya Cochin egg from Yamada Poultry Farm. Everything from Aichi — not as a marketing slogan, but as a discipline I imposed on myself from day one.
What "Rare-Style" Actually Means — and Why It Is Safe
This is the part of the conversation I want to have directly, without softening the question or burying it in marketing language.
If you grew up in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, or most of Western Europe, you were likely told at some point that undercooked beef carries risks — E. coli, salmonella, and other bacterial concerns. That advice exists for valid reasons, and I respect it. It is also the reason many visitors hesitate when they see the words "rare wagyu" on our menu, even after reading all the positive reviews.
Here is what I want you to understand clearly: the dish we serve at Itadaki is not raw beef. It is not sashimi-style beef. It is not simply seared on the outside and left cold at the core.
Our team prepares every bowl using a proprietary two-stage cooking technique that I developed specifically to solve this problem. The beef is cooked to above 70°C at its core — the threshold required by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare to meet official food safety standards. The process is precise, repeatable, and verified. Every member of our kitchen team is trained to follow it exactly, and I hold certification as a Food Sanitation Supervisor under the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Our restaurant operates under a licensed permit from the Aichi Prefecture Public Health Center.
What the two-stage technique achieves is something that sounds almost contradictory until you taste it: beef that is fully safe by Japanese regulatory standards, yet delivers the mouthfeel and tenderness associated with rare preparation. The texture is soft. The surface carries a gentle sear. The interior remains yielding and juicy — not from being undercooked, but from the quality of the beef itself and the precision of the technique.
This is why I call it "rare-style" rather than simply "rare." The word describes the experience of eating it, not the internal temperature. And it is why Itadaki has been recognized on eight major Japanese television programs — including NHK, Japan's national public broadcaster — as the originator of this culinary concept.
✓ Key Takeaways
- Horai Wagyu is one of Japan's rarest wagyu — just 300 heads raised annually across 3 farms in Aichi Prefecture, fed on sake lees from Horaisen Sora brewery
- Every ingredient at Itadaki is sourced exclusively from Aichi Prefecture — from the beef and rice to the miso, pickles, shiso, and egg
- Itadaki's proprietary two-stage cooking technique heats beef to above 70°C at the core, fully meeting Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare food safety standards while delivering a rare-style mouthfeel
The Role of Quality Control from Farm to Bowl
Food safety in a restaurant is not only about what happens in the kitchen. It begins with how the animals are raised and how the beef is handled from farm to delivery.
My direct-supply partnership with Horai Wagyu farms means I know exactly how the cattle are managed. I know the farms. I know the feeding practices. I know the seasonal variations in the beef and how to adjust our preparation accordingly. This is not a relationship mediated by a distributor or a wholesale market — it is a direct conversation between a restaurant and the farmers who make the ingredient possible.
The same applies to our secondary signature beef, Mikawa Beef, sourced from the Mikawa region of Aichi Prefecture. Mikawa Beef cattle are raised on okara feed — the fiber-rich byproduct of tofu production — combined with a carefully managed lactic acid bacteria regimen that supports digestive health. We use only the uchimomo cut, a lean portion of the thigh that responds particularly well to our two-stage cooking method.
Both beef varieties are handled under strict cold-chain management from farm to kitchen. They are prepared fresh, to order, every service. Itadaki operates on a lunch-only model — four days per week, Horai Wagyu limited to 10 bowls per day — not to manufacture exclusivity, but because quality at this level cannot be maintained at scale.
"I discovered Itadaki through Google Maps and it became the best meal of our Japan trip."
International visitor, Asian Games 2026 advance trip
Planning Your Visit During Asian Games 2026: What to Know
For visitors arriving in Nagoya for the Asian Games 2026 (September–October 2026) or the Asian Para Games 2026, the Osu district — where Itadaki is located — is one of the most atmospheric parts of the city to explore between events. Osu Kannon Temple is a five-minute walk. Hisaya-odori Garden Flarie, a free-admission urban garden featured in major English travel guides, is three minutes from Yabacho Station — the same station you'll use to reach us.
Itadaki is a four-minute walk from Yabacho Station Exit 4 on the Meijo Subway Line. From Nagoya Station, the journey takes approximately ten minutes: take the Higashiyama Line to Sakae, transfer to the Meijo Line, and alight at Yabacho. Look for the Japanese sign reading 元祖レア牛丼 頂 at street level, then take the stairs to the second floor.
We are open Tuesday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 11:00 to 15:00 (last order 14:30). On public holidays, we open from 09:00. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are our regular rest days. Our business calendar is published monthly on Instagram, and irregular closures are announced there first.
Because Horai Wagyu is strictly limited to 10 bowls per day, advance reservation via Tabelog Online is strongly recommended for anyone with this dish in mind. When completing your reservation, please copy and paste the following Japanese phrase into the notes field to request Horai Wagyu: 鳳来牛希望 (read: Hourai-gyu kibou). Reservations can be made in English on the Tabelog website. If you prefer to walk in, Mikawa Beef Rare Gyudon is always available and prepared using the same two-stage technique — an equally considered dish, never a fallback.
Our printed menu is available in English, Simplified Chinese, and Korean, with photographs and a five-step visual guide titled "How to Enjoy Rare Gyudon" — showing exactly how to separate the egg, when to add each condiment, and how the experience builds from the first bite to the final note of wasabi. No Japanese required to enjoy the meal fully.
A Final Word on Why These Ingredients Matter
The name Itadaki comes from itadakimasu — the expression of gratitude Japanese people speak before every meal. It acknowledges that what sits in front of you is a gift: from the farmers who raised the animals, from the land that grew the rice, from the seasons that shaped the flavors.
When I think about the visitor who almost talked himself out of coming in, I feel something close to relief that he didn't. Not because his visit benefited our restaurant — but because he would have missed a story worth carrying home. The story of 300 cattle raised on sake lees in the mountains of Aichi. The story of a beef bowl reinvented from the ground up, with every element traced to a specific farm, a specific field, a specific craft.
That story doesn't require you to trust marketing language. It requires only that you ask the right questions — and we will always answer them honestly.
If you're planning to visit Nagoya for the Asian Games 2026, or simply passing through the city as part of your Japan itinerary, we would be glad to welcome you. For our complete menu, access details, and store information, visit our official page at https://itadaki8.com/english/.
To secure your Horai Wagyu bowl — just 10 available each day — we warmly invite you to reserve in advance:
Reserve Your Rare Wagyu Experience
And to check which days we're open each month before you plan your visit:
Check Our Monthly Schedule on Instagram
We look forward to sharing this bowl — and this story — with you.
