The Underground Chefs Kitchen

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The Underground Chefs Kitchen

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03/11/2026

Day 7 - TIME TO HEAD HOME… BUT THE JOURNEY IS JUST BEGINNING 🇯🇵❤️

Seven days, countless trains, mountain roads, markets, hotels, restaurants, conversations, surprises… and quite a few things we thought would work that simply didn’t.

And that was exactly the point.

This was never meant to be a holiday.

It was a reconnaissance trip — a chance for Ian and me to experience the journey ourselves before asking anyone else to join us.

We wanted to know:

Would the hotels really work for our guests?

Are the walks manageable with luggage?

Is that scenic train worth the extra hours?

Does the restaurant feel special enough to earn its place?

Can you actually relax there — or are you rushing to the next stop?

And perhaps most importantly…

Does every experience tell its own story?

We came home with plenty of answers.

Some places we expected to love will probably not make the final itinerary.

Others completely surprised us.

Fukui gave us far more than we expected.

Kanazawa felt right almost immediately.

Toyama opened our eyes to an extraordinary food region we think many Australians know very little about.

And experiences like Respiración and L’évo reinforced exactly what we want this journey to become.

Not simply a collection of wonderful restaurants.

But different chefs, producers and communities telling the story of their region through food.

We also learned that slower can sometimes be better.

Guests need time to wander.

To find the little shop we didn't tell them about.

To stop for coffee.

To explore a market.

To notice how locals live, shop and eat.

And sometimes the quickest way from A to B is exactly the right choice — because those saved hours can be spent somewhere far more meaningful.

So now we're home.

The notebooks are full.

The photographs are plentiful.

The ideas have certainly grown. 😂

And now the real work begins — refining the route, talking with the wonderful people we met along the way and turning everything we learned into something very special for 2027.

The reconnaissance may be over…

but the journey continues. 🇯🇵❤️

02/11/2026

DAY 6 LUNCH — L’ÉVO 🇯🇵

Some restaurants impress you with the food.

Others stay with you because of the whole experience.

L’évo did both.

Set deep in the mountains near Toga, this is a restaurant that feels completely connected to where it is.

The landscape matters.

The produce matters.

The people matter.

We were shown the area where locally hunted game is prepared for the restaurant, including deer, wild boar and black bear.

We toured the w**e cellar.

We met the chef and the team.

And we learned that many of the staff come from the local Toga village, while some senior team members travel from Toyama each day.

The kitchen itself also brings together chefs from different nationalities, including Korean and Taiwanese team members.

It was fascinating to see how something so remote can still feel so international, while remaining completely grounded in its local surroundings.

And then there was the food.

Thoughtful. Beautiful. Precise.

Every course felt like part of the landscape around us.

Nothing felt added for effect.

It all belonged.

We also loved discovering that the team at Respiración in Kanazawa knew the chef at L’évo and had asked us to pass on their best wishes.

That small connection said a lot.

These chefs may all work at a very high level, but they are not trying to be the same.

Each is telling their own story through their region, their produce and their own style of cooking.

And that is exactly what we want this journey to celebrate.

Not simply another restaurant.

But a completely different expression of place.

L’évo was unforgettable. ❤️🇯🇵

01/11/2026

DAY 6 - WH**KY & THE ROAD INTO THE MOUNTAINS 🇯🇵

Today started with a private driver and a very different kind of Toyama experience.

Our first stop was Saburomaru Distillery.

Small, relaxed and full of character, it gave us another glimpse into just how much this region has to offer beyond seafood and restaurants.

We had the chance to look around, learn a little more about the wh**ky and enjoy a tasting before heading deeper into the countryside.

Then came the road.

And honestly, the drive became part of the experience.

Narrow mountain roads, tunnels, forests, tiny villages and beautiful views opening up between the trees.

At times we were wondering how on earth two vehicles could pass each other — until we watched the Japanese road system in action.

Mirrors, warning systems and designated passing areas mean drivers know exactly when to stop and allow another vehicle through.

Simple. Clever. Effective.

And incredibly scenic.

This is one of those moments that reminded us that transport does not always have to be just about getting from A to B.

Sometimes the journey itself earns its place.

And this one definitely did.

Because somewhere further up those mountain roads…

lunch was waiting. 😉🇯🇵

01/11/2026

Back in the kitchen shooting our latest tutorial. As part of our series “What can you do with a pound of mince” I have developed 2 different recipes using 250 gm of Pork Mince each and some same ingredients to create 2 different flavour results. The first one is Asian favourite San Choy Bow.
Chef Ian 👨‍🍳

30/10/2026

DAY 5 LUNCH - RESPIRACIÓN, KANAZAWA 🇯🇵

Some meals are excellent.

Some are technically brilliant.

And then there are the ones that become part of the whole story of a place.

Respiración was one of those.

Set in Kanazawa, the restaurant brings together the extraordinary produce of Ishikawa with Spanish technique and a very individual style of cooking.

From the first course, we knew we were in for something special.

The flavours were precise, creative and beautifully balanced - but what impressed us just as much was the warmth of the people behind it.

The owners have known each other since childhood and later developed their skills in Spain before returning to Kanazawa to create something completely their own.

Then came one of those lovely travel surprises.

Our first course was served by Alex, a young Australian chef from the Gold Coast, who had only recently moved to Japan.

Travelling halfway around the world and suddenly hearing an Australian accent in a restaurant like this was such a wonderful moment.

There was another lovely connection too.

The team at Respiración knew the chef from L’évo, where we were heading next, and asked us to pass on their best wishes.

That small moment said a lot.

These restaurants may all operate at a very high level, but they are not trying to be the same.

Each is telling its own story.

And that is exactly what we want this journey to be about.

Not simply another fine-dining restaurant.

But different chefs, in different places, telling completely different stories through food.

And as for the meal itself?

“Brilliant” really doesn’t cover it.

This one is staying with us. ❤️🇯🇵

29/10/2026

DAY 5 — KANAZAWA… THIS ONE’S A YES 🇯🇵

Some places take a little while to convince you.

Kanazawa really didn’t.

From the moment we arrived, it just seemed to work.

Even the station makes an impression - beautiful architecture, that spectacular entrance, gardens tucked around it - and despite arriving on marathon weekend, it was surprisingly easy to navigate.

Then there was the accommodation, UAN Kanazawa.

This was much more like what we had been searching for. Smaller, full of character, beautifully considered and right in the middle of everything we wanted to explore. It felt Japanese without sacrificing comfort - and importantly for the tours we are planning, it felt like somewhere our guests could actually settle into rather than simply sleep.

From there we wandered down to Omicho Market, and this is where Kanazawa really started to come alive for us.

Seafood everywhere. Beautiful produce. Wagyu. Tiny food counters. Local specialties. Shops filled with things you didn’t know you needed until you saw them.

And all of it easy to explore on foot.

There were little discoveries everywhere - ceramics, knives, local food, gold leaf and, yes, even the famous Kanazawa gold leaf ice cream.

Was it the greatest ice cream we have ever eaten?

Probably not. 😂

But eating an ice cream completely covered in gold leaf while wandering through Kanazawa?

That’s a story - and sometimes that is exactly the point.

This reconnaissance trip has been teaching us something important.

We don’t want to fill our future journey with places simply because they appear on a “must-see Japan” list.

We want places where our guests can wander, discover, taste, look around a corner and find something for themselves.

Kanazawa gives us that.

It has wonderful food and serious restaurants, but it also has personality, markets, crafts, quiet streets and that wonderful feeling that you could simply head out the door and see what happens.

And after questioning a few destinations over the previous days, it was lovely to arrive somewhere and think almost immediately…

Yep. This one belongs. ❤️

And we hadn’t even reached lunch yet…

That story deserves a post all of its own. 😉🇯🇵

28/10/2026

Day 4 - Takayama gave us one of the prettiest moments of the trip.

The red bridge, the river running alongside it, the old streets and mountain setting were absolutely beautiful — even with the rain.

There’s plenty here that visitors understandably love.

Morning markets.

Hida beef.

Old town streets.

Sake.

Traditional architecture.

And quite a few fellow Australians, as we discovered.

But this reconnaissance trip isn’t just about finding beautiful places.

It’s about finding the right places.

Places that feel distinctive.

Places that give our guests something they haven’t already experienced somewhere else.

Places that create stories, not just photographs.

Takayama certainly has charm, but for us the question is still whether it earns the time it takes within a very full journey.

And that’s part of the value of being here ourselves.

Sometimes a destination confirms exactly what you hoped.

Sometimes it makes you rethink the plan.

Both are useful. 🇯🇵

27/10/2026

Day 3 - Shirakawa-go was undeniably beautiful.

Traditional gassho-style houses tucked into the valley, mountains all around and the first hints of autumn beginning to show.

It’s one of those places that looks exactly like the postcards.

But this reconnaissance trip is also about asking a harder question:

Does every beautiful place deserve a spot on the itinerary?

For us, it’s not enough that somewhere looks lovely.

We’re looking for experiences that add something distinctive — food, people, craft, local stories, or a real sense of connection to place.

Shirakawa-go gave us beautiful scenery and history.

Now we need to decide whether that’s enough to justify the time it takes within an already very full journey.

And that’s exactly why we’re here — to test it properly, rather than simply assume it belongs. 🇯🇵

27/10/2026

Day 3 - Leaving Fukui, our next destination was Shirakawa-go.

First the Shinkansen to Toyama, then onto a bus and into the mountains.

And what a journey.

Tunnel after tunnel after tunnel — an incredible reminder of just how much engineering goes into connecting these parts of Japan.

Then suddenly you emerge…

A mountain valley.

A cluster of homes.

Forest-covered hills.

A river.

And trees just beginning to change colour for autumn.

Then back into another tunnel.

It became a bit of a game — wondering what view would be waiting for us on the other side.

The autumn colour is only just starting, so we’re probably a little early for the full show, but even so the scenery was beautiful.

And then, tucked away in the mountains, came Shirakawa-go.

Definitely one of those places where the journey is part of the experience. 🇯🇵

26/10/2026

Day 2 - And then came dinner.

After a day of wandering Fukui, discovering local shops, b**r, coffee and all sorts of unexpected little finds, it was time to sit down and experience the region properly through food.

Dinner at FUKUI was a beautiful progression of local and seasonal ingredients.

Fresh sashimi.

Fukui salmon grilled on cedar.

Chestnuts, mushrooms, ginkgo nuts and yuzu.

Flounder with crispy pumpkin and burdock root.

Pork with autumn mushrooms and grated daikon.

Rice with chestnuts and sweet potato.

And to finish, Fukui’s Habutae ice cream with buckwheat and warm red bean paste.

What we loved was that it didn’t feel like food trying too hard to impress.

It felt considered.

Seasonal.

Regional.

And very connected to where we were.

Sitting at the counter and watching the chefs work made it even better — seeing the care, preparation and rhythm behind each dish as it came together.

This is exactly what we’re looking for on this trip.

Not simply great food.

Food that tells you where you are.

And Fukui certainly did that. 🇯🇵

Address

Bribie, QLD
4507

Telephone

+61475564990

Website

https://www.undergroundchef.com.au/

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