BIG Breakfast at Takefue Ryokan

When we woke up, it was still snowing and BRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRR. But we were kept so warm, despite sleeping on the futon ON TATAMI mats...

JS: "Pay so much to sleep on the floor."
:D hehehehehehe
JS -_-"

The nite before, our room attendant Hiro sent his 2 assistants to set our comfy futons, thick fluffy futons, setup the aromatherapy of our choice, and inserted 2 hot water bottle bed warmers inside our thick blanket. When Monkey hopped and dived into her futon she was surprised to find it so warm and aaAAAaaaaa nice inside. So so so so so nice. I was smiling from my monkey ear to ear. Hehehehehehe.


Though it was snowing early in the morning, both of us jumped and dived into our outdoor hot spring onsen....before long we could hear Hiro announcing his arrival at our door. Pots, bowls and cutlery were soon heard clinking on each other as he was setting up our table...he even set up the fireplace at the irori.

Hiro: "Breakfast is READY!!!!!"
he's so jovial despite his messy-just-woke-up-hair

WOW!!! this is breakfast?!?!?!?!?
OMG so pretty!!!! PRETTY!! PRETTY!!! PRETTY!!!!!!
BREAKFAST!!!!! and did a monkey dance in my yukata


JS: "calm down monkey...sit down...we have guest here."
errrr I don't think Hiro is our guest but I sure didn't want him to have a bad impression on we Malaysians behaving like some monkeys climbing some coconut trees.

Hiro: "This is rice, from Kyushu. It won many awards last year."
I guess he's too shy....sorry!! we scared you but believe me, not all Malaysians are like me ok?

Hey don't burn the tail of the fish ok??? He's my favourite ornament in this room.
I can't work it out how Hiro alone can do so much. Fetching all the food, setting them up neatly, built this lil fire, re-rake the sand on this irori, make tea, there's also flowers around. Plus the weather isn't too fantastic for him to walk around in socks and slipper only

JS, please observe and learn OK?
:)))))))))

First, there's the fresh greens...so green and crunchy and sweet, of broccoli, sweet peas, even sweeter baby tomatoes, white asparagus, sweet red onions and some unidentifed but really yummy vege. Next to it, there was a long tube of bamboo with its dressing - goma vinaigrette dressing. So So so delicious :))))))


Then there's some freshly homemade toufu, also served inside the bamboo....it looked so bland but so intense with its bean taste. You can add soyu or sea salt to it but eating it like this is so beautiful alone.


YUMMY!!! all gone!!!! see!!! if the toufu is good it won't break up.

Some small bites with mentaiko on top


there were so many other small bites with delicious flavours.


Kelp is super healthy and brain food. Eat more!!!


What is breakfast without eggs? served with some grated daikon and soyu on the side.


Initially I was thinking that it's too heavy to have rice so early in the morning. But true enuff, this was one of the best grains in Kyushu. I gobbled everything down.


JS: "Don't worry monkey, there's still a big claypot of rice over there."
O.O


Our breakfast is almost like a Kaiseki dinner, with fried food, simmered food, hot food, cold food, grilled food. Above is the lightly simmered japanese yam, mushrooms, chicken and bamboo shoots.


Another yummy soup of long cabbage, fish and toufu. So so so so good!!!!


I went for 2nd helping and mopped this pot clean :P Heeeeeeeeee Seriously I didn't know we could eat so much for breakfast. Blame it on the cold weather.

Finally a generous chunk of ocean trout

To be grilled over the charcoal fire and this was JS's job.

Lovely pickles and my favourite was the long cabbage :))))))))

Lovely wild mushrooms

Some sea salt will do :)))
It's so fun to cook ur own food like this accordingly to your preference....as Hiro alwiz says..."as you wish" :)))))))))

Soon me and JS walked out of the irori like 2 gigantic whales *or walrus*...and went back to the onsen. This time no problem floating at all. Wahahahahahaha.