Food / Souvenirs

Grilled eel is a cornerstone of Japanese cuisine, and Saitama boasts numerous historic eel restaurants owing to the abundance of eels in its rivers and wetlands. Their exceptional cooking methods earned these restaurants acclaim amongst foodies in the know.

Kawahaba Udon is a unique noodle dish from Konosu. The hefty width of these noodles was inspired by the Arakawa River, which flows into Tokyo Bay and is the widest river in Japan. Many restaurants make their noodles up to 5 centimeters wide, some even stretching close to 8 centimeters, making them some of the broadest in the nation.

Saitama is known for both traditional kakigori still made from natural ice and kakigori frozen from premium local water. Kumagaya, said to be Japan's hottest city, is particularly famous for its “yukikuma” shaved ice creation.

The mountainous Chichibu region's signature Pork Miso Bowl contains charcoal-grilled pork marinated in a secret miso sauceーa recipe that evolved from traditional hunting preservation methods. The Waraji Katsu Bowl is equally popular, featuring an oversized cutlet with a sweet and savory soy sauce so large that it juts out from the bowl's edges.

Strawberries from Saitama are popular throughout Japan, particularly the Amarin variety, crowned champion at the Japan Strawberry Competition. Visitors to Saitama can gorge themselves on these and several other rare kinds of strawberries unavailable elsewhere in Japan.

Together with Kyoto and Shizuoka, Saitama is home to one of Japan's three premier tea-growing regions. Being further north than its counterparts, tea plants grown in Saitama have thicker leaves due to cold winters, yielding a uniquely sweet, rich, and full-bodied flavor.

These traditional hard-baked soy sauce rice crackers are considered some of the best in Japan.

Sweet potatoes have been a beloved and affordable treat for Saitama locals since the Edo period. Kawagoe is particularly renowned for its wealth of sweet potato confections and desserts.

The town of Ogawa and the village of Higashichichibu in Saitama have been crafting traditional “washi” paper for 1,300 years. Their main product is the top-quality Hosokawa paper, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, along with a bunch of other fine paper products.

Saitama ranks among Japan's premier sake-producing regions, owing to its abundance of pristine spring water. Numerous traditional breweries continue to preserve their time-honored methods throughout Saitama today.