Mount Tento in Abashiri City, designated as a national cultural property and "place of scenic beauty" since 1938, offers magnificent panoramic views of Lake Abashiri, Lake Notori, the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, and the Shiretoko mountain range.

While many tourists visit Mount Tento, a nationally famous tourist spot, there are also hidden gem cafes and restaurants that are so popular they attract visitors from all over Hokkaido based on word of mouth.

This time, we'll introduce tourist spots around "Tentozan" and restaurants that are popular for serving delicious food while enjoying the nature and scenery of the Okhotsk region.

Table of contents
1. Forest Cake Shop "café&cake Kazahana"
2. Cafe Lodge, a cafe where dogs are welcome.
3. Soba-kiri On, a soba noodle restaurant with a nostalgic, old-house feel.
4. "café Grass Roots," a log cabin cafe surrounded by birch trees.
5. "cafe & restaurant 360," a cafe with a spectacular view of the Shiretoko mountain range.
6. Abashiri Prison Museum, the only prison museum in Japan.
7. The Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum, where you can experience drift ice all year round.
8. The Hokkaido Prefectural Museum of Northern Peoples: Full of the Charms of Northern Peoples
Final thoughts

"Café & Cake Kazahana," a charming forest cake shop with a red roof, is a place where you can feel happy just by looking at the various kinds of baked goods and beautifully decorated cakes and tarts.

They offer safe and secure sweets made with locally sourced ingredients, including their signature "Abashiri Pudding," handmade every morning with pasteurized milk from Abashiri and fresh eggs from Hokkaido, as well as classic baked goods and seasonal limited-edition items, attracting many fans from far and wide.

The store has a cafe space where you can enjoy your favorite sweets and drinks right there, and during the summer season, parfaits and soft serve ice cream are also added to the menu.

During the warmer months, the terrace seating with a panoramic view of Lake Abashiri opens, making it a highly recommended spot to enjoy delicious sweets while taking in the natural beauty of the Okhotsk region.

café&cake Kazahana
HP:http://www.abashiri-fuka.com/
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/abashiri.fuka/
Address: 121-7 Yobito, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 099-2421
TEL：0152-48-2006
Opening hours: 10:00 AM - 19:00 PM (Last order for cafe: 18:00 PM in summer, 17:00 PM in winter)
Closed on Wednesdays (or the following day if Wednesday is a public holiday).
Parking lot: Yes
Access: Approximately 15 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 15 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Cafe Lodge is a dog-friendly cafe that's great for dog lovers, and it's also a popular spot for outdoor enthusiasts, selling stylish and highly functional outdoor gear such as SOREL snow boots.

In the warmer months, there are tables with panoramic views of Lake Abashiri and a dog run surrounded by birch trees, making it a place where you can fully enjoy the great nature of Hokkaido.

The cafe menu includes a variety of pastas such as bacon napolitan and cod roe spaghetti, chicken and vegetable curries, fluffy omelets, and a variety of freshly baked pizzas, as well as a wide selection of sweets and drinks.

They also offer private party plans, and can accommodate requests such as an "all-you-can-drink set plan" or "food prepared by LODGE + bringing our own drinks."

Cafe Lodge
HP:http://www.lodge-hokkaido.com/cafe
Address: 122-11 Yobito, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 099-2421
TEL：0152-48-3773
Opening hours: 11:00 AM - 15:00 PM (Please inquire if you wish to visit after 15:00 PM)
Closed on Wednesdays (or the following day if Wednesday is a public holiday).
Parking lot: Yes
Access: Approximately 15 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 15 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Nestled quietly in the forests of Okhotsk is the soba restaurant "Sobakiri On," a traditional Japanese house-style building reminiscent of the 30s, creating a nostalgic and heartwarming atmosphere.

The rattling sliding door at the entrance, the retro fixtures, the plaster walls, and the large, rustic beams—this space evokes a sense of nostalgia for those who remember the Showa era, and it's a space that even those who don't remember the Showa era will find somewhat familiar.

The main item on the menu is the homemade soba noodles, ground in a stone mill. These are 10% buckwheat noodles made by hand using buckwheat from the Okhotsk region and delicious water from Abashiri. They are smooth, easy to swallow, and go down effortlessly.

The restaurant is popular for its side dishes that pair well with soba noodles, such as oyster tempura and burdock root fritters, as well as its seasonal dessert menu, which is handmade by the proprietress.

This restaurant offers a relaxed atmosphere and delicious soba noodles, so it's recommended to visit with plenty of time to spare.

Soba noodles
HP:http://www009.upp.so-net.ne.jp/abatennis/sobagiri/on.htm
Address: 190-1 Yobito, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 099-2421
TEL：0152-48-3470
Opening hours: 11:30 AM - 17:00 PM (may close earlier depending on remaining soba noodles)
*If the soba noodles run out, there will be a break of 1-2 hours while more noodles are being made.
Closed on Mondays and Fridays (or the following day if it's a public holiday), occasional temporary closures may occur.
Parking lot: Yes
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 15 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Located just off National Route 39 along the shores of Lake Abashiri, "café Grass Roots" is a log cabin surrounded by birch trees, creating a distinctly Hokkaido atmosphere.

The shop, where you take off your shoes before entering, has a warm, inviting atmosphere with wooden interiors and sofa seating. With soothing music playing softly, you can relax and enjoy the view of the Okhotsk region's natural beauty.

The cafe, which had been operating as "Cafe Anjiro" in front of Abashiri Station since 1975, relocated and reopened as "café Grass Roots" in 2011.

This cafe, which has been a beloved spot for many years and has many fans from its days as "Cafe Anjiro," offers a menu that includes white sauce omelets, various pastas, homemade sweets such as French anpan butter bake and pumpkin pudding, and original blend coffee—all delicious in the style of a long-established cafe.

café Grass Roots
blog:http://woody011.blog38.fc2.com/
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/%E3%82%AB%E3%83%95%E3%82%A7%E3%82%B0%E3%83%A9%E3%82%B9%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BC%E3%83%84-600570810050040/
Address: 46-18 Omagari, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 093-0045
TEL：0152-43-2992
Business hours: 11:00-20:00 (last order 19:30)
Closed on Wednesdays (or the following day if Wednesday is a public holiday).
Parking lot: Yes
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 7 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Located on the second floor of the famous tourist spot, "Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum," "cafe & restaurant 360" is a cafe and restaurant where you can enjoy lunch or coffee without having to use the paid area to experience the drift ice.

The cafe and restaurant, which opened in 2015 when the Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum reopened after renovations, offers a fantastic view of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, Lake Abashiri, and the Shiretoko mountain range.

The menu features three types of 360 lunch courses: "Ten" (fresh pasta, with a choice of two types), "Miyako" (main dish of Hokkaido-produced meat or fish), and "Yama" (skillet dish). There is also the "Tento Gozen" bento-style meal, and a variety of dishes using ingredients sourced from Hokkaido and Abashiri, such as Ezo deer meat and Abashiri-produced oil crab and snow crab curry.

The course includes salad, soup, bread, dessert, and coffee, making it a very satisfying meal! We also recommend the sweets made by our pastry chef, such as gateau chocolat and cheesecake, and seasonal menus are also available.

cafe＆restaurant 360
HP:https://www.ryuhyokan.com/restaurant/
Facebook:https://ja-jp.facebook.com/ryuhyokan.cafe.restaurant360/
Address: 244-3 Tentozan, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 093-0044, Japan (Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum 2F)
TEL：0152-67-7643
Opening hours: May to October 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM (Last order 5:00 PM)
November to April: 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM (Last order 4:00 PM)
Open from 10:00 to 15:00 during the New Year's holiday period (last order at 14:30).
(Last order for all lunch courses and the Tento Gozen set meal is 14:30 PM)
Closed days: None (follows the schedule of the Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum)
Parking lot: Yes
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 10 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

In the past, Abashiri Prison was a terrifying, dark, and remote place where the most dangerous criminals were imprisoned. The Abashiri Prison Museum allows you to experience what Abashiri Prison was like back then.

This is the only prison museum in Japan, and one of the few in the world, where you can imagine the harsh prison life of the past while having an experience you can't get in everyday life.

This open-air historical museum features buildings that were actually used at Abashiri Prison from the Meiji era, relocated or recreated, and displays structures including four important cultural properties and three registered cultural properties.

Taking into account the risks to preservation, the park actually opens the buildings to the public and uses realistic mannequins to recreate the lives of the prisoners at the time. Visitors can also enjoy the unique experience of eating "prison food" alongside the prison mannequins in the dining hall of the former Abashiri Prison Futamigaoka Branch, which is available seasonally. The park offers fascinating exhibits that will delight visitors.

A room in the "government building," formerly used as a conference room within the prison, has now been repurposed as a café. Here, you can enjoy drinks and sweets in a calm space with sash windows and high ceilings.

The "Prison Cafeteria" (formerly the "Outskirts Cafeteria"), which can be used without entering the museum and offers a casual lunch, reopened on February 1, 2017, and is gaining popularity for its new cafe-style menu, "Prison Forest Lunch," and "Prison Food," which recreates the lunch served at the current Abashiri Prison.

Abashiri Prison Museum
URL: http://www.kangoku.jp/index.html
Facebook:https://ja-jp.facebook.com/abashirikangoku/
Address: 1-1 Yobito, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 099-2421
Telephone number: 0152-45-2411
Admission fees: Adults 1,080 yen, University/High school students 750 yen, Elementary/Junior high school students 540 yen, Welfare discount 540 yen
Group discount (20 people or more): 2% off, Abashiri resident discount: 2% off, Internet discount coupon: 10% off
営業時間：5月～9月8:30 ～18:00　10月～4月9:00 ～17:00（入館は閉館時間1時間前まで）
Closed days: None
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 7 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Since its reopening in 2015, the Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum has become an even more attractive and easily accessible place, offering an interactive experience where visitors can encounter drift ice and marine life from the Sea of ​​Okhotsk.

Even though it's the peak season for viewing drift ice, you can encounter it year-round. Many tourists are captivated by the opportunity to actually touch real drift ice and experience the cold weather that comes with the drift ice season.

Sea ice born at the mouth of the Amur River, the largest river in the Far East, flows along the coast of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, and the drifting ice, which moves freely like a living creature, is the greatest attraction of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk in winter.

This is a place where both children and adults can enjoy themselves, experiencing the power of drift ice through Hokkaido's largest projection mapping display, and seeing the drift ice angels, known as "Clione," up close.

From the "Observation Terrace" offering panoramic views of the Shiretoko mountain range, you can enjoy the scenery of each season, as well as lunch made with seasonal ingredients at the observation restaurant "Café & Restaurant 360." Don't miss the hugely popular "Drift Ice Soft Serve Ice Cream" and souvenirs that can only be bought here.

During the winter drift ice season, fun events such as the thrilling "Drift Ice Scenic Slider" are held, making it a place that can be enjoyed by both those who have already visited and those who are thinking of going for the first time.

Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum
URL: https://www.ryuhyokan.com/
Address: 244-3 Tentozan, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 093-0044
Telephone number: 0152-43-5951
Admission fees: Adults 750 yen (600 yen), High school students 640 yen (510 yen), Elementary/Junior high school students 540 yen (430 yen)
*Prices in parentheses are for groups of 20 or more.
営業時間：5月～10月8:30 ～ 18:00　11月～ 4月9:00 ～ 16:30（入館は閉館時間30分前まで）
Open from 10:00 to 15:00 during the New Year's holiday period (last entry at 14:30).
Closed days: None
*The operating hours of the restaurant "Café & restaurant 360" will be the same as those of the Okhotsk Drift Ice Museum.
(Last order for all lunch courses and the Tento Gozen set meal is 14:30 PM)
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 10 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

The Hokkaido Prefectural Museum of Northern Peoples, with its striking triangular shape, stands on Mount Tiandu. It is the only museum in Japan that specializes in showcasing the culture of northern peoples, and a place where you can experience the charm of these peoples.

The exhibition features approximately 900 artifacts related to the clothing, food, and shelter of the northern peoples, including items excavated from the Moyoro Shell Mound, a representative site of the Okhotsk culture.

The museum features many exhibits showcasing high design quality and taste, including traditional ethnic costumes, ornaments, and crafts, and primarily displays materials used from the late 19th to the early 20th century, including reproductions.

In today's world, where many people prefer originality over mass-produced goods, traditional culture feels incredibly refreshing.

Top right/bottom left materials provided:Hokkaido Museum of Northern Peoples

The Hokkaido Prefectural Museum of Northern Peoples hosts a variety of fun events, including an "experience corner" where visitors can learn about the northern peoples in an enjoyable way, a "crafts" corner where they can make cute accessories, and various workshops for elementary and junior high school students.

The adjoining museum shop, which sells books and goods from the northern ethnic groups, offers a wide selection of attractive items, including original products and small items with ethnic embroidery.

Hokkaido Museum of Northern Peoples
URL: http://hoppohm.org/index2.htm
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/HoppohmMuseum/
Address: 309-1 Shiomi, Abashiri City, Hokkaido 093-0042, Japan
Telephone number: 0152-45-3888
Permanent exhibition admission fee: General admission 550 yen (440 yen), high school/university students 200 yen (160 yen), elementary/junior high school students/ages 65 and over free
*Prices in parentheses are for groups of 10 or more.
Opening hours: July to September 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM; October to June 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM
Closed days: July to September, February → No closing days
October to June: Closed on Mondays (open on public holidays, closed the following weekday), New Year holidays, and other temporary closures.
Access: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Memanbetsu Airport; Approximately 15 minutes by car from JR Abashiri Station.

Final thoughts

The area around Mt. Tento offers a perfect combination of beautiful scenery, sightseeing spots, and delicious food and sweets, making it a quintessential part of the Okhotsk region's charm.

The area around Mt. Tento is about 20 minutes from Memanbetsu Airport, but for those visiting Abashiri by JR train or bus, we recommend the "Sightseeing Tour Bus" that departs from and arrives at Abashiri Bus Terminal (via Abashiri Station) and tours various tourist attractions.

Abashiri Sightseeing Bus (1-day pass price: Adults 800 yen, Children 400 yen)
http://www.abakanko.jp/news/event/kankoushisetsumeguribus.html

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