Mehari Zushi: Where to Eat, Prices & Hours (Wakayama)

Born in the mountains of Kumano, mehari zushi is a large rice ball wrapped in pickled leaf greens. Its name is said to come from opening your eyes wide as you open your mouth to take a big bite. In the Kumano region, once thriving with fishing and forestry, it was cherished as a portable meal that could be eaten quickly between busy tasks.

Highlights

The star is the salted leaf of a mustard green. Its balanced saltiness and faint tang tighten the flavor of the plump rice within. Once prized as a portable meal for field work and mountain walks, even the way it is wrapped reflects the life of the land. Beyond the Kumano areas of Wakayama and Mie, it has also been enjoyed in the Yoshino area of Nara as a regional taste.

Enjoying the Seasons

When the young greens are harvested the freshness of the leaf stands out, while in colder months the deep savor of well aged pickles comes forward. Its shifting character through the seasons is part of the charm.

Access and Basic Information

You can find it at eateries and roadside stations in Shingu and the wider Kumano area. Shingu has long established shops serving it as regional cooking, and specialists in mehari zushi are known here. Many carry it as a boxed lunch for walking the old pilgrimage routes, and unwrapping one midway along a mountain path is a special treat. Using JR Shingu Station as a base, seek out places that serve regional cooking.

Practical Travel Notes

Mehari zushi can be eaten with one hand without soiling your fingers, making it ideal for a meal while trekking the Kumano Kodo or on a drive. Many shops sell it to take out or as a boxed lunch, so buying it before you set off is convenient. The saltiness of the greens, the thickness of the leaf, and whether the rice is vinegared differ by shop, so taste comparisons are fun. From the Osaka side, the Kumano and Shingu area is reached by the JR limited express Kuroshio, roughly three and a half hours from Tennoji Station. Enjoying it alongside a pilgrimage to the World Heritage Kumano Sanzan or Nachi Falls is recommended.

A Quick Tip

The proper way is to take one big bite, leaf and all. Savor the moment when the salt of the leaf and the sweetness of the rice become one. On a day you plan to walk the Kumano Kodo, buying one in the morning adds a pleasure to your journey along the trail.

Practical Information for Your Visit

• Main areas where it is traditionally made: The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' "Local Cuisine of Our Home" introduces it as a dish of rice and takana (mustard greens) that spread as a packed lunch eaten during breaks from work in the southern part of Wakayama Prefecture, where fishing and forestry are thriving.
• Season: The takana used as the wrapping is harvested from winter to early spring, salted in barrels around January and February and kept until around autumn.
• Public facility where you can taste it: "Kaachan no Mise" at the roadside station "Dorokyo Kaido Kumanogawa" (54-7 Tanaga, Kumanogawa-cho, Shingu City). Open 9:00-16:00 (set meals 11:00-14:00), closed on the second Wednesday of the month. Mehari-zushi is 400 yen and the mehari set meal is 650 yen (tax included).
• Access: About 29 minutes from JR Shingu Station by Kumano Kotsu bus bound for Hongu, then about a 1-minute walk from the "Michi-no-Eki Kumanogawa" bus stop.

Note: Opening hours and prices at individual restaurants vary from shop to shop.

(Sources: Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, "Local Cuisine of Our Home: Mehari-zushi, Wakayama Prefecture"; Shingu City Tourism Association official site, "Kaachan no Mise")

Information Sources

This article is compiled from tourism information for Wakayama Prefecture and information published by each establishment. Prices, menus and seasons may change, so please check the official information of each establishment for details.

Sightseeing Checklist

• Budget guide: From a few hundred yen per piece
• Where to eat it: Restaurants and roadside stations in the Kumano region, such as Shingu and Nachikatsuura
• Best time of day: Mainly at lunchtime; also good as a packed lunch for an outing
• Avoiding crowds: An easy-to-buy local food. Go early for popular shops
• Combine your visit with: Pickled takana as a souvenir, Kumano Hayatama Taisha, Nachi Falls, the Kumano Kodo