Tucked away in a forest in Sapporo, Hokkaido, with an undisclosed address, lies the restaurant "mountainman." The dishes served here make use of Hokkaido's unique seasonal ingredients, including fresh vegetables picked from their own backyard. Guests can indulge in a dinner in the woods that awakens all five senses, featuring a combination of wild game and cheese. The course meal even includes a rather unique experience! We'll share every bit of its charm with you.

The entrance to restaurant mountainman, a renovated garage.

A Fun Meal Combining the Best of BBQ and Fine Dining

The restaurant "mountainman" is open only on Friday and Saturday nights. Dinner service starts promptly at 7:00 PM for a limited group of 12 guests each night. It's more than just sitting down to enjoy a meal; you'll gather around a wood fire to cook, gaze at the starry night sky, and chat with fellow diners. It's a wild yet luxurious dining experience.

The restaurant at mountainman has a Polish-inspired atmosphere.

Game, Cheese, and Freshly Picked Vegetables! A Course Meal to Fully Enjoy Hokkaido

The course menu changes with the seasons, offering dishes that follow a specific theme. The theme for our visit in July was "Forest DINNER ~Wood-fired Game and Cheese~." The anticipation of what dishes would be served was exciting.

The first course was a chilled corn soup, followed by a platter of appetizers. This included venison dressed with a homemade mugwort tartar sauce and cheese from Fattoria Bio Hokkaido.

Chilled soup made with two types of corn.

An appetizer platter served on a plate of Sapporo soft stone.

The original beer, a collaboration with Sapporo's "Streetlight Brewing," is exquisite.◎

"This way, please," we were told, and guided to an outdoor seating area. From the third course onward, we all gathered around the wood-fired cooking station for our meal! The cooking began right before our eyes.