Summer brings out the fireflies in Tokyo and from May 24-July 18 you can bask in the their lovely glow while dining on the grounds of Chinzan-so, a sprawling historic garden in central Tokyo. Hotaru no yube (“firefly nights”) have been held annually on the grounds since 1954.
Three different menus are offered:
An all-you-can-eat and-drink buffet feast of Japanese and western style cuisine from 7PM with a two hour time limit in the banquet room. ¥9,000 for adults (¥10,000 weekends) and ¥2,000-¥4,000 for kids. Those over age 60 will get a ¥1,000 discount. - Kinsui traditional Japanese restaurant will serve a “firefly kaiseki (traditional Japanese dinner)” between 11:30AM and 10PM for ¥21,000
- Mokushundo, a Japanese-style barbecue restaurant in the heart of the park will serve a stone-grilled kaiseki course with seasonal ingredients, beef, seafood and vegetables. ¥11,550 (lunch only), ¥13,000 or ¥15,750. Lunch is served from 11:30AM - 4PM and dinner hours are from 5PM -10 PM.
If you come in a yukata (summer kimono) you will receive a special gift. Reservations are recommended as this event is quite popular, call (03) 3943-1140 for the buffet, or (03) 3943-1101. Chinzan-so is a ten minute walk from the Edogawabashi Station (website & directions).
Image Credit: Wikimedia, Woman catching firefly by a stream, Flickr, Chinzan-so Park
Tags: Chinzan-so, Dining, Fireflies, Japan, Kinsui, Mokushundo, restaurants, The Tokyo Traveler, Tokyo, TravelShare This
