Utsunomiya – Gyoza City
Utsunomiya is a city north of Tokyo in Tochigi Prefecture, famous for it’s Gyoza and Jazz (there is a big Jazz festival there every year).
| The Good | The Not-So Good |
| Certainly the best Gyoza | Can find Gyoza anywhere in Japan |
| Less foreign tourists | Lots of Japanese during holidays |
| A good stop on the way… | Not much else (a Temple?) |
Utsunommiya has a number of Gyoza restaurants you can run around and sample however that is going to make you fat and take a lot of time. During weekends and holidays lines are easily two hours long for every single Gyoza place in the city. This was the case for “When Japan” where hours were spent trying to find somewhere that didn’t have a 2 hour line.
After much searching we found the restaurant below, which is actually one of the the easiest places to go as they serve a variety of Gyoza brought in from the other restaurants in the city. So you can sample everything! Gyouzakan Kirasse Main Branch is downstairs, below a Mega Don Quijote.
What else to do in Utsunomiya
Unfortunately there isn’t much else to do in the city. It is really only famous for the dumplings. The only thing that seems worth the visit is Oya Temple (Map). “When Japan” has not been there however as there is no English on their webpage and you have to take a bus to get there from Utsunomiya Station, probably there are very few tourists there. So a good choice? Buses timetables are here and there is a Google Translate option at the top that works fine. Buses outside of Tokyo work differently to city buses. “When Japan” will write a guide to help you, one day.
Places to go after Utsunomiya
The place everyone goes in Nikko however that has become so overwhelmed with tourists in recent years that “When Japan” cannot recommend it, even if the temple complex is stunning. Tochigi has some great Hot Springs a bit further north so we recommend you head there and stay the night.
If you are heading north to go to Yamagata, Sendai, or even further on your JR pass, then Utsunomiya is an easy Shinkansen stop to make on the way.
