Fukui excels at wrapping restaurants in a gorgeous, natural casing. Café Mare is one of these local sausages. Found on the Echizen Coastline about 40 minutes from Fukui City and an hour from Echizen City. Those returning from a day at Tojinbo or other sightseeing spot in the northern part of the prefecture will find it a refreshing, ocean-sprayed spot with a gorgeous view of the sea and reasonably priced, well-flavored vittles.
Our most recent trip had us arrive at Mare around 11am on a Sunday. The restaurant was only open for an hour when we got there, but the parking lot filled up quickly behind us, mostly with cars sporting Osaka, Hyougo, and Aichi license plates. The spot has been featured many times by Kazu Channel, a huge YouTuber born and raised in Fukui. I wonder how much that factors into the foot traffic.
Spring, Summer, and early Fall mean a ton of outside seating in addition to the dining room area. Given the ongoing concern about keeping your distance while eating, we were more than happy to take a seat at a picnic table bathed in shade from a large overhead parasol. The closest table to us was more than five feet out. The open space coupled with the gentle sea breeze made it feel safe and relaxing.
As far as the food, the offerings were delicious if standard and the price average. My wife had the Gapao Rice, while I opted for the Beef Tendon Curry (the Japanese name sounds more appetizing) with extra rice. It tasted like it was built from onions and spices instead of from cubes. There was a creeping, cumulative heat to it that had my mouth smoldering nicely by the time I took my last bite. Add to that two ice teas and our total came to ￥2,800. That's not too much more than what we pay for a convenience store lunch. Gotta say that Café Mare is a lot tastier and, one assumes, more nourishing.
I have no complaints about the place other than I wish getting there didn't require braving some wickedly narrow mountain roads. The view of the Sea of Japan alone is worth the ticket price. The fact that the food is good and the shop itself cute as hell is just a happy little bit extra.
Find out more about Café Mare here. (Japanese)
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