{"id":2036,"date":"2015-11-25T10:38:45","date_gmt":"2015-11-25T01:38:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/sakae-nagoya\/"},"modified":"2025-08-28T11:35:30","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T02:35:30","slug":"sakae-nagoya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/sakae-nagoya\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting to know you: Sakae, Nagoya"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Sakae.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-28344\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Sakae-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Sakae\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>Sakae is essentially Nagoya&#8217;s\u00a0city center in everything but name and is\u00a0one of the busiest parts of town. It\u00a0is famous for its vibrancy, drawing people from all over the region on weekends. By day the area is a coruscating hub of people shopping in the various department stores while at night the area hums with the energy of an active dance club scene, pumping out everything from hip hop to trance to techno and even Korean pop.<\/p>\n<p>There are plenty of things to see and do in Sakae, particularly when it comes to eating, drinking and being merry. Below are some of our favorites and recommendations.<\/p>\n<h2>Izakaya &#8211; Isonami Saisan (\u78ef\u6ce2\u6c34\u7523)<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Tuna-steak.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28416\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Tuna-steak.jpg\" alt=\"Tuna steak\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>There are so many great eateries in the Sakae area it is hard to choose just one, but whenever I am hungry &#8211; particularly hankering for seafood &#8211; I head to <strong>Isonami Saisan<\/strong>. This 24-hour izakaya may look\u00a0a little rough around the edges, but when it comes to grilling seafood at your table, this place can&#8217;t be beaten.\u00a0The clientele is\u00a0a great mix of families, friends on nights out, and even wedding after-parties. There is an English menu and if you don&#8217;t know where to start, I can definitely recommend the garlic tuna tail steak, the half-shelled crab &#8216;kani miso&#8217; and the whole tuna jaw.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/3+Chome-14-30+Nishiki,+Naka-ku,+Nagoya-shi,+Aichi-ken+460-0003\/@35.1712744,136.9035181,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x600370d5acc063f9:0x8bad463ab1d76901\">3 Chome-14-30 Nishiki, Naka Ward<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>:\u00a0<a class=\"fl r-ixiz4fqBUSQc\" title=\"Call via Hangouts\" data-number=\"+81522659737\" data-rtid=\"ixiz4fqBUSQc\" data-ved=\"0ahUKEwitjqnwkajJAhUDmJQKHRVqCREQkAgIeDAP\">052-265-9737<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Expat bar &#8211; The Curragh (\u30ab\u30fc\u30e9)<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Curragh.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28417\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Curragh.jpg\" alt=\"Curragh\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>If you are looking for\u00a0expat bars, alongside Fushimi, Sakae is probably the place in Nagoya to go. The most popular is probably British bar <a href=\"http:\/\/www.pub-hub.com\/index.php\/shop\/detail\/36\">The Hub Pub<\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>which gets particularly raucous on the weekends. However, if you are looking for something that actually resembles a proper pub\u00a0with the atmosphere to match, <strong>The Curragh<\/strong> is it. Owner Teri-san is as welcoming a host as you could wish to find, and while their fish and chips is the best I have found in Japan, there is also a great mix of beers: from Brew Dog craft beers to Guinness and even Magners&#8217; Irish Cider on draft.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/3+Chome-18-1+Sakae,+Naka-ku,+Nagoya-shi,+Aichi-ken+460-0008\/@35.1654918,136.9029739,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x600370d2f5c75499:0x2bf30f360a955650\">3 Chome-16-8 Sakae, Naka Ward<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>:\u00a0052-249-4884<\/li>\n<li><strong>Website<\/strong>:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.the-curragh-irishpub.com\/\">www.the-curragh-irishpub.com<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Department Store &#8211; Loft (\u682a\u5f0f\u4f1a\u793e\u30ed\u30d5\u30c8)<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/loft.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28418\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/loft.jpg\" alt=\"loft\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>Some of the Department stores in Sakae have become Japanese institutions. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.matsuzakaya.co.jp\/nagoya\/\">Matsuzakaya<\/a>, established in the area in 1611, is one of the oldest department stores in Japan, and <a href=\"http:\/\/nagoya.mitsukoshi.co.jp\/\">Mitsukoushi<\/a> isn&#8217;t much younger. However for products for the home with a modern and westernized leaning\u00a0&#8211; from furniture to bedspreads, from cutlery to costumes &#8211; then <strong>Loft<\/strong> is perfect. It can be pretty pricey in there, but you can mostly be assured of the quality as well as the inform fashion sensibilities. Think Ikea without the flat packing, Allen keys, and dispose-ability.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/3+Chome-18-1+Sakae,+Naka-ku,+Nagoya-shi,+Aichi-ken+460-0008\/@35.1654918,136.9029739,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x600370d2f5c75499:0x2bf30f360a955650\">3 Chome-18-1 Sakae, Naka Ward<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>:\u00a0<a class=\"fl r-ia5dwb_f_sx4\" title=\"Call via Hangouts\" data-number=\"+81522193000\" data-rtid=\"ia5dwb_f_sx4\" data-ved=\"0ahUKEwiPsoXUrqjJAhVCpJQKHVE8AdcQkAgInAEwEQ\">052-219-3000<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Website<\/strong>:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.loft.co.jp\/shop_list\/detail.php?shop_id=295\">www.loft.co.jp<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>A spot of culture\u00a0&#8211;\u00a0Aichi Arts Center (\u611b\u77e5\u82b8\u8853\u6587\u5316\u30bb\u30f3\u30bf)<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Art.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28419\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Art.jpg\" alt=\"Art\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>Nagoya is chock full of art galleries and cultural centers, but the biggest and perhaps best is the Aichi Arts Center. Located behind the Oasis 21 park and shopping\u00a0complex, twelve stories above ground and five stories below ground, it houses an art museum, rental gallery, art theaters, the Aichi Prefectural Arts Promotion Service, and the Art Library.<\/p>\n<p>On the 10th floor, you can find the\u00a0<strong>Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art<\/strong> which\u00a0homes in its permanent collection the works of\u00a0Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Gustav Klimt, and Paul Klee. They also have Japanese artists such as\u00a0Yuichi Takahashi, Ryuzaburo Umehara, and Sotaro Yasui, along with masterpieces of Japanese-style paintings by Taikan Yokoyama and Shunso Hishida.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/1+Chome-13-2+Higashisakura,+Higashi-ku,+Nagoya-shi,+Aichi-ken+461-0005\/@35.1708857,136.9090759,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x600370d0c81642f7:0xc130999efa359b31\">1-13-2 Higashisakura, Higashi-ku<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>: 052-971-5511<\/li>\n<li><strong>Website<\/strong>:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www-art.aac.pref.aichi.jp\/eng\/\">www-art.aac.pref.aichi.jp<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>International cusine &#8211; Sapuca<em>\u00ed<\/em> Restaurante Brasileiro<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Sapucai.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28422\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Sapucai.jpg\" alt=\"Sapucai\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>It&#8217;s really difficult to pick out just one international dining experience. Both <a href=\"http:\/\/theredrock.jp\/\">The Red Rock<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.outbacksteakhouse.co.jp\/location\/nagoya.html\">Outback Steakhouse<\/a> offer great Australian grub. A recent discovery of mine is <a href=\"http:\/\/en.japantravel.com\/view\/nagoya-s-thai-kitchen-pakuchi\">Higashi Sakura Pakuchi<\/a>, a wonderful Thai restaurant that has a relatively authentic &#8216;street food&#8217; feel as well as an excellent Tom Yum Goong, but for a really interesting dinner, check out Brazilian restaurant <strong>Sapucai<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Not only can owner Didi dance up a storm (and gentlemen, keep an eye on your ladies, for Didi may look like a kindly old gent, but he&#8217;s smoother than sanded silk) but he can also whip up a feast. I&#8217;d recommend going for the buffet where you can eat as much as you like as waiters deliver flame-grilled chicken, pork, sausages, and beef\u00a0to your table carved directly from swords. Seriously tasty meat.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/4+Chome-12-7+Sakae,+Naka-ku,+Nagoya-shi,+Aichi-ken+460-0008\/@35.167339,136.9093649,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x600370d01940b83b:0x8c11402d6a59e8e2\">4-12-7 Sakae, Naka Ward<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>:\u00a0<a class=\"fl r-iIuFDTcILzWw\" title=\"Call via Hangouts\" data-number=\"+81522517588\" data-rtid=\"iIuFDTcILzWw\" data-ved=\"0ahUKEwjJ2qrft6jJAhVDopQKHePWBXMQkAgIhwEwEw\">052-251-7588<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Events &#8211; Hisaya Odori Park (\u4e45\u5c4b\u5927\u901a\u516c\u5712)<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Oktoberfest.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-28423\" src=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Oktoberfest.jpg\" alt=\"Oktoberfest\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a>If you are ever stuck for something to do in Sakae, it&#8217;s highly recommended that you head over to Hisaya Odori Koen because there is nearly always something going on. In these chain of parks from Central Park to Angel Park that includes the Nagoya TV Tower, there are often\u00a0music festivals of\u00a0free performances, with either high school kids putting on their own shows or huge national events such as\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/domannaka-matsuri-nagoya\/\">Nippon Domannaka Matsuri<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>There are frequent farmers markets selling organic goods and craft fairs with handmade products. The\u00a0most southerly section of the park towards the Matsuzakaya and Parco department stores\u00a0is the venue for some of Nagoya&#8217;s biggest international events such as the Thai Festival, the Vietnamese festival and Octoberfest. Until February 14 2015 it hosts the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.akarinight.jp\/\">Akari Night illuminations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Where<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.co.jp\/maps\/place\/%E4%B9%85%E5%B1%8B%E5%A4%A7%E9%80%9A%E5%85%AC%E5%9C%92\/@35.1763388,136.9057342,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x6003712986b53cc5:0x3ed64fec0ba4addf\">Marunouchi 3-chome, Naka Ward<\/a><\/li>\n<li><strong>Contact<\/strong>:052-261-6641<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: right;\">Mark Guthrie<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Main photo: flickr.com &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/yeowatzup\/11599847175\/\">Sakae, Nagoya<\/a>&#8221; by <a class=\"owner-name truncate\" title=\"Go to yeowatzup's photostream\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/yeowatzup\/\" data-track=\"attributionNameClick\" data-rapid_p=\"28\">yeowatzup<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>) -Modified<\/p>\n<p>Photo: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.the-curragh-irishpub.com\/\">http:\/\/www.the-curragh-irishpub.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Photo: <a href=\"http:\/\/japanvisitor.blogspot.jp\/2008\/09\/loft.html\">http:\/\/japanvisitor.blogspot.jp\/2008\/09\/loft.html<\/a>&gt;<\/p>\n<p>Photo: flickr.com &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tamaiyuya\/15378236165\/\">Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art<\/a>&#8221; by <a class=\"owner-name truncate\" title=\"Go to Yuya Tamai's photostream\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/tamaiyuya\/\" data-track=\"attributionNameClick\" data-rapid_p=\"28\">Yuya Tamai<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>) -Modified<\/p>\n<p>Photo: <a href=\"http:\/\/tabelog.com\/en\/aichi\/A2301\/A230103\/23036905\/?rvwid=3943094\">http:\/\/tabelog.com\/en\/aichi\/A2301\/A230103\/23036905\/?rvwid=3943094<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Photo: flickr.com &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/kinpi\/19799939995\/in\/photolist-waDSkM-vTanJV-vT37Z9-vdCPXS-w8kwqq-wa1jm7-vT35Aw\">Nagoya OKTOBER-FEST, Hisaya-Odori Park, Sakae, Nagoya<\/a>&#8221; by <a class=\"owner-name truncate\" title=\"Go to kinpi3's photostream\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/kinpi\/\" data-track=\"attributionNameClick\" data-rapid_p=\"35\">kinpi3<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>) -Modified<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sakae is essentially Nagoya&#8217;s\u00a0city center in everything but name and is\u00a0one of the busiest parts of town [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":2037,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[94,59,42,103],"tags":[83],"class_list":["post-2036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-and-dining","category-life-in-japan","category-nagoya-2","category-shopping","tag-aichi-prefecture"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2036"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2036\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51118,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2036\/revisions\/51118"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}