Soul food that spread with the coffee shop boom｜Escalope from Nemuro!

There are many reasonably priced and delicious foods in the provinces compared to Tokyo, and Nemuro’s escalope is another one I would like to recommend.

Hm? What is escalope? Many of you may be wondering.

Escalope is a specialty of Nemuro, Hokkaido, and is a one-plate dish consisting of thinly sliced pork cutlets on a bed of butter rice topped with demi-glace sauce or other sauce.

Escalope is rare and eaten only in the vicinity of Nemuro in Hokkaido, and is said to have originated in the late 1950s.

There are several restaurants in Nemuro that preserve the traditional taste and offer their own unique escalope, and they are also playing a role in Nemuro’s town revitalization.

In this article, I will explain the history of escalope in Nemuro, its appealing points, recommended restaurants, and sightseeing spots in the area, while also sharing my own experiences.

How did Nemuro’s escalope come about in the first place?

Nemuro’s escalope was invented around 1963 by the chef of Mont Blanc, a Western-style restaurant in Nemuro City.

It was created as a “quick and filling menu” for busy fishermen.

The third generation chef of Mont Blanc, Mr. Kinya Komura, played an important role in the development of the dish, which was based on his experience at a Western-style restaurant in Shimbashi and an Italian restaurant in Yokohama.

Initially, it was a combination of beef cutlet and Neapolitan, but it gradually evolved into its current form.

After “Mont Blanc” closed, the chefs who had worked there opened their own restaurants and spread the dish, making it a Nemuro specialty.

Why did escalope take root only in the vicinity of Nemuro?

Escalope is widely recognized as a local dish in Nemuro City, but it is rarely found outside of Nemuro City and surrounding areas.

The reason for its regional limitation is that it perfectly met the fishermen’s need for a menu that was quick to eat and filling.

In Nemuro, it has become so prevalent that it is even served in school lunches, is almost always on the menu at restaurants and coffee shops, and has become such an everyday food that it is even sold in convenience stores.

The fact that it is so commonplace to the locals, and that each restaurant has preserved its own unique flavor, is probably one of the reasons why this dish is so strongly associated with Nemuro’s regional identity.

Three Attractions of Escalope in Nemuro

I have summarized some of the attractions of escalopes in my root cellar.

Unique texture, bamboo shoot butter rice

Nemuro’s escalope is “buttered rice topped with pork cutlets and demi-glace sauce,” but what makes it unique is that “finely chopped bamboo shoots are added to the buttered rice.

This buttered rice with bamboo shoots is an important element that enhances the appeal of escalope.

The mild buttery flavor and the crunchiness of the bamboo shoots create a perfect combination.

The bamboo shoot butter rice also has an exquisite balance of bamboo shoot flavor and pepper, and is loved for its complex flavor and texture, which makes it more than just butter rice.

The now mainstream “white esca” butter rice used to be made with mushrooms, but bamboo shoots were later established.

Unexpected light aftertaste

As one commenter said, “When I hear ‘butter rice, pork cutlet, and demi-glace sauce,’ I imagine something heavy, but that’s not the case at all.

The sauce and butter rice, which are the basis of the dish, are very tasty to begin with,” he said, the aromatic, deep flavor and light aftertaste are extremely impressive,” says the chef.

The Western-style dishes were created in response to local demand, but they have been well received not only by locals but also by B-class gourmet lovers, the combination of fried food, butter rice, and demi-glace sauce, yet many people comment that it is surprisingly light” shows that the lightness of the dish, which defies expectations, attracts many people.

Unique flavor that differs from restaurant to restaurant

There are many restaurants that serve escalope in Nemuro, and each restaurant has its own unique twist, making it possible to enjoy a different flavor at each one.

For example, there is a restaurant that “has taken over the taste of Mont Blanc, the birthplace of escalope, and continues to preserve it as the ‘original escalope,’” another that “adds demi-glace sauce over many years, which gives it a painstaking flavor,” and still another that “uses veal cutlets that are true to the flavor of the original escalope, each has its own unique flavor.

One restaurant is described as “The escalope has a slight spice flavor that is not present in the other two, and although it is actually a local delicacy of Nemuro, it has the exotic flavor that we were aiming for.

Another popular variation is using fried shrimp instead of pork cutlets, and in some restaurants, the cutlets are arranged as fried shrimp.

My recommendation for the best escalope restaurants in Nemuro

This time, I would like to introduce my favorite escalope restaurants in Nemuro and their recommended menus.

My recommendation for a great escalope restaurant in Nemuro

Column: Is it true that there are “red esca” and “white esca” in escalope?

There are indeed two types of escalopes in Nemuro: “red esca” and “white esca.

The one in which the rice portion is ketchup rice is called “red esca” and the one in which the rice portion is butter rice is called “white esca.

In fact, the first “red esca” was invented using ketchup rice with mushrooms.

In the historical evolution of escalope, it was originally a dish of sautéed veal or cutlets on Neapolitan spaghetti, but eventually pork cutlets were used and the spaghetti was replaced by ketchup rice, which is the original form of “red escalope.

Later, after spreading as “red escalope,” the dish using butter rice with bamboo shoots became popular as “white escalope.

The “white escalope” is now more mainstream, and although mushrooms were initially mixed into the butter rice of the “white escalope,” they were replaced by bamboo shoots due to distribution problems.

Thus, “escalope,” which evolved uniquely in Nemuro, was favored by fishermen because it could be made quickly and eaten with gusto while still warm, and became a local dish in Nemuro.

Places to stop by in Nemuro while eating escalope

Here are three recommended places to stop by in Nemuro during your meal.

✅ Cape Nosabu

Located at the easternmost tip of the mainland (43°23′ N, 145°49′ E), Cape Nosappu is famous as “the earliest place in Japan to see the sunrise.

The oldest Western-style lighthouse in Hokkaido stands at the tip of the cape, and the view across the Nemuro Straits to the Northern Territories of Kaigara Island Lighthouse, Shojo Island, Kunashiri Island, and other islands can be seen.

The surrounding area is maintained as Cape Mango-no-Misaki Park, and is full of attractions such as the “Kitakata-Kan, House of Mango-no-Ie,” which exhibits materials on the history and life in the Northern Territories, and the “Shijima-no-Kakehashi,” a monument that expresses prayers for the return of the Northern Territories and for peace.

There are also restaurants and souvenir stores in the park, so visitors can enjoy a leisurely stroll.

To access the park, take the bus bound for Cape Nosabu from JR Nemuro Station (about 40 minutes) and get off at the last stop, or drive about 30 minutes from downtown Nemuro.