Onomichi, Hiroshima, Japan｜阿部食堂 ガレージコーヒー

Very nice cozy place. Feels like you are sitting in the kitchen, dining room and living room all at the same time, very lived in, homely and welcoming. The decor is a couple of collections of records, old cameras and manga. From the outside it looks a bit like a bike shop until you realize it's just the owners garage. I'd recommend you have some way of communicating in japanese.

A very unique katsu restaurant that is located in the back of a garage. It’s easy to miss but enter through the garage and remove your shoes before entering the small dining area which has room for maybe 4 people at the counter, and 8 people across 2 dining tables. The specialty here is Niigata tare katsu over rice, and is served with pickles and miso soup. The regular katsu is served with rice, miso soup, pickles, and cabbage/cucumber/tomato with dressing. Everything was delicious! There is no English menu, and the owner was kind enough to try to understand our very broken Japanese!

Rather than a garage, the master's hobby bikes and cars are lined up in an old candy store, and there are table seats and counter seats in the tea room space in the back. The food is a ginger-grilled set meal of 780 yen recommended by a female customer of regulars, a large cabbage salad, and the shredded cabbage is just right. Also, for some reason, 3 slices of mackerel, which is unbearable for lovers of mackerel. Of course, ginger grill and miso soup are also delicious! Please come again. ^ ^