Kawaguchiko restaurants: hoto, udon and where to eat

Last checked: October 2026

Front of the Hoto Funari noodle restaurant with its orange noren curtain

Yamanashi dishes

What to try

Order hoto noodles first. They’re the regional dish here, and two more Yamanashi specialities are worth looking out for.

Around 50 udon shops in Fujiyoshida²

Hoto

Hoto is a traditional noodle soup from Yamanashi made with thick, flat wheat-flour noodles¹. You’ll find it in traditional restaurants, local eateries and ryokan throughout Yamanashi Prefecture¹.

Yoshida udon

Yoshida udon is a distinctive noodle dish from Fujiyoshida, usually served with cabbage, meat and other ingredients in a warm broth seasoned with miso and soy sauce².

Shingen-mochi

Shingen-mochi is soft glutinous-rice mochi dusted with roasted soybean flour (kinako)¹. It’s sold in confectionery shops, local markets and speciality stores throughout Yamanashi¹.

Hoto or Yoshida udon?

If you’re staying by the lake, go for hoto. Yoshida udon means a lunchtime trip to Fujiyoshida, because most of its udon restaurants open only for lunch².

	Hoto	Yoshida udon
What it is	Thick, flat wheat-flour noodles in soup¹	Udon with cabbage and meat in a miso and soy broth²
Where you find it	Restaurants, local eateries and ryokan across Yamanashi¹	Around 50 specialist restaurants in Fujiyoshida²
When to go	Lunch or dinner at the lakeside shops	Most shops are lunch only²

For the hoto shops and how to order, see our guide to houtou noodles, the local speciality. The Yoshida udon page covers the udon town next door.

Station and north shore

Where to eat and drink

The places in the table below sit in two areas: around Kawaguchiko Station and along the north shore near Oishi Park. Lake Kawaguchi is the easiest of the five lakes to reach and the most touristic⁶, so it has the widest choice of anywhere in the Fuji Five Lakes.

Tempura and udon for about ¥1,000⁸

Restaurants near Kawaguchiko Station

You can eat well without going far from the station:

Hoto: Hotou Fudo Kawaguchiko Station, HOUTO LABO KAWAGUCHIKO, Hotokura Funari Kawaguchiko and Kosaku Kawaguchiko Hoto Noodles. Kosaku’s branch is at 1638-1 Funatsu⁷.
Tempura: Idaten, about 200 m from Kawaguchiko Station, serves tempura and udon for about ¥1,000⁸ (about US$6) (checked October 2026). It appears in the table as Fuji Tempura IDATEN KAWAGUCHIKO.
Something else: Ramen Kaneyuki for ramen, Restaurant Konami for Japanese food, IDATEN BETTEI Honten, and APPLE PIE lab for dessert.

Wooden front of the Hoto Fudo noodle restaurant at a pedestrian crossing

Oishi Park and the north shore

The north shore is mostly about cafés and sweets: Lake Kawaguchi Sweets Garden, Cafe mimi, CISCO Coffee, Lake Bake Cafe and Oishi Park Cafe. For a proper meal, Houtou Fudou Kawaguchiko North Main Shop serves hoto. Our Oishi Park visitor guide covers the park itself.

The white dome building of a Hoto Fudo noodle restaurant behind red azaleas

Fujiyoshida for udon

Fujiyoshida is famous for its udon noodles⁸. Plan your visit around lunch. Our page on visiting Fujiyoshida covers the rest of the town.

Places to eat and drink
Place	Area	Type	Hours and season	Google rating	Map
Hotou Fudo Kawaguchiko StationPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Hoto noodle restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–19:00	3.8 (2,834 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Fuji Tempura IDATEN KAWAGUCHIKOPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Tempura restaurant	Mon–Sun 10:00–22:00	4.2 (4,757 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
HOUTO LABO KAWAGUCHIKOPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Hoto noodle restaurant	Mon–Fri 11:00–18:00; Sat–Sun 11:00–19:00	4.1 (1,538 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Kosaku Kawaguchiko Hoto NoodlesPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Japanese regional restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–19:30	4.2 (6,942 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Hotokura Funari KawaguchikoPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Hoto noodle restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–20:30	4.2 (3,649 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
APPLE PIE labPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Dessert shop	Mon–Sun 09:00–17:00	4.2 (1,659 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
IDATEN BETTEI HontenPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Halal restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–22:00	4.9 (3,033 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Restaurant KonamiPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Japanese restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–15:00, 17:30–19:30	4.2 (1,176 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Ramen KaneyukiPhoto: Google Maps	Kawaguchiko Station	Ramen restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:30–19:30	4.4 (990 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Houtou Fudou Kawaguchiko North Main ShopPhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Hoto noodle restaurant	Mon–Sun 11:00–20:00	4 (4,694 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Lake Kawaguchi Sweets GardenPhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Cafe	Mon–Sun 09:00–17:00	4 (361 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Oishi Park CafePhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Ice cream shop	Mon–Sun 09:15–16:45	4.3 (350 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Cafe mimiPhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Cafe	Mon–Sun 09:00–17:30	2.9 (518 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
CISCO CoffeePhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Cafe	Mon–Tue 09:00–17:00; Wed closed; Thu–Sun 09:00–17:00	4.5 (982 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map
Lake Bake CafePhoto: Google Maps	Oishi Park (north shore)	Bakery	Mon–Tue 10:00–16:00; Wed–Thu closed; Fri–Sun 10:00–16:00	4.2 (1,185 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026	Map

Places and details from Google Maps (via DataForSEO), checked October 2026. They’re grouped by area, not ordered or ranked by rating, and no place paid to be listed.

Beer, chu-hi and izakaya

Drinks and nightlife

You won’t struggle to find a drink: most Japanese restaurants serve alcohol⁴. Convenience stores always sell beer and a large range of chu-hi¹⁰. Chu-hi is shochu with a flavoured mixer, at 3% to 12% alcohol¹⁰.

Legal drinking age: 20¹²

For an evening out on foot, Kawaguchiko SAWA Hotel says restaurants, izakaya, a supermarket and convenience stores are within a 5-minute walk¹¹ of the hotel. If you want places to eat close by, compare budget and luxury stays near Kawaguchiko.

Dietary needs

Halal, vegan and vegetarian food

Muslim and vegan travellers have at least one hoto option near the lake. Time Out, writing in partnership with Yamanashi Prefecture, says Hoto Laboratory Kawaguchiko Main Store¹³ serves a vegetable hoto that is both Muslim- and vegan-friendly.

The table lists IDATEN BETTEI Honten, near the station, as a halal restaurant.
Some places that call themselves halal-friendly may not use a separate halal-only kitchen⁴, so ask before you order.
Yoshida udon broth is seasoned with miso and soy sauce², which matters because of the miso rule below.

Before you order

Practical: paying, ATMs and tipping

Cards work at most restaurants, but carry some cash too:

No tipping in Japan⁵

Cards: international credit, debit and prepaid cards are generally accepted³ across Japan.
QR codes: Kosaku’s Kawaguchiko branch takes cash and credit cards but not QR-code payments⁷ (checked October 2026).
ATMs: you can withdraw cash at Japan Post Bank and Seven Bank³ ATMs. Across Japan, 7-Eleven’s multilingual ATMs accept foreign cards¹⁰.
Tipping: tipping is not customary in Japan⁵.
Finishing up: Japan’s national tourism organisation advises diners to try their best to finish their whole meal¹⁴.

Shops and cafés on a snowy street, wooded hill behind

Questions people ask

Is Fujikawaguchiko the same place as Kawaguchiko?

Lake Kawaguchi is in the town of Fujikawaguchiko, formed in 2003 when Kawaguchiko town merged with the villages of Katsuyama and Ashiwada.

Which of the Fuji Five Lakes are in Fujikawaguchiko?

Three of them: Lake Kawaguchi, Lake Sai and Lake Shōji.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons and Pexels. Authors and licences: image credits

Checked against 17 sources · last checked October 2026

japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
mlit.go.jp (official) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
Kosaku (operator) · checked October 2026
Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
European Central Bank (official) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
SAWA Hotel (resort) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
Time Out (news) · checked October 2026
japan.travel (official) · checked October 2026
Wikipedia · checked October 2026
Wikipedia · checked October 2026
Google Maps listings via DataForSEO · checked October 2026

Page history · last changed 20 October 2026

20 October 2026 Updated: new sections: What to try in Kawaguchiko; Hoto or Yoshida udon: which should you try?; Where to eat around Lake Kawaguchi; …, 5 sections removed, 2 sourced facts added, 3 removed; Updated: new sections: What to try; Where to eat and drink; Can you find halal and vegan food in Kawaguchiko?; …, 5 sections removed, 3 sourced facts added, 1 removed; Updated: new section: Halal, vegan and table manners, 2 sections removed, 0 sourced facts added, 1 removed; Updated: new sections: Halal, vegan and vegetarian food; Practical: paying, ATMs and tipping; Questions people ask, 2 sections removed, 1 sourced fact added, 3 removed.
19 October 2026 First written