随分前に飯山市を通った時に、旅館組合の先輩が連れてくれたレストランはうなぎ屋さん「本多」でした。従って、「飯山なら本多」というイメージがある。色々な人に聞けば、明治37年から始まった本多はやはり有名らしい。

飯山の知り合いによると、市の役場の近辺なので政治家が良く食べに来るそうです。本多の個室で色々な重要なお話が行われているでしょう。第2役場って感じ。

今回はアメリカから遊びに来てくれている両親と一緒に飯山に行ったが、お昼は本多に連れて行きました。親にはうなぎデビューでした。喜んでくれました。

本多は決して安くはない（一人3000円前後）ですが、言わせて頂けたらその分の価値がある。予約なくても行けるけど、あった方がスムーズ。

Way back when, I accompanied some of my 'senpai' (elders) from the ryokan association to the northern tip of Nagano Prefecture. When we passed through Iiyama City, they took me to Honda, an unagi (eel) restaurant. So I always had the image that "When in Iiyama, Honda's is the place to eat".

And after asking around to a lot of different people, everyone says Honda's, established in 1904, is famous. One guy who lives in Iiyama told me that with its location in close proximity to City Hall, many politicians go there to eat also. I can only imagine the kind of discussions that go on in Honda's private rooms. Honda's is apparently like a second city hall.

So when I took my parents who are here visiting from the States for a drive to Iiyama, I took them to Honda's for lunch. It was my parents' first time to eat eel. They loved it!

Honda's is a bit pricey (around 3000 yen per person) but, if you ask me, is definitely worth it. You don't need reservations to eat there, but it definitely makes things smoother as the grilling process is a slow procedure.

飯山のうなぎレストラン「本多」Iiyama's Unagi Restaurant Honda