Approximately 25 minutes by car from Naha Airport. This coffee shop is located in Yaese-cho, Shimajiri-gun, in the southern part of Okinawa’s main island. It is more of a “coffee shop” than a retro café. It offers a full menu of meals and beverages, including hand-drip coffee, which is a specialty of the shop. It is worth going all the way to this place because there are no tourist attractions.
Point 1: No tourist spots in the area! What is the location of “Cafe Citahaku”?
Cafe Sitahaku” is located in Yaese-cho, Shimajiri-gun, in the southern part of Okinawa’s main island.
Surrounded by Itoman City with Himeyuri Tower and Peace Memorial Park, Nanjo City with Saiba Utaki and Okinawa World, and Tomigusuku City with Umikajji Terrace and Outlet Mall Ashibinaa, Yaese-cho, Shimajiri-gun has no tourist attractions despite being in the tourism powerhouse of Okinawa.
Instead, there are rare beaches such as Bomagusuku Beach with an abandoned hotel in the background, and Gushi-chan Beach with its oddly shaped rocks and tide pools where tropical fish are fun to watch.
However, the “Cafe Sitahaku” is located far from the beaches and seems to be tucked away in an inland area.
Coffee Shop Citahaku, which just opened in January 2024, is a coffee shop with a retro-style atmosphere that offers gutsy meals and coffee and has a charm that makes you want to go out of your way to visit it.
Point 2: What kind of food menu does “Cafe Citahaku” have?
At “Cafe Citahaku,” the dining menu is very extensive.
The number of items on the menu goes beyond the realm of a coffee shop and is comparable to that of a small restaurant.
For example, the steak pilaf (1,490 yen) pictured in the photo, which even sounds like “pilaf,” is served in an iron pot and has a crunchy texture. Steak on top of pilaf sounds too good to be true!
Hot Carbonara (1,100 yen), which uses no cream but is rich and easy to eat; Neapolitan (1,180 yen), served on a griddle and with an egg underneath. Unusual menu items include grilled taco rice (1,190 yen), which is a perfect combination of half-boiled egg and meat, and chicken gratin (1,100 yen), which is a satisfying dish with plump chicken and plenty of cheese.
Teppan Neapolitan is sweetly seasoned and nostalgic. If you want spiciness, a little Tabasco is a nice touch.
For breakfast, there is crispy French toast (590 yen) with baguette and whipped cream, and visually delicious-looking thick-cut pizza toast (490 yen, both with salad and soup during morning hours, and drink discounts are available). The owner is very friendly, and you will have a great morning chatting with him.
Also of note is the “An Butter Toast” (490 yen), which is not from Nagoya, but for some reason is there.
Since “Cafe Citahaku” is a coffee shop, of course, we focus on coffee as well.
First of all, we are proud of our hand-drip coffee and cold brew (500 yen each), which is different from ordinary iced coffee because it is made with water. (both for 300 yen).
There are also coffee jelly (490 yen), rich gâteau chocolat and New York cheesecake (both 490 yen), dried fruit cookies (390 yen), and other sweet treats that go great with coffee.
The coffee shop Shitahaku attracts customers because it is not located in a tourist area and because it was just opened and there is not much information about it. It is also funny that the name “Shitahaku” is taken from the name of the area where this coffee shop is located, “Shitahaku”.
If you take a drive and visit the barren southern part of Okinawa, which is a tourism powerhouse, you may be able to see what a real vacation is all about.
