Gajumaru Treehouse; Naha, Okinawa; Japan

The Gajumaru Treehouse is a restaurant that sits off of Highway 58 just outside of the Naha Airport.  It is visually hard to miss and is one of those restaurants that the exterior simply begs for you to stop in and dine.  The parking for this restaurant is a bit messy as it sits right next to a rental car company and tour bus company.  Although this was a fun experience, I can't say that the food was as impressive as the exterior.  Just for clarification, this is not a natural tree.  The entire facility is man made with an elevator to take you up to the dinning area.   The interior does offer some very nice views of the bay and surrounding city, but it is very small so seating is limited.

There is some fun glow-in-the-dark artwork inside the elevator to enjoy on the short ride up to the dinning facilities.  Next to the hostess stand there is a framed article that gives the information about the Treehouses claim to fame, Shabu-Shabu.  There are both tables and a version of Japanese style seating available.

There was a reservation for a large party (a tour group we found out) that took up the entire table area of the restaurant so we were seated in the Japanese style section.  This is not fully traditional as there is an open area under the table for your legs and feet. It will show your age and agility though when you try to get up with people sitting around you.

When entering this seating area you must remove your shoes and place them on the shelves provided.  There are slip on shoes that are available when you leave the area, which you do for drinks and salad. There is a drink bar that has water, a variety of teas, and coffee to select from that you can simply go over to at anytime.  I tried the jasmine tea which was quite delightful.    

The menu is compact and easy to read/ understand. I selected a spicy chicken dish while one of my dining companions ordered the Shabu-Shabu. 

This was an interesting food experience in the combination of the dish.  In the top left corner you have Miso soup, which is a fish broth.  The strength of this soup varies by restaurant; sometimes with an overpowering fish base taste, sometimes just a hit of fish thus making it more broth tasting.  The dish in the upper middle was a fried reedy vegetable that was similar tasting to fried okra though it was not served hot.  Upper right is a dish of white rice.  The chicken was not as spicy as I thought it would be, in fact it was more just like an herb pan seared chicken.  The flavor was not bad but the chicken was a bit on the dry side.  Then there was a floret of steamed broccoli, a stem of the reedy vegetable that is similar to okra, three potato wedges and a small bit of what I would call cavatini (noodles and a red sauce). I am not sure if the portion sizes of these or the combination was more interesting. None of the flavors were off putting but neither were they sensational.

The Shabu-Shabu was an interesting experience just to watch.  There is a hot plate built in to the table that the wait staff turns on when they deliver your basket.  The basket is simply a wire basket with what looks like a piece of wax paper lining it, then filled with water.  The basket sits on the hot plate and the water slowly comes to a boil.  You are given plates of ingredients like tofu, vegetables and the meat (in this case bacon) of your choice, that you can add into the boiling water to cook.  Directions were provided to help guide you through the process.  There were also dipping sauces, soy and a mustard sauce, to use as you preferred.  Overall, my dining companion indicated that there was no overwhelming flavor to her concoction, but it was okay.   

It was an experience, and when you are traveling that is what you look for.  It was a fun place to checkout and now we can say that we have been there and tried it.  The service was good and there were some nice aspects.  The price rang, depending on exchange rates, will fall in the $10-15 range per meal.

http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/gajumaru-treehouse-diner