Beear’s Western Dinner with Craft Beer (Ginowan, Okinawa)

Beear - EntranceBeear is a real local treat in Okinawa.  With mostly locals visiting, it is a good place to see western dishes with a Japanese twist.  Most of the dishes stay true to their western origins but without the bold flavours; the dishes have the subtlety of Japanese cuisine.  Beear makes a lot of their items in house and pairing them with good beers can be a fun challenge.

Beear - Menu - Smoked Cheese

Smoked Cheese

Appetizers are really fun and surprising at Beear.  Their signature smoked cheese is like a drop bear.  The smoked cheese at Beear is smoked using sakura, Japanese cherry, wood chips.  The very distinct smell of the smoke is well infused into the soft creamy cheese.  At first, the cheese is very smooth melts in your mouth as you bite down on it, but this causes an explosion of smoky flavours and creamy cheesy goodness, just like a drop bear dropping on their unsuspecting victims.  Thankfully the smoke flavour of the cheese is a good thing, unlike the drop bear.

The smooth texture and smoke scents can make this cheese difficult to pair.  Ise Kadoya’s Hime White, a Witebier was very interesting to pair with the cheese.  The coriander and other fruit peels made this like the Care Bear of beers.  It had all of the love that the Care Bears had and makes you feel warm inside.  Like the Care Bears, there are a variety of characteristics that helps make it work with a variety of dishes, including the smoked cheese.  With the smoked cheese, the Hime White acted more alike Tenderheart in bringing out the best flavours of the cheese.  It cut the sharp flavours of the cheese allowing the more subtle flavours to shine through.

Beear - Menu - Roast Pork

Roast Pork

The roast pork is the Baloo (of TaleSpin) of Beear.  Like in TaleSpin, this roast pork loves to eat.  It has a high fat content making it soft and tender, just like Baloo’s heart.  It is the right balance of fat to meat to prevent it from being dry.  They put a special spice rub of mostly salt and pepper that helps to add character to the meat while letting it shine on its own.  They include a little ratatouille which, like Kit Cloudkicker, helps to keep the roast pork grounded as a palate cleanser.

The Hime White acted like the Care Bears’ Love-a-Lot Bear who spreads love and help wherever she goes.  This was especially true of how the Hime White worked with the roast pork.  It helped to spread the flavours of the pork by cutting through the fat and allowing the flavours of the meat to merge into a great result.

Beear - Menu - Fish & Chips

Fish & Chips

Fish and Chips are a staple at most craft beer shops in Okinawa.  It is also a staple for any beer lover.  It is very much like Winnie the Pooh, a boring predictable character, but everyone loves him.  At Beear, the Fish and Chips stand out with the meaty piece of fish that will fill your stomach.  The tender meat of the fish is not dominated by the batter and you’ll definitely be able to enjoy the fish.  The fries are crispy as they should be, but since they are not wedge cut fries you better eat them quick.  There is also a small side of pickles that were made in house as well.

The Hime White is more alike the Share Bear when it comes to the Fish and Chips.  Rather than stealing the limelight, the Hime White shares the stage with the Fish and Chips.  The subtle spice and citrus notes of the Hime White didn’t overpower the flavour of the fish.  This is very easy to do when eating a white fish, but the Hime White helped to accentuate the flavours of the fish and balancing it with the batter.

Beear - Menu - Food

Popular Dishes

Information

Shop Beear
Map 〒901-2201 Okinawa-ken, Ginowan-shi, Aragusuku 1 Chome 36-2
Taiheiyogan https://www.taiheiyogan.com/content/beear/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BEEAR-ビーアー-717100915112842/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/beear_okinawa/

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