Kochi restaurant offers a terrace ‘floating’ on the Pacific Ocean

TOSA-SHIMIZU, Kochi Prefecture--Diners wanting a table with a perfect seaside view should check out an Italian restaurant here with a terrace looking as if it is floating on the ocean.

The new terrace opened at the Azzurrissimo restaurant in Cape Ashizurimisaki at the southernmost tip of the Shikoku island.

Remodeled from a 25-meter swimming pool that is no longer used, the patio juts into the Pacific Ocean at a height of about 30 meters and provides a view of silhouettes of cargo ships, tankers and other vessels on the horizon of the sea.

Housed in the hotel named TheMana Village, Azzurrissimo offers food made with many local ingredients.

The 80-seat restaurant serves authentic Italian cuisine prepared by four chefs using fish caught in the Shimantogawa river, vegetables and other local ingredients.

One of its most popular dishes is pizza baked in a stone oven, which will be completed in or around the Golden Week holiday period from late April to early May.

An Italian pizza chef will also be working at the restaurant.

The hotel is run by Tokyo-based company Catalyst, which took over the management of the Ashizuri Hotel Pacific Hanatsubaki to reopen the lodging as a resort facility for overnight stays where guests can enjoy activities in nature.

The hotel changed its name to TheMana Village. The word "TheMana" comes from "zamana," which means "extraordinary" in Hata dialect, and "mana," which stands for "spiritual energy" in Hawaiian.

The restaurant is open for lunch (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and for dinner.

For reservations and inquiries, visit the official website at (https://www.ashizuri.com/).