Miyagi Prefecture · Tohoku
道の駅 林林館
A wood-scented market for Tome's hatto and abura-fu, and a starting point for satoyama side trips.
Illustrative image — not an on-site photograph
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Eat, shop, play, take in the view or rest. Choose from the station’s strengths to suit your day.
After parking, visit the toilets, produce market, and restaurant on the Mori no Chaya side. If travelling as a family, decide when to eat first.
The restaurant is generally open 10:00–14:00. If you want a Tome-style lunch, eat before shopping.
Choose mountain vegetables and mushrooms from the Kitakami Highlands, root vegetables from the Kitakami River banks, tofu, fried tofu, abura-fu, and pickles with dinner in mind.
Mori no Hotaru sells soft serve in flavours including apple, soy milk, and vanilla, along with snacks. It is an easy place to sample Tome flavours on a short stop.
On a fine day, drive to the waterside. There is water play, lawn, a children's adventure fort, and a campsite, so children can run around after eating at the station.
Swap outdoor play for woodwork and crafts, a folk museum, and a temple with a gate. These stops let you explore the area mainly by car.
Nono Miyasaka would plan Rinrinkan as “eat at the station, then go to Mitakido if the weather is fine.” Mori no Chaya brings together the produce market, restaurant, and takeaway counter, making it easier to feed children before they get hungry. After lunch, head to the water, or switch to the main building or Furōsenkan if it rains. This is a practical way to enjoy Tome's food and satoyama landscape as a family.
Michi-no-Eki Rinrinkan stands on National Route 346 in Towa-cho, Tome City. Combine a meal and produce shopping at Mori no Chaya with crafts in Rinrinkan's main building and nearby waterside and heritage stops. For lunch, try abura-fu don, a rice bowl with oil-fried wheat gluten, or a hatto set meal featuring local wheat dough pieces. The market carries mountain vegetables, mushrooms, root vegetables, tofu, fried tofu, abura-fu, flowers, charcoal, and woodwork. With children, use the toilets and eat here first; on a fine day head to Mitakido Fureai Park, or choose Furōsenkan or Kasekiji Temple when it rains or time is short.
Mori no Chaya houses a restaurant, produce market, takeaway counter, and standing dining area. Whether you want an abura-fu rice bowl or hatto, or just soft serve and vegetables, you can adjust the length of your stop.
The market carries mountain vegetables, mushrooms, root vegetables, daikon, green onions, apples, strawberries, natto, tofu, fried tofu, abura-fu, pickles, flowers, wild plants, and charcoal. It is a place to choose ingredients for tonight as well as souvenirs.
On a fine day, visit the water at Mitakido Fureai Park; for rain or a shorter stop, choose Furōsenkan, Kasekiji Temple, or Michi-no-Eki Mitakido. Match your destination to the weather and your family's energy.
Spend your time at the station or add somewhere nearby. These ideas help you plan around your companions and the weather.
If you arrive between 10:00 and 13:59, consider the abura-fu rice bowl or hatto set meal at the restaurant first. Then browse the market for mountain vegetables, mushrooms, root vegetables, abura-fu, and pickles to take a taste of Tome with you.
Parking → toilets → restaurant → produce market → takeaway → departure.
The main building's craft area is generally open 10:00–15:30 and closed Tuesdays and Sundays, so plan around those hours.
Eat and use the toilets at the station, then drive to Mitakido Fureai Park. The waterside, lawn, and field athletics offer playtime after lunch. Summer brings water play; autumn is the season for imoni, an outdoor taro stew gathering.
Michi-no-Eki Rinrinkan → Mitakido Fureai Park → Michi-no-Eki Mitakido or the Sanriku Expressway.
The riverbank changes with weather and water level. With small children, keep away from the water's edge and plan spare clothes and suitable shoes.
On rainy or very hot days, replace outdoor play with crafts at the main building, Furōsenkan, and Kasekiji Temple. The wooden building, folk exhibits, temple gate, and Kannon hall offer a short route through Towa-cho with less time walking outside.
Michi-no-Eki Rinrinkan → Furōsenkan → Kasekiji Temple → Rinrinkan or the town centre.
Furōsenkan is closed Mondays and over the New Year holidays; check opening days before setting out.
For a break on National Route 346, stop at Rinrinkan. If heading toward Tome-Towa IC on the Sanriku Expressway, Michi-no-Eki Mitakido is another option. Rinrinkan offers satoyama food and produce; Mitakido has longer hours and an adjoining convenience store near the interchange.
National Route 346 → Rinrinkan → Tome-Towa IC and Michi-no-Eki Mitakido area.
If you are in a hurry, keep the Rinrinkan stop to the toilets and one market purchase rather than fitting in a meal.
Approximate hours for the local produce market, display and sales area, and local information service. Open year-round.
Abura-fu rice bowls and Mori no Chaya hatto set meals, among other dishes. Check the latest notices for limited menus.
Takeaway soft serve, sundaes, tama konnyaku, mini hatto, and more.
Generally offers soba, udon, beef bowls, curry rice, rice balls, and more.
Local craft display and sales. Generally closed Tuesdays and Sundays.
Some toilets are available 24 hours; an accessible toilet is listed.
Stars show the editorial recommendation for each age group on a five-point scale. Read the reasons alongside each rating.
Best for toilets and brief indoor shopping. It may be easier to fit a stop between a meal and a rest in the car than to plan extended play.
A riverbank visit means carrying the child and spare clothes. Staying at the station is also a reasonable choice.
Keep the restaurant wait short and allow the option of soft serve or a snack.
At Mitakido Fureai Park, focus on the lawn or a short walk instead of the water's edge.
Hatto, soft serve, and Mitakido's waterside or adventure fort make a varied outing.
If it rains, switch to the main building or Furōsenkan for short stops by car.
Tome's food culture, the Yonekawa Mizukaburi festival, Kasekiji Temple, and Mitakido's nature all make good topics for conversation.
Shoes and weather shape water play and temple walks. Choose one destination first to avoid tiring everyone out.
Some toilets are available 24 hours. Use them before heading to the water at Mitakido.
The restaurant is generally open until 14:00. Decide between the restaurant and takeaway before children get hungry.
For more active play than the station itself offers, visit Mitakido Fureai Park on a fine day.
Link the crafts in the main building with Furōsenkan and Kasekiji Temple to spend less time in the rain.
The parking area has 82 car spaces and eight large-vehicle spaces. Check the toilets and whether food service is open first.
For an abura-fu rice bowl or hatto, aim for the restaurant's approximate 10:00–14:00 hours.
If buying root vegetables, charcoal, flowers, or local sake, choose them at the end before returning to the car.
Furōsenkan or Kasekiji Temple offers a short introduction to the area. At Mitakido's waterside, watch your footing and avoid overexertion.
Permanent spaces and dated events are listed separately. Events can change both the atmosphere and crowds; use the official links for details.
Checking event dates.
This is where notices about mountain-vegetable festivals, seasonal sales, eel dishes, and special opening hours often appear.
Events such as the ¥100 vegetable market on the third weekend of each month can bring extra activity to the shelves.
Find information on Yonekawa Mizukaburi and Towa-cho before exploring the area.
Seasonal events and nature change the appeal of side trips to Mitakido Fureai Park, Yonekawa Mizukaburi, and Kasekiji Temple.
Practical ideas and things to consider when spending time here.
The Mori no Chaya restaurant is generally open 10:00–14:00. If you want abura-fu rice bowl or hatto, decide on lunch before shopping or nearby sightseeing to keep your itinerary on track.
Mountain vegetables, mushrooms, root vegetables from the Kitakami River banks, tofu, fried tofu, abura-fu, and pickles are everyday items to take home. It is enjoyable to shop for a dish to make after your trip, as well as for souvenirs.
In June 2026, the restaurant announced the start of ticket-machine ordering. Ordering methods and limited menus can change, so check current information while planning lunch around the stated hours.
Mori no Hotaru offers soft serve, fruit sundaes, tama konnyaku, and mini hatto, so you can have a snack without sitting down in the restaurant. Visitor reviews also often mention soft serve, prepared foods, and yakitori.
For children's outdoor play, add Mitakido Fureai Park's waterside, lawn, and adventure fort to the station visit. Summer and autumn bring the seasonal feel of water play and imoni gatherings.
Crafts at Rinrinkan's main building, Furōsenkan, and Kasekiji Temple make practical stops when extended outdoor play is difficult. The wooden building, folk exhibits, temple gate, and Kannon hall offer a sense of Towa-cho.
Rinrinkan offers food and produce on National Route 346; Michi-no-Eki Mitakido near Tome-Towa IC has longer hours and a large car park. Choose according to your direction of travel instead of fitting everything into one stop.
Opening and closure days, individual businesses and facilities for children or dogs can affect your plans.
Specialities, places to eat, sweets and bakeries can all give you a reason to stop. Check individual menus for current prices and availability.
A meal, a sweet treat, market shopping or something to take away: choose a focus for the day instead of trying everything at once.
Try Tome's speciality of oil-fried wheat gluten simmered with egg instead of meat during restaurant hours. If lunch is the goal, eat before visiting the produce market so children do not have to wait hungry.
The restaurant is generally open 10:00–14:00.
Hatto, pieces of wheat dough, reflects a wheat food tradition passed down in rice-growing Tome. It also makes a distinctive local lunch for adults travelling without children.
If you skip the restaurant, try sweets or snacks at Mori no Hotaru. Apple or soy milk soft serve, simmered konjac balls called tama konnyaku, and yakisoba make for a quick stop before returning to the car.
Choose one ingredient for dinner before browsing the shelves. Look for mountain vegetables in spring, mushrooms in autumn, and roasted sweet potatoes or root vegetables in winter.
If children tire of waiting for the restaurant, prepared dishes, bread, rice balls, or zunda daifuku, a sweet rice cake filled with sweetened edamame paste, offer alternatives.
If the restaurant does not suit you at lunchtime, have a quick meal at the standing counter, generally open 10:00–15:00, or choose takeaway before heading toward Mitakido.
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A wood-scented market for Tome's hatto and abura-fu, and a starting point for satoyama side trips.
A satoyama park with a stream and lawn where children can play outdoors after lunch.
Learn about Towa-cho in a shoin-style building linked to the Date family, even on a rainy day or short stop.
A quiet cultural walk close to Rinrinkan, with a gate and Batō Kannon hall.
Another rest stop before or after the Sanriku Expressway, serving a different purpose from Rinrinkan.
For children to play outdoors on a fine day after eating at the station.
For rainy days, avoiding outdoor play, or a brief look at history and architecture.
For a quiet walk after lunch; also suitable after rain or in the fresh-green season.
For a stop before or after the Sanriku Expressway, a missed meal at Rinrinkan, or a break with longer opening hours.
Send your travel companions a possible stop.
