Gyoza dumplings are beloved by locals and visitors alike. Tiny pockets filled with flavorful ground pork and green onions grilled, steamed, boiled or baked with a side of a soy sauce and spicy sesame oil mixture — what’s not to like?

Whenever friends or family visit and they’re wanting to ease into Japanese food, I know gyoza is a crowd-pleaser. I love gyoza and when friends introduced me a few years ago to the town of Utsunomiya in Saitama Prefecture, a short one-hour drive from Yokota Air Base, I knew I wanted to bring my sister for a dumpling shop hop here.

Utsunomiya has established itself as a center of gyoza with various shops serving up a variety of standard and fusion gyoza. Even local attractions have gotten the gyoza treatment, so it’s definitely a spot you’ll want to spend some time exploring. Below are a few of the places I visited on my last trip to this quirky town dedicated to delicious gyoza.

This small street off the main drag is where you’ll find a couple of famous gyoza restaurants. There were lines when we visited, so we opted to check out the iconic gyoza streetlamps, gyoza wall art and photo spots there before heading to the gyoza cafeteria in the basement of the nearby Don Quijote.

• Address: 4-Chome Babadori, Utsunomiya, Tochigi

• Website: https://www.gyozakai.com/

Utsunomiya Futaarayama Shrine is across the street from the big Don Quijote. The Shinto shrine offers a few gyoza-related good luck amulets for purchase. According to the Tochigi Prefecture Tourism & Local Products Association’s website, the shrine dates back over 1,600 years and is dedicated to the founder of Utsunomiya. Although it’s not technically a gyoza shrine, it’s a good place to visit before devouring plates of gyoza at other places.

• Address: 1 Chome-1-1 Babadori, Utsunomiya, Tochigi 320-0026

• Website: https://www.visit-tochigi.com/plan-your-trip/things-to-do/1174/

Just outside of JR Utsunomiya Station is a stone sculpture of a goddess of a Venus-looking woman wrapped in gyoza. It’s an abstract art piece that makes you think. It’s a piece of weird Japan that has no explanation other than to be an unofficial welcome spot to Gyoza Town.

• Address: 1-23 Kawamukocho, Utsunomiya, Tochigi 321-0965

• Website: https://www.utsunomiya-cvb.org/spot/detail_10016.html

For more gyoza souvenirs and snacks, make sure you browse the multi-story Mega Don Quijote in the center of the town. I picked up gyoza rice crackers, gyoza potato chips, gyoza keychains and gyoza socks for my gyoza-crazy friend.

Address: 2-3-12 Babadori, Utsunomiya, Tochigi 320-0026

In the basement of the Don Quijote is Utsunomiya Gyoza-kai Kirasse, a food hall with about seven local shops serving up their unique gyoza in one spot. Since we visited on a weekday, there were no lines and we were seated quickly. The system here is simple: A staff member seats you and then you go up to the different counters to order and pay for your gyoza. We tried gyoza from four different spots in one sitting, which was an effective way to try many versions of the local star dish. There is an arcade with gyoza-themed photo booths and Gachapon machines, as well as a souvenir store in the basement.

• Address: 2-3-12 Babadori, Utsunomiya, Tochigi 320-0026

• Mega Donki B1

• Website: https://www.gyozakai.com/kirasse/

One important thing to note is that many of the gyoza spots close after lunch and reopen at 5 p.m. for dinner. Since we arrived just after 1 p.m., we found many closed doors but still had a good lunch at the cafeteria under Donki. We killed time enjoying the local sites while we waited for the dinner hour and stopped at 365 Gyoza Bar, just a few blocks from JR Utsunomiya Station. This pub-style gyoza bar has a decent menu with fusion gyoza dishes and some interesting beers and drinks. Since I was driving, I skipped the alcohol and we shared three unique grilled gyoza orders: Super Garlic Gyoza (the menu says to only order with permission from your girlfriend/boyfriend), Coriander Gyoza and Spicy Oil and Potato Gyoza. Essentially, the grilled gyoza were your standard ground pork-stuffed dumplings, except topped with either a lot of garlic, a lot of cilantro or julienned potatoes and drizzles of chili oil. My favorite was the cilantro, but I was disappointed that the flavors weren’t incorporated into the actual gyoza filling as expected.

• Address: 2-1-5 Ekimae Dori, Utsunomiya, Tochigi 321-0964 1F-USH Bldg.

• Website: https://tabelog.com/tochigi/A0901/A090101/9017158/

More info:

Utsunomiya walking tour map: https://www.utsunomiya-cvb.org/pamphlet/