Bonsai Cafe - Gold Hall

An eight or ten-foot Buddha - solid stone!

Nefredia in a large wooden chair among the exhibits.

by Pa Rock
Cultural Explorer

A finely carved Buddha

Several friends and I went to an amazing place last Sunday evening.  Golden Hall (also known as the Bonsai Cafe-Gold Hall) is a combination restaurant-museum-art gallery-greenhouse-cave within walking distance of Camp Hansen, a Marine Corps Base.  The food was mediocre, but the service was excellent.   But Golden Hall is not about the food, it is about the experience.

Statue of Liberty

And it's about the stuff!

Outdoor gardens

Golden Hall is literally a maze of things to see and experience.  Upon entering, visitors cough up 800 yen (a little less than ten dollars) and given a map for self-exploration.  There are large wooden tables and chairs that weigh hundreds of pounds and look more like works of art than functional furnishings.  There are rooms with fine pottery local art, rooms that contains hundreds of small bonsai trees, waterfalls, a giant Buddha, outdoor tea rooms, and so much more.  A quick tour would take a couple of hours!

Large fish dish (local pottery) approximately 3-4 feet in
diameter