An iconic leader in popularizing Nemuro’s local specialty, esukaroppu

Coffee and Restaurant The Dorian Nemuro opened in 1969 by its first owner, Bungo Kotaki, who trained at New Mont Blanc, a spin-off from Mont Blanc, the birthplace of esukaroppu. Alongside New Mont Blanc, the restaurant helped popularize esukaroppu in Nemuro, establishing it as a local specialty. Their Esukaroppu features the standard butter rice with bamboo shoots, topped with a crisp, thin-cut, deep-fried pork cutlet and an elegant, house-made demi-glace sauce. The lightly acidic sauce is smooth, soaking into the meat for a light, refined flavor. Despite the richness of the butter and deep-fried pork cutlet, the dish never feels heavy. The demi-glace sauce—the heart of the dish—is available in two versions: a lighter and a richer blend. The lighter sauce is used for Esukaroppu and the richer one for Oriental Rice, another local specialty. Both sauces are also served as part of the restaurant’s beef stew. Continuously replenished since the restaurant’s founding, the sauces feature a concentrated beef essence and a flavor found nowhere else. Take-out is also available.

*Information accurate as of July 2025