The reopening is scheduled for March 17. During the first three days of the opening, various gifts, discounts, and goodie bags will be offered at the facility’s restaurants, food court, shopping corner, and other locations as part of the opening event campaign.
The facility is designed so that visitors can walk between the upper and lower lines, and with the renovation of the upper line following the renovation of the lower line in 2023, the “Sano Park SA” will be completed, integrating the upper and lower lines so that visitors can enjoy two SAs with different attractions and services at the same time.
The new facility, which was opened to the public, is positioned as a “dramatic area” that NEXCO East Japan is developing as a SA/PA that makes the most of regional characteristics, and offers a wide variety of specialty products from Sano City, Tochigi Prefecture, and surrounding areas for dining and shopping.
Popular Sano Ramen restaurant is now open 24 hours a day, “Menya Yosuke PLUS”.
Sano Mayor Yutaka Kaneko was on stage at the preview ceremony, and in his speech he mentioned the opening of Sano Park SA and Sano Sano Nichidai High School’s participation in the Koshien (Japanese high school baseball tournament) as three things that Sano City has communicated to the rest of Japan: Sano Ramen won its first crown in the “Japan Local Ramen General Election 2025” last year,
Sano ramen has been a popular menu item at Sano SA in the past, but with the renewal, “Menya Yosuke Plus” was born in the food court, offering ramen that was jointly developed by Mr. Watanabe, owner of the popular Menya Yosuke restaurant in the city, a local noodle factory, and SA staff, and is now available 24 hours a day. The Sano ramen, with its unique soup based on chicken oil, lard, beef fat, and bonito flakes, and the elasticity of the smooth noodles, was very tasty, with a taste that was both traditional and new at the same time.
Sano ramen will also be available at SANO SKY DINER, a restaurant under the supervision of Chef Koichi Sasaki, a former chef of ORIGAMI at The Capital Hotel Tokyu, making a total of three Sano ramen restaurants available at Sano Park SA when the food court on the downhill line is combined.
Incidentally, the “Ramen Wall” in the shopping corner offers a wide variety of popular local stores and SA-only Sano ramen for souvenirs, and all the ramen available at Sano Park SA can also be purchased.
The Juho eggs used in the omelet rice served at the facility’s restaurant, SANO SKY DINER, are produced in Sano City. The restaurant also offers many menu items that make use of regional characteristics, such as hamburgers and steaks made from Ashikaga Maru beef, allowing customers to enjoy meals befitting the “Dramatic Area Sano (uphill line)”.
This time we tried sauteed Yashio trout, a specialty fish of Tochigi Prefecture. It is a rare dish that is hard to find in restaurants outside of Tochigi Prefecture. The rice and watercress sauce are both made in Tochigi Prefecture.
In addition, Mikamoan offers soba and udon noodles, and Kurohakamatei offers set meals, rice bowls, and curry dishes, all featuring local ingredients and cuisine.
The “Tabi no Irodori Cafe” is a take-out corner that can be easily enjoyed during a short stopover or restroom break in the middle of a trip. The store also offers a wide variety of sweets and fresh doughnuts made one by one in the store. The menu also has a strong Tochigi- and Sano-color, such as Sano Ramen-style croquettes, Sano Ramen-flavored Sanomaruyaki, and official lemon milk soft-serve ice cream. Incidentally, the equipment used to make Sanomaruyaki is made by the Kurisaki Foundry in Sano City, which has a 1,100-year history of Tenmei castings. The “Sanomaru Begoma” sold at the shopping corner is also made by Kurisaki Foundry.
The shopping corner, which is as well-stocked as the restaurants, offers a variety of local specialties that are also enjoyable. The “Ramen Wall” with a full lineup of Sano ramen products, the “Kanaya Confectionary Shop” directly operated by the Kinugawa Kanaya Hotel, the long-established Japanese confectionary store “Takoya” in Oyama City, gyoza (dumplings) from Utsunomiya and Sano, and other products rooted in the region are just a few of the highlights.
Iwashita Fresh Ginger” by Iwashita Foods of Tochigi City, Tochigi, and “Kanto Tochigi Lemon” by Tochigi Nyugyo, known as “lemon milk,” have a vast array of products from the products themselves to related goods that are eye-catching.
The “Kuma” chestnut “Kuma” from Takoya’s new brand “AOYA Campagne” was created through a relationship with architect Kengo Kuma, and his signature is on the package. The “Lipichocolate” made from Sano brand strawberries was jointly developed by “SHINOZAKI5115FARM” in the city and Sano SA uphill line.
The above report has focused on food and shopping, but Sano SA, which has not undergone any major renovation since it was put into service in 1972, has taken this renewal as an opportunity to significantly update the entire facility, including eliminating a large gap in levels between the parking lot and the facility. The renovations include the construction of handicapped parking spaces for large vehicles and the installation of multi-functional toilets in the sub restrooms, among many others. The new Sano SA, which has evolved into the “Dramatic Area Sano (up line),” can be accessed from the public highway and is fully equipped with a parking lot, making it possible for non-highway users to enjoy a locally-oriented dining and shopping experience.
The opening event campaign on March 17 will begin with a ceremony at 9:50 a.m., followed by the reopening at 10:00 a.m., when Sano’s brand character “Sanomaru” and NEXCO East Japan Manners Up character will greet visitors. The first 100 customers to enter the store will receive a “SANOMARU BAGOMA” made by Tenmei Castings, and there will also be a performance by the Japanese drum club of Sano Nihon University Secondary School of Education and High School, and various other events.
© Source travel watch