My parents were telling me about this new place called Saboten that specializes in Japanese tonkatsu that I had to check out. They warned me that the line ups were huge at this place, since it just opened so I figured it couldn't hurt to have a look. Once I saw the line, I said to myself, screw it, I'll wait till the fad is over, just like Beard Papa. It was unreal watching all the lemmings line up to try this place, and though I was hungry, I had no intention of waiting an hour to try tonkatsu served on a styrofoam plate.
Instead, my folks and I tried Teppan Kitchen, which had absolutely nobody standing by it waiting to place an order. Haha, I don't know if it was out of pity or curiosity that drove me to try it, but looking at the lone chef standing behind the counter staring at the mile-long line up for Saboten, I thought, "kawaisou".
Anyway, I walked over and my stomach started to grumble at the sight of the plastic food in the display. I'm always a sucker for the 3D menus so I told my dad that I was trying this place.
My mom's teeth were still reeling from the dentist so she settled for Lung Kee's congee instead of semi cooked meat on an iron pan.
Seafood congee and radish cakes. Not my favourite items on the menu, but I tried them anyway and decided that they were on par with standard food court offerings.
When our meals were ready, I was surprised by the presentation. The meals were actually served on the iron skillets, and they had the paper shield to protect the customer from oil spatter. The miso soup came in a styrofoam containter, and that was to be expected, but the little wooden spork was a nice touch.
My dad ordered the salmon and I ordered the beef which came semi-raw and the residual heat from the skillet was cooking the rest. Of course, I gobbled it up while it still had a pulse, wouldn't want to overcook the beef. Both dishes tasted surprisingly good. We didn't need to add any extra sauce, though it was available if one felt the need to drown their rice in sauce and make porridge.
Gotta love the spork.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with Teppan Kitchen, and I'd probably eat there again. As for Lung Kee, probably not unless I was sick because everyone knows that congee is the best medicine for any kind of illness, haha!
Is this a recent visit? I thought the lines at Saboten has died down already. But yea it's definitely not worth waiting an hour for.
ReplyDeleteNah, this was probably a month ago. The ratings on Saboten are brutal, is it really that bad?
ReplyDeleteWell, product did not match the price...and don't expect any quality. ..hahahaha! I'd suggest to stick with 29th Avenue Cafe.
ReplyDeleteHey BG! Long time no see! How's it going? Yeah, I really, really like 29th Avenue Cafe (previous owners of Yoshokuya). Awesome food there, but a bit out of my way. I definitely like to drop in if I am in the area though!
DeleteEver Try cafe de l'orangerie?
I went to the media event and got free food, so I can't really comment in an unbiased way. The food we got was pretty good, but that may be the chef just taking extra care for the media. I've read some reviews and most of them complain about the portion size for the price they paid and how they had to pay for extra sauce (which wasn't an issue for me obviously). I went back after to try the sandwich (which was tiny for the price but quite good), but they only sell 20 orders per day. They told me it usually sells out within half an hour in the morning.
ReplyDeleteHmmm...sounds like some poor management of the place. Haha, are they charging in JPY? I'll give it a try one of these days. The lines aren't as bad as they were when they first opened right?
DeleteI haven't been there recently, but there was no line the last few times I passed by. I think it's worth trying at least once, but I'd recommend the sandwich (if you can get there early enough). It's under $5, so it's a good price for the sake of trying the tonkatsu.
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