Kitchen West (Yoshoku), Shimokitazawa

After eating at "Roxanne", we got in the mood for some more authentic Yoshoku (shortened from Seiyoshoku, literally Western cuisine) and therefore decided to visit the next day the Yoshokuya (Yoshoku restaurant) "Kitchen West" in business since 1962, that is a little bit before the Tokyo Olympics. It is located next to the wonderful Ramen joint "Ichiryu", so in case you'd still be a little hungry after your lunch or dinner there, you know where to go...

A quick recap for anyone not familiar with Yoshoku. This Japanese remix of so-called western cuisine is said to have appeared during the Meiji Period, when Japan opened to and started to embrace the European civilization as a mean to develop the country. Though most of the dishes are European recipes adapted to the Japanese palate and available local ingredients, some dishes like Omu-Raisu (ketchup flavored rice stuffed omelette) or Chicken Rice (not to mix up with the Hainanese Chicken Rice or the Arroz Con Pollo in Latin America) are somehow "originals".

I have been a big fan of Yoshoku since I was a kid, and everytime I think about that cuisine, I can not but help thinking with amusement about the fake plastic food samples in the displays, most notably the gravity-defying"fork and spaghetti".

The relativelay small "Kitchen West" doesn't have any of those amazing displays but on the otherhand, its dyed-blond chef and the old lady serving customers have a pretty nice menu to sample from. I actually recommend their ¥700 A Set which comprises a Soseiji, a Kisu Furai and a Hanbaagu (sausage, deep-fried sillago and Japanese-style hamburger steak) or the ¥850 B set with its Hanbaagu, Pooku Katsuletsu and Ebi Furai (hamburger, deep-fried pork cutlet and deep-fried prawn) as those combos allow you to try several of the most popular Yoshoku items in one go. Both set come with a plate of rice.

B Set

The flavorful demi-glace glaze covered hamburger steak is super tender and makes you want to order a refill for your plate of rice. God, those two combine marvelously.
The pork cutlet is a fat-free piece of fillet that is thinly breaded and goes very well with the Worcestershire-style sauce they add on top. Another killer with the rice.
The prawn is good, but not as memorable as the hamburger or the pork. I just wished the breadcrumbs were crunchier and that they did not taste so much like oil. It's actually probably better to eat the shrimp first while it's still freshly fried as it prevents it from feeling a little "tired" and humid from its own heat.

Close-Up of A Set (Salligo and Sausage)

The salligo is not fishy at all, perfectly deep-fried, allowing you to enjoy the nicely cooked batter and the tender and fresh savory white meat. A Yoshoku classic that you shouldn't miss. Add some sauce on top for an added taste kick.
The sausage actually tastes like what a pork sausage should taste like, which is a good thing, as you will often be served some weird fish or mixed meat sausages that after so many years in Japan I still haven't got accustomed to.

It would be a sin if I did not hit the spotlight on the supporting role played by the spaghetti on the side, so let me allocate one or two sentences about them. They are probably boiled and then quickly sauteed with curry powder, and though it may taste and seem a little strange at first, they somehow get more and more addictive as you work on them. One other thing I like about them, and I know it's not how pastas should be, but spaghetti at Yoshokuya are often doughy and lukewarm and that's great: the perfect supporting role. Too bad they're only second-bananas in "Kitchen West" as I could actually devour a whole plate of them.

The great curry flavored spaghetti

One other usual favorite is the Kani Kuriimu Korokke (Japanese-style crab flavored savory croquettes), a real calorie bomb. We ordered this one to complete our dinner though frankly you can get pretty full with the set only. Alike the deep-fried prawn, be sure to attack it while it's still burning hot as it will allow you to fully enjoy the "umami" of the savory bechamel sauce, and the brown glaze on top won't have enough time to soften up the crumbs. The crab flavor is delicate and probably less strong than the average. Beware though: it's really hot.

Kani Kuriimu Korokke

I recommend this place to anyone interested in Yoshoku. It's tiny and you might get out of the joint smelling like food from a mile away, but the food is cheap and good, and the service satisfactory.

Kitchen West is closed on Fridays, and open the rest of the week from noon to 21:30pm.
03-3485-3693
Setagaya-ku, Kitazawa 2-13-11
Click here for a MAP

Ojaga (Japanese Eatery), Shimokitazawa

The other day, I went with three former colleagues to this Izakaya (food serving pub) in Shibuya I recommend to anyone with a traveller's budget, called "Butchigiri Sakaba" where we ended up having quite a decent amount of food and LOTS of drinks (all drinks at ¥280). It's definitely nothing more than average food but if you're into drinking, you can't go wrong here. So after moderately orgying, how flabbergasted was I when we got the check: ¥6,500, that is not even ¥1,700 per person... I mean, where is this deflation in Japan going to? "How low can you go?" like Chuck D was saying...

Deflation (though tough for business) is good in that it keeps my wallet healthy, and for a big eater like me who writes a daily food blog, it can actually be quite crucial.

So in that saving state of mind, I decided the next day to visit this new eatery in the neighborhood which serves a dirt-cheap ¥500 lunch. Only problem: when I looked at the pictures on the menu outside the restaurant, it just did not look that appetizing. So instead of going for it, I opted at the last minute for a "more expensive" Japanese restaurant "Ojaga", as this whole walk had gotten me into a local cuisine mood.

Ojaga is a Teishokuya (restaurant serving fixed menus, usually comprising a main dish, a bowl of rice, a soup and one or two little side dishes) for lunch and an Izakaya in the evening. The lady in her seventies standing in the kitchen has been cooking typical meals for half a century (simmered potatoes and meat "Niku-Jaga", mixed deep-fried seafood "Mikkusu Furai" or Japanese croquettes "Korokke" and so on) so if you're looking for authentic lunch plates, this is definitely an option.

By the way, Ojaga is a cute and rather original way of talking about the "Jagaimo", the most common potato in Japan. It is interesting to point out that the term "Jagaimo" is the abbreviation of Jagatara-Imo (Jagatara potato), where Jagatara designates the Indonesian capital Jakarta from where Dutch galleons imported the vegetable at the end of the 16th century. It is furthermore worth noting that what is today a regular in Japanese diet used to be initially grown for ornamental purposes.

Sorry, this post is going all over the place today...so back to the food review: once again, since the restaurant's name is an obvious reference to the tuberous crop and probably also to their popular simmered potatoes recipe "Niku-Jaga", one might want to try it, but I rather went for one of my childhood favorite, potatoes and meat croquette "Korokke".

As you can see, the Teishoku set came with a quite big bowl of rice, an excellent and very pungent Miso soup which tasted like an Akadashi soup (made of regular "Mame-Miso" fermented bean paste and "Kome-Miso" fermented rice and bean paste; you will often come across this soup in Sushi restaurants), a tiny Yakko (fresh tofu with grated ginger and leek) and a rather insipid Asazuke (quickly marinated pickled vegetables). Given the amount of rice, you should be full when done with this affordable ¥895 lunch.

You also get two cups a person of coffee at the self-service above, so it's a deal overall. The coffee is definitely not what you'll get at "Bear Pond Expresso" so beware if you can't stand the typical "jus de chaussettes" (socks juice) they serve you everywhere in Japan.

The croquette was a good 10cm wide and 3cm thick, making for a densely flavored satisfying crunchy dish. The potato puree inside was sweet and combining very well with the tiny bits of ground beef and onion, and they managed to cook it almost creamy like. Definitely add some Sosu (Japanese style Worcestershire sauce) on top of the croquette, as it's a condiment that goes unbelievably well with the deep-fried breadcrumbs, and because the puree inside is quite low on salt.

Ojaga is open everyday from 11:30am to 23:00pm.
It's easy to find: take the North exit, go down the stairs, take a right, follow the street until you hit the end and it's on your right, on the second floor of a multi-tenant building.
03-3460-4188
Setagaya-ku, Kitazawa 2-35-15 2F
Click here for a MAP