Sanchaki, Sangen-jaya 三茶気、三軒茶屋

Conveniently hidden among the labyrinthine backstreets of Sangen-jaya, Sanchaki is immediately recognisable. An old, traditional style building of dark, almost black, stained wood that creates a dominating presence, with narrow windows and entrance. A small window beside the porch is filled with bottles of sake, while peeping through the doorway one sees a short hallway of worn polished wood and part of the counter in front of the kitchen.

Receiving a warm welcome – many an “irasshai!” from the all male staff – my dining partner and I were ushered along the hall, past to young girls busy with homework at the counter, and into a simple room of bare plaster walls and dark wood filled with equally simple tables and chairs that had the look of being in use for decades. From our table at the rear of the room could be seen a wide glass window looking onto a neighbouring room illuminated by the warm glow of orange lanterns. I wished we had been seated in there.

Menus and the recommendations of the day were swiftly proffered, and drink orders taken in a friendly manner, with explanations of some of the interesting, yet unrecognisable, dishes given. My first glance at the drink menu led me to believe, mistakenly, that only two sakes were available – Hakkaisan and another unnamed cheaper one served by the tokkuri. Had I taken the time to read the menu properly I would have known that others were available if one but asks. Ignorant of this fact I started with a cold beer thinking to save the Hakkaisan for later in the meal.

Having arrived at Sanchaki early in the evening, before it had opened in fact, it was not busy, although a trickle of diners did eventually arrive. One couple, an attractive woman in her late-thirties perhaps and an older walrus of a man, caught the attention of my dining partner, who swore that the woman was a famous TV celebrity. An o-tsumami of chicken tsumure in a chicken stock broth containing chives, diced dried chilli pepper and sesame seeds arrived, shortly followed by our drinks. While enjoying the summery strains of Okinanwan music piped into the room we studied the menu. The majority of dishes ranged from 480 to 680 yen and, as mentioned earlier, differed from the usual izakaya fare to the extent that we were forced to ask for descriptions of many before ordering.

The crunchy kyūri-karamiso – long chunky halves of cucumber dipped into a hot spicy miso paste – started off the meal, while my first Hakkaisan, glass overflowing so as to fill the lacquer masu to the brim, was accompanied by another spicy dish: gekikara moyashi “fire” – bean sprouts, sesame, nira (a kind of long onion) – served in a cradle of tinfoil. Tasty, fairly spicy (various heats can be requested) and not large, this dish set the tone for the rest of the evening with most of what followed containing nira and the portions been a little on the small side. The atmosphere not unpleasant and the service brisk and friendly we were encouraged to order further dishes such as the liver and nira – succulent pieces of liver and the same onion covered in some kind of teriyaki-like sauce – again served on tinfoil, and the buta to pon – basically bacon, nira and bean sprouts cooked in ponzu sauce containing kimuchi – which was far tastier than it at first appeared. Another glass of Hakkaisan, the waiter this time asking if I minded him filling the glass and masu to the brim – of course not! – some chicken nanban, large pieces of fried chicken, the skin crispy, served on a bed of shredded cabbage and topped with taru-taru sauce – a pink mayonnaise based affair also containing pickles and egg.

Having finally discovered that other sakes could be had I opted for Masumi, a rather rough tasting nihonshū from Nagano prefecture that smoothed out after the first few sips. The drink now taking its toll I decided to further line my stomach with abakādo batā shōyu – soft avocado and mushroom cooked in butter topped with dried seaweed and soy sauce, and a rather disappointing nagaimo – Chinese yam – kuroke covered in the same taru-taru sauce as the chicken.

I can’t make up my mind about Sanchaki. Most of the food was tasty, certainly interesting, and reasonably priced if a little on the small side. The service was good and the atmosphere enjoyable. I got the impression that the place really needs to full before it feels truly cozy. Every thing about this izakaya errs on the side of simplicity. Not a bad thing necessarily, but it results in some of the dishes, for example the chicken and kuroke, being rather pedestrian and the interior feeling spartan. Enjoyable enough I suppose, but perhaps best enjoyed with a crowd.

Tel: 03-5779-3338