Dachibin, Kōenji 抱瓶、高円寺
Sunday, April 3, 2011 at 3:43PM | Dave 
Having had few good experiences of Okinawan cuisine, I tend not to bother with it. Luckily, Dachibin went some way to improving my view of Okinawan dining in Tokyo.
Located on the “Central Road” shōtengai on the north side of Kōenji station, it’s easy to find. Indeed, there are several appealing Okinawan places in the vicinity that, it turns out, are all part of this small group of family owned Okinawan izakaya, steak restaurants, furuzake bars and live music houses.
Kiyoka, the original restaurant and thus the “honten,” has been in business for just over 50 years. Dachibin has been around for a while, too. 31 years in business and still packed most nights; must mean they do something right.
I first read about the place back in 2005 during my Asagaya days. For whatever reason, I never seemed to find the time to visit Dachibin, despite it being only a station away. A year or so ago a client mentioned that it was a favourite place to dine, and yet it’s taken until now to try it. It was worth the visit.
This popular izakaya opens at 5pm. By 4:45pm eager diners were loitering around outside, waiting for the doors to open. They weren’t the only people loitering on the streets. Around that time, another quake hit Ibaraki. The streetlights and overhead wires started swaying; the earth moved a jot and suddenly all the shop owners and snack bar mamas were out on the streets trying to judge the strength of the tremors.
Dachibin’s façade is distinctive; the building itself looks ready to collapse. The interior is dark, cozy and well-used looking. The ground floor is dominated by a long counter down one side. Jars of potent awamori line the shelf above the counter, while photographs of regular customers and visiting geinōjin adorn the walls. The rear of the space is a raised platform, a ko-agari, furnished with horikotatsu. There are upper levels, which I can only assume share the same warm atmosphere.
Within half an hour of opening the place was heaving. Orders are taken swiftly but can take time to arrive. Indeed, our goya champuru was forgotten, and despite being the first dish we ordered was not received until near the end of our meal. Thankfully, the sturdy glasses of Orion beer are delivered with greater precision. Anyway, the champuru was good. Perhaps not outstanding, but it certainly benefited from being made with real pork rather than the usual chunks of spam.
These ingredients are the main reason I’ve not had much respect for Okinawan cuisine. It just seemed pretty dull, and well, kind of cheap. By which I mean basic, almost impoverished. This is, of course, a ridiculous opinion, but one that endless variations on spam, scrambled egg and goya (with occasional tōfu when lucky) is easy to form.
The food at Dachibin went a long way to setting me straight. All the “classic” dishes you’d expect to find where present, along with many that neither my dining partner nor I had come across before. Overall, prices were reasonable, although the portions were a bit stingy. Some dishes suffered from “padding,” but more on that later…
The otoshi was a simple bowl of stewed carrot, daikon, potato and pork – probably pork offal of some kind. The umibudō, or “sea grapes” (which despite looking suspiciously like bitter tasting fish eggs is actually a variety of kelp), was great. Not strong tasting the ponzu it was dipped into provided most of the flavour. The texture and a slightly crunchy quality when chewed were enjoyable though.
The rakkyō salad was crunchy too, if a bit dull. Just a plate of scallions topped with katsuboshi. Even crunchier was the gurukun; a small fish fried into oblivion so that head, spine and bones are edible. The main flesh of the fish was separate from the skeleton and still moist, the skin crispy and delicious.
The five-year Koshu/ Furzake awamori, served from large earthenware jars beside the counter, was potent. I’ve never been a big fan, and this did little to change my mind.
The rafuti, essentially a somewhat drier (closer to Chinese) buta no kakuni, was excellent. The fatty parts melted in the mouth while the meat itself crumbled delightfully.
The papaya salad was okay, too. Ever so slightly spicy, it made for a pleasant change of flavour. It also won the award for being the worst (or best?) example of “padding out” of a dish I’ve come across in ages. While the papaya salad was tasty, it actually only constituted the top third of the dish. The two thirds being a “bed” of bulk standard, unadulterated lettuce and tomato.
I’d visit again though. The menu seemed to have plenty more to offer and the lively, somewhat boisterous atmosphere was enjoyable. Probably best to visit with a party next time, so as to sample a wider range of the cooking at what is now my favourite Okinawan izakaya, having knocked Zanpa no Kaze off the top spot.
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Reader Comments (2)
nice blog man. you eat out a lot and drink too. I ate out 1-2 meals everyday, in beijing, for 2 months. I grew a huge belly and my work pants were deforming.
Whats your deal on that?
Thanks Mike.
To be honest, I too have to be careful what I eat! I tend to keep breakfast and lunch to a minimum to allow for evening gluttony.