Sakanaya, Ebisu 肴や、恵比寿
Tuesday, April 5, 2011 at 7:43PM | Dave 
A chain, not ubiquitous but settling in for a while by the looks of things, Sakanaya specializes in low prices and above average portions – washed down with super cheap (¥190) icy beer.
The two I’m familiar with (both in Ebisu, not far from the station) have deceptively narrow looking “front rooms” behind hanging vinyl sheets, furnished with plain wooden tables and chairs.
The upkeep of the interiors varies; I watched a ceiling mounted speaker come crashing to the floor, missing a diner’s head by a hair’s breadth on one occasion…
Both have Tardis-like interiors. Should you be beckoned to the inner sanctum (usually by a south east Asian baring a badge purporting a native Japanese name – think HSBC call center staff only with beer) you’ll be confronted with a cavernous space, most likely filled with trestle tables and benches, around which hoards of thirsty, ravenous youths or white shirted salarymen feast.
It can be disconcerting.
Service is pretty hit-and-miss. So is the delivery of all besides the beer.
The food isn’t going to win any awards – it’s not intended too.
Big chunky otoshi of maguro sashimi, bulging seafood nabe and lethal but delicious deep fried gobo are good enough, if unrefined.
The daikon salad is impressive, you need climbing gear to tackle the beast. Doesn’t taste of much though.
The rest is just big, and basic. Better than a kombini dinner, worse than you could do yourself, probably.
It’s about the beer. Best visited in the heat of summer, without an appetite. A couple of thousand yen should suffice.
Which is not to say there’s not a place for this kind of izakaya in the pantheon.
03-3444-7508
Reader Comments (1)
It's the equivalent of a blog in Japanese reviewing West End chain pubs.