Gakuya, Kagurazaka がくや、神楽坂

A hot, crowded early evening in Kagurazaka spent prowling the back streets off the main Kagurazaka Dōri in search of an interesting izakaya for the evening. Not a hard task. Kagurazaka’s back streets appear to be booming. New cafes, bars, izakaya and restaurants seem to have sprung up everywhere, ranging from budget establishments through the kind of places that you probably need a bank loan to afford.

As my dining partner for the evening had requested, I picked a handful of izakaya for our evening meal and then, there being still an hour before she was due to arrive, I decided to have a rest and couple of beers (turned out to be not cold enough bottled Heineken) in a tiny two floor café, named Mugimaru2, housed in an old traditional building of timber and crumbling plaster walls. The heat in the place was intense, despite a small army of electric fans battling vainly against the early summer heat.

Just before 7.30pm I left the humid comfort of the café and strolled down the now heaving Kagurazaka Dōri, lined with hanging paper lanterns in preparation for the splendid annual matsuri (festival) due to start on July 22^nd, to meet my companion at Iidabashi station. As always the atmosphere was lively the street busy with eager diners heading for their eatery of choice. It was also the first time this year I have heard the screeching song of the Semi (Cicadas). Summer! Caught up in the mood I too began to feel excited at the prospect of trying one of the izakaya I had spotted.

The evening did not go as planned. As I should have guessed, by the time my companion and I made our way back up the hill and through the winding, Kyoto-like back streets each of the izakaya we attempted to enter was full. After half an hour of being turned away, desperation began to sink in. Hungry, thirsty, I cursed myself (and was cursed) for not having the presence of mind to book somewhere in advance. We eventually found a small, old-style looking kushiyaki-ya on a side street just off Honda Yokochō just in front of Masu 2, an izakaya we had been turned away from. My gut instinct told me it didn’t look promising. It wasn’t.

Entering in through the small doorway we received a lacklustre welcome from the mistress of the house. She then laboured the point of making some space for us at the busy counter. The interior was a simple affair. Small counter before a narrow open kitchen on the right, and three small tables to the rear of the shop. Worn, tired décor and a limited, but cheap, menu. Feeling our spirits sinking we ordered a few dishes, guzzled draught beer and tucked into an uninspiring o-toshi (appetizer) of raw cabbage, carrot, and cucumber served with two pitiful dollops of mayonnaise and miso paste. The atmosphere was lively enough, mainly young women at the counter nattering away and sweaty looking salarymen talking shop around the tables behind us. God alone knows why they were there. Perhaps it was a last resort for them too.

When the tsukune (grilled minced chicken on a stick) with tare sauce arrived, I knew this was going to be an instantly forgettable meal. Tiny and served on a horrible white dish of the kind you find in office canteens it tasted little better than it looked. Next up four equally small skewers of yakitori, two each of chicken and negi (leak) and chicken yuzu-goshō (citrus and pepper paste), that was undercooked. Wanting to cry, I decided sake might at least dull my senses. Only one nameless option was available. I ordered a beer. A basket of limp-looking eda-mame (broad beans) did little to impress and the Gakuya salad was pathetic, right down to the corn flakes sprinkled over it. Despairing, I suggested that my dining partner step outside and make a call to Seigetsu just in case they had a table free. She returned, beaming, to inform me that a table was booked. We had just ten minutes to drain our glasses and wolf down the final travesty of the evening, the gyū tataki (leaves wrapped in roast beef).

Asking for the bill, the mistress of the house seemed almost as pleased to see us leave as we were.

(Later, despite spilling a whole jug of sake over myself, a lovely evening was enjoyed at Seigetsu.)

Seigetsu, Kagurazaka 霽月、神楽坂

A personal favourite of mine, Seigetsu is a splendid sake connoisseur izakaya situated at the top of the Kagurazaka slope ten minutes stroll from Iidabashi station or a minute from Ushigome-Kagurazaka station on the Oedo line. Located on the second floor of an unassuming building, Seigetsu’s entrance, at the top of a small flight of stairs, is easily missed. This subtle outward approach hints at that within.

Pushing aside the heavy sliding door, my dining partners and I were greeted at the genkan (entrance) by polite staff, and once our shoes had been removed, we were swiftly taken across the polished wooden floor, passed the warm glow of the counter before the open kitchen, and seated in a cosy semi-private alcove containing but two tables. I must admit that the décor is starting to look a little rougher than it did a few years ago, but it remains classic izakaya style, serving to create a comfortable, relaxed, intimate atmosphere. Bamboo lattices, dark woodwork, rough stucco walls, heavy tables and a raised tatami area are complimented by subdued lighting, the happy sounds of dining and quiet conversation while light jazz plays in the background. On this particular visit, however, the music ceased halfway through the evening, which caused the atmosphere to be lessened slightly. A small oversight on the part of the staff, but an important one all the same.  

Supplied with menus, we took some time in pouring over the excellent choice of sakes, of various grades and regions, and reading a photocopied article helpfully included in the menu explaining the various grades of rice-polishing used to create a fine sake. Keen to quench our thirsts, Premium Malts beer was duly ordered – the sake comes later – and a rather dainty o-toshi of two little meatballs, a jelly made from stock and green shishitō (a variety of green pepper) soon arrived, served in a tasteful tulip-lipped bowl. A tasty appetizer, although I felt the meatballs had too much of a meaty, almost dog-food like taste to them. Voicing this opinion I was soundly mocked by my dining partners however, so you more than likely have nothing to fear. The food menu also has a wide selection of various izakaya fare, and experience has taught me that all is of an excellent quality, with grilled fish, chicken, and robata-yaki dishes being the speciality of the house. Trusting in the staff to deliver

each dish at suitable intervals we ordered a good range of dishes while crunching on a tsukemono-moriawase (assortment of pickles) containing rather small pieces of cucumber, daikon, pink daikon and a little pile of cabbage. All were fresh with a subtle flavour, and yet rather mundane. With the waiter rushing to keep up with the pace at which we ordered beer, we next set to work on a sashimi-moriawase consisting of three kinds of fish – shime-saba (vinegared), kampachi and kinmedai. Each fresh, tasty morsel was a little on the small side. Indeed, of late I’ve started to notice that the sashimi in many izakaya is getting smaller. Thanks to parlous state of the economy no doubt. As well as the usual shisō leaves and wasabi, the sashimi was made interesting by the addition of a bed of kaisōmen, small, transparent noodles made from the essence of seaweed.

Next came three long green pods of soramame (broad beans), grilled on the outside so that the beans within were soft and juicy. Plucking a bean from its pod, it was then dipped into a small dish of mojiō, a kind of roasted salt from Hiroshima. Starting off the night’s sake escapades with a tokuri of chilled (o-hiya) Yorokobigaijin from Kagawa prefecture, that took an eternity to arrive, we then tucked in to an absolutely splendid half-fish of madai no nitsuke cooked in soy sauce, mirin and sake and topped with stewed daikon, sliced ginger and mizuna (potherb mustard). The fish itself is an ugly looking brute, perhaps due to being sliced in half and then cooked for a hungry gaijin, although the succulent white flesh beneath the skin was beyond reproach. Indeed, I cannot recommend this dish enough. The sake newly arrived, I pondered the fact that the place was less busy than a foretime, eventually laying the blame on the rain pouring from the heavens on this particular Sunday evening.

Around this time one of the many conversations with the waiter turned to the sorry fact that last orders would be taken at 10pm and we would be turned out on to the

streets at 10.30pm. A recent policy, apparently due to Seigetsu now opening for lunch (another recent trend at many izakaya), we were not overly troubled as the night was yet young, and the sake menu beckoned. The second half of our fish arrived, this part grilled to a crisp on the outside and piled with grated daikon. Lemon juice added some sparkle. More sake, this time the Dassai, a junmai ginjō from Yamaguchi prefecture, was vastly superior to the Yorokobigaijin (and took much less time in arriving.) At this point, around 8pm, the flow of customers increased, the atmosphere became even more convivial and getting the attention of the passing waiters more difficult. I also noticed, the sake having provided me with a clarity of thought unknown since my last izakaya, the lack of female waiting staff. Again, only a small point, but I feel a nice gender balance is always a good thing, and of course (from my perspective) more pleasing to the eye.

After the fish a daikon and hijiki salad, not particularly large, made a pleasant change of taste and texture. Also containing mizuna, chickpeas, carrot and fried yuba (skin of gently boiled soya milk), this was a crisp, delicious affair. I only wish there had been a little more of it. Consulting with the knowledgeable staff on the intricacies of the sake menu, we were recommended to try an unfiltered, and thus cloudy, stronger tasting variety of Suigei, a junmai ginjō from Hiroshima. Certainly an interesting sake, and very warming, but the taste was rather overpowering after the more refined offerings that had preceded it. None the less, it is always a pleasure at Seigetsu to be served by staff who have a good understanding of the sake on the menu, it origins and finer points, and who are always more than willing to give explanations and recommendations. Returning to the food, we then had the first of two (it was that delicious) ninniku-yaki, large

cloves of garlic roasted and sliced in half, served with sweet ama-miso. Simple and delicious we couldn’t get enough of it. I only pitied the poor soul sitting beside me on the train home. Wanting to try some chicken, we opted for two tsukune served on the small wooden paddles upon which they were cooked. A house speciality, they are both interesting and delicious.

Determined to try a sake none of us had yet experienced, we selected the Gōriki, a soft tasting junmai ginjō from Totori prefecture, and a variety of the family of sake known as Hiokizakura. Wonderful. Aware that the clock was ticking, our next choice was two kinds of kama-meshi, rice steamed to perfection in a traditional pot with a wooden lid. The first was mixed with take no ko (bamboo shoots) and the second sweet tasting ika (squid). Both were fantastic and accompanied by steaming bowls

of shiro-miso (white miso) soup containing shibazuke, a brown tsukemono (pickle) made from cucumber. Despite being thoroughly full, we simply could not resist the yuzu goshō tebasaki (flamed chicken wings in citrus and pepper glaze) or the kakiage (tempura) of goya and sakura-ebi (shrimps). This dish was of a good size, light, crispy and not too oily. The bitter taste of the goya complimented the sweet-tasting ebi perfectly.

All this, not a small meal I’m sure you will agree, cost 5,000 yen per person. Considering the quality of the food, drink, service and atmosphere Seigetsu truly represents excellent value. A splendid, unpretentious, neighbourhood izakaya that manages to specialise in sake and good food at the expense of neither. Although I have recently been distracted by the excellent Robata no Ro on recent visits to Kagurazaka, after a near six-month hiatus I was pleased to find that Seigetsu continues to offer a pleasing

dining experience. Perfect for small groups in search of a cosy evening’s meal and quality sake. Couples may perhaps prefer to sit at the counter and watch the action in the kitchen, which provides an atmosphere and entertainment all of its own. If you need convincing further, it may be said that one of my dining partners, a chef at the world famous Japanese restaurant Zuma in London’s Knightsbridge, declared the meal, and the sake in particular, a resounding success.

Tel: 03-3269-4320

Web: http://www.teshigotoya.net/

Robata no Ro, Kagurazaka ろばたの炉、神楽坂

Three visits to Robata no Ro have, as of yet, failed to disappoint. Located a little short of midway up the slope of Kagurazaka Dori, but five minutes walk from Iidabashi Station, this izakaya is actually the second Ro to be established in the neighbourhood (I have yet to sample the first). According to an elderly gentlemen, a long time patron of the original Ro, I had the pleasure to meet during my first visit, although the first of the two izakaya had always provided an excellent dining experience, atmosphere and service, its location among the warren of backstreets off the main Kagurazaka Dori had placed it at a disadvantage and as such it remained relatively unknown. The proprietor, realizing this, opened this second izakaya in a readily accessible location and has since enjoyed a booming trade. Certainly each time I have dined there empty seats have been scarce.

Both shop front and interior are a well considered fusion of neo-traditional Japanese style and contemporary design. A long, gleaming counter of polished wood dominates the main dining area, alongside which runs an open kitchen from where chefs serve food, to those seated along the counter, upon long flat-bladed paddles. Low lighting provides that favourite izakaya ambience and cozy intimacy that is the mark of a truly enjoyable establishment. Ro’s master, a robust jovial fellow, plainly takes a great deal of pride in his work and offers a warm and courteous welcome to all who enter as well as attending to their needs and comfort throughout the evening.

Attention has been given to the little details, whether the scroll-like menu, charcoal chopstick rests or cascading flow of nihonshu poured into tiers of o-choko – sake cups – carefully arranged in a bed of ice. The menu itself offers a wide range of favourites and izakaya staples, some having Ro’s own unique take on them such as the mouth wateringly succulent buta-kakuni served on a skewer rather than the in the usual greasy stew. The sashimi moriawase is well sized and perfectly fresh, while the grilled renkon stuffed with minced meat provides a more savoury flavour.  Although I have yet to try it myself, variations on the much-loved British jacket potato also appear to be popular, as are the crisp salads. A good selection of sakes is offered, Dassai being a particular favourite of mine.

Although not cheap, Ro compares favourably in terms of price and quality with others of the vast array of quality izakaya in the vicinity. A good meal accompanied by several drinks comes in at around 6,000 – 7,000 yen per head. My one complaint in terms of pricing would be that the sake is perhaps more expensive than should be. Service is prompt, polite and well delivered. Another let-down to this wonderful izakaya is the koshitsu – private room (although it actually accommodates two sets of diners) – off to the left of the main dinning area, which lacking the same style and atmosphere as the rest of the izakaya appears more an after thought. Furthermore, another, and all too frequent with izakaya in Tokyo 

generally, gripe is that if one should pre-book a table of a weekend you will find a two-hour time limit imposed upon your visit. This, as I have often proclaimed, is not only shear folly, but also ruins an otherwise delightful izakaya. Otherwise, Ro is highly recommendable. Try it tonight!

Tel: 03-5206-5959