Ginsuiso, Izu-inatori 銀水荘、東伊豆町

A stay at a ryokan is a fine thing. Especially if it provides a cozy room, onsen a sea view and an interesting menu.

Ginsuiso, an apparently well-reputed inn in Hagashiizu-cho (nearest station: Izu-Inatori), ticked all these boxes, and managed to heat the rooms so perfectly that one could ponce around in a yukata even in early January without the slightest shiver.

Both the evening meal and breakfast were substantial and nicely presented. The service provided was excellent, truly attentive and willing to explain and describe tirelessly. If there were any complaint with the food, it would be that they over played the seafood card with the breakfast. Sure, this inn is right on the sea, but every dish was some kind of fish, shellfish, unholy jelly-like substance or seaweed of some kind.

As expected, drinks were hugely over priced. Thankfully I managed to “smuggle” a few bottles in, so all was not lost.

Dinner consisted of a variety of dishes, ranging from shellfish to cream soup. 

Awabi odori-yaki – live abalone grilled on tabletop brazier

Shiro-ebi konoko gake – white shrimp served on sea cucumber ovary sauce – with shin-takenoko, ika kinomiae – new bamboo and squid topped with tree buds

Ikura, kinome, uni, yuba bekko an – roe, tree buds and sea urchin resting on tofu skin simmered in broth

Maguro, shiromi, uni sashimi – tuna, white fish and sea urchin sashimi

Kinmedai sugata zukuri to awabi – sashimi of splendid alfonsino and abalone

Kinmedai nitsuke – splendid alfonsino simmered in sweet soy sauce, complimented with daikon radish and aubergine 

Kinmedai sanma sushi, hatsuki kinkan mitsuni, hizu kazunoko matsumaetsuki, kukonomi, aiyu nibitashi shirozu – splendid alfonsino and mackerel sushi, honey-poached kumquat, salmon cartilage with herring roe, Chinese desert-thorn seeds and sweetfish simmered in white vinegar

Chilled Fubuki – the only sake of the evening

Steak with salad

Cream soup

Kani zosui – crab and rice porridge

Breakfast

Pickles

Maguro sashimi, ebi, wasabi zuke – tuna sashimi, shrimp and fermented wasabi

Salad

05-5795-0161

Ginsuiso

Sakimura, Ningyocho 咲村、人形町

Bonenkai, much like birthday parties, are often great chances to try somewhere one might otherwise never have heard of.

This particular “forget the year party” saw us head out to Sakimura, an ageing izakaya on a side street off a back street just off the main drag of Ningyocho, about five minutes chilly stroll from the station.

Situated on the second floor of decidedly nondescript building, the interior was bare bones to say the least. The main dining area – spacious though it was – had the look and feel of a canteen, a place for truckers or late night shift workers to get sozzled at before drifting home. More than likely the furnishings had been done in the early eighties, and never bothered with since. Still, it added to the character.

Our party was, thankfully, put out of sight in a large washitsu. Tatami, low tables, cushions, faded beer posters and aching joints.

Some kind of set-menu had been arranged, and so bottled beer flowed uninterrupted, while a couple of old ladies supplied a regular stream of dishes. None of which were mind blowing, mind you, but they did the job in terms of keeping us drinking without embarrassing mishaps.

Aside from the tamago-yaki, daikon and chicken stew, yaki-soba and veggies, the stars of the night where the maguro kama (which yielded a generous quantity of succulent flesh) and the sashimi moriawase. This, despite being a little rough looking, like off-cuts leftover from the previous night, was surprisingly good.

Not bad, all round, as far as old skool izakaya go. One to visit with @izakayasanpo for sure.

03-3664-4085 

Sakimura

Hasegawa Kanbutsuten, Shibuya 長谷川乾物点、渋谷

Situated on the decidedly snug 5^th floor of the Wako Building, itself located on the street to the right of Shibuya’s Mark City, one block back from Dogenzaka, Hasegawa Kanbutsuten is worth remembering when in need of quick meal en route elsewhere, or when at a loss for something handy near the station. 

Usual wooden counter, basic furnishings and bottle-lined walls. Service provided by a chirpy young lass and a master with the appearance of a fading rocker – a Motley Crue fan of old, most likely… (The mascara gives them away, you know.) 

Cheap beer drew us in, and then kept us a while longer. Not exactly heaving, the small space presented no problems. 

Food ranged from poor – the karaage (small, oily, tough) – to good – the sashimi (way better than we’d have expected) – with the salad proving to be prolific, if unrefined. The fries were nice and big, but so oily.

The spicy sweet and sour ebi filled the last corner but felt somwwhat processed. 

The pickles were a bit crap really. The otoshi of vinegared fish in light batter was tasty though.

Did this post back to front, didn't I.

03-5459-3288

Sakanaya, Ebisu 肴や、恵比寿

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

http://r.gnavi.co.jp/a454919/map/

Uosan, Monzen-nakachō 魚三、門前仲町

Uosan has been serving cheap, rough hewn and undeniably voluminous fresh fish since before the LDP was even a glint in Toby’s eye; which is to say since 1954, to be precise. 

The mere mention of this near legendary Monzennaka izakaya, situated not far from Orihara Shōten on Eitai Dōri, makes fish lovers and izakaya aficionados go weak at the knees. Or, perhaps, it’s the hour or so of queuing they endure in order to secure a seat that makes them so. 

There’s nothing fancy about Uosan, and none of the staff - the silver-haired mama-san included - waste time with the usual niceties.

Once the front door slides open the patient line of hungry fans dutifully cross the threshold and (unless they are regulars, ancient or have a way with old ladies) are brusquely told where to sit.

If lucky, a spot on the ground floor squeezed in between the other diners at one of the three counters will be awarded. If not, they are summarily banished to one of the three upper floors, and the perils of tatami mat seating. 

It’s a great business model. Open at 4pm, and have a full house and captive audience by 4:02pm. 

Initially, order taking and delivery of dishes takes time to get into a groove - be patient. There’s bottled Kirin beer, Uosan branded bottles of chilled (instantly forgettable) sake, and plenty of the warm stuff being sloshed about in tall tokuri, too. You’ll need some time to take in the menu, which is posted on the walls. There are 126 individual items listed on the wall above the kitchen hatch alone! 

It’s all about fish, although a few concessions to other categories are made, supplied by generations of Tsukiji fish-mongers; their family/ business names are proudly displayed upon one of the walls (as is the case at Okajōki). For variety’s sake, the plethora of fish on offer comes fried, grilled, stewed, boiled and pickled. It’s also absurdly cheap, very big, mostly fresh and pleasingly unrefined. 

While you’re tucking into plate after heaped plate of sashimi - the kampachi, tai and chūtoro were fantastic - and generous portions of juicy, glistening grilled fillets and steaks it’s hard not to notice the strange atmosphere... 

Hardly “cosy,” and not exactly relaxing either. It’s quiet, but in the way a museum or gallery is quiet. You don’t want to disturb the peace, and everyone around you looks so serious. I’d put half of it down to collective fear of the mama-san and her offspring, the remainder to concentration on the task at hand, which is to say consumption of more and more fish.

Either way, it’s not really the place for a party or, for that matter, a leisurely meal. Best to get your fix and head elsewhere for drinks, or something.   

Uosan does provide some great people watching opportunities. Many of the patrons are regulars, and probably locals to boot. Some read while eating, others eat their fill while listening to iPods. Others still spend more time gazing wistfully at everyone else's meals, and seem to forget to order much for themselves. Conversation with strangers is out. With your dining partners, limited.  

03-3641-8071

http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1313/A131303/13003007/

Isomaru Suisan, Ikebukuro 磯丸水産、池袋

A chilly early evening in the sprawling edginess of Ikebukuro and my dining partner and I thought that a warm dinner and cold beer would be better than frozen fingertips.

We headed to the West side of Ikebukuro, having heard that it was not only becoming a little more upmarket, but that it also was home to a decent Pakistani restaurant, Marhaba. In the end we found it after a little wandering, but at 4pm it was still in the midst of preparing for its evening trade.

We considered hanging around nearby, and returning later, but the big, shiny cars parked outside, the huge Pakistani guy blocking the entrance and the high decibel argument coming from within left us thinking that perhaps it might be better to look for a warm table elsewhere. We were in Ikebukuro, after all… 

Cold as it was, walking around aimlessly didn’t seem like much of a cunning plan either. We did come across a Gottsui okonomiyaki-ya though, but that was closed too. Soon enough we noticed the familiar, though at the time yet to be tested, façade of Isomaru Suisan, a chain of Showa-esque fish izakaya under the SFP Group that’s also responsible for Toriyoshi, among other popular chains. I remember seeing Isomaru Suisan in Kichijoji, the sunny, hot afternoon that I enjoyed with Jimmy Dean and Poshand back in the summer. So, why not give it a shot, I thought.

It’s fairly spacious, very simple, extremely faux-Showa/fishing village izakaya in style, being all paper lanterns, branded wooden panels and crates and very, very smoky due to all the tabletop grills. It was also packed. Event at that early hour, it was heaving, hard to place an order, and even more futile to expect the obviously part-time chinless wonders staffing the place to get your order right, if they remembered that you had placed it at all.

Still, the warm, noisy, boisterous atmosphere was fun, and the heat from the grills most certainly welcome. The smoke from the grill eventually became unbearable, and in the end we left with stinging eyes and stank the train out with odour of grilled fish.

Bollocks service, smoke and dining among the proletariat aside, it was okay, in that it was cheap and cheerful. Not that cheap though, at least when it came to beer. It was suitably iced and delicious, but at almost ¥500, it seemed steep when you consider that similar budget izakaya, such as Sakanaya, splash it around at ¥190. Beer aside, the fish, they have other stuff but we didn’t give it a look, was reasonably priced.

The sashimi (maguro and kampachi) was decidedly average, no wait, poor. Most definitely out of the freezer and high in water content. I ended up smearing it in wasabi just to make it interesting. The salmon was small, tasty enough, especially when given a sprinkle of soy sauce. Grilling it was actually more fun than eating it though. Not as much fun, or as time consuming, as grilling the tuna jaw (kama), though. These are huge, looking more like the jaw bone of a cow or something, especially for those who imagine tuna swim the seas in cans. Big, meaty, succulent and with different tastes depending on the darkness of the meat this was worth the effort, smoke, stinking clothes and visit overall.

That’s it. Visit this chain if you need a cheap night out, some fish, and a lesson in patience (see above comment on the service). Enjoyed it all the same though.

Tel: 03-5911-2055

Hongo, Shibuya 本郷、渋谷

Hongo looks tempting. It’s a little izakaya nestled amongst variously ugly buildings that line the banks of the “Shibuya river” (actually now little more than a concrete channel through which a couple of inches of water and scum flow) and the right hand side of Meiji Dori if you head out of Shibuya station in the direction of the intersection with Komazawa Dori and Ebisu.

Not that the neighbourhood lacks interesting looking places to dine. Dotted around are all manner of izakaya, bars and raman shops (especially on the section of Meiji Dori immediately out of the station), many of which are to be found in the most unlikely – perhaps not for Tokyo – spots. Hongo itself is right on the little bridge over the river, overshadowed by the Toyoko line and drab looking office buildings. You might pass it by without a glace during the day, but of an evening Hongo and the Hongo yakiniku-ya above it, are transformed into a vision of welcome and promised enjoyment thanks to the large glowing lantern at the entrance. Perhaps it’s the family of cats with their little homes set up near the entrance that appeals, too.

The interior is classic izakaya. Lots of dark wood, a polished counter lined with shochu bottles, shelves to the rear of the space housing sake bottles, and a large chalk board describing the recommended dishes. It must be said that over several visits these recommended items have been exactly the same each time. I’ll also point out that I’ve not always been graced with an o-toshi at Hongo. A small point, yet annoying for the inconsistency if nothing else.

The atmosphere is pretty good. Cosy, though not exactly “warm,” especially if seated by the floor to ceiling window looking out over the bamboo, cat bowls and river. Service comes with a snaggle-toothed smile courtesy of the old man charged with caring for customers and is reasonably prompt.

Patrons mainly seem to be salarymen and partners, mistresses, girlfriends and – possibly – their wives.

Despite the good range of shochu and less good range of sake on offer, I’ve stuck to beer at Hongo as my visits happened to fall in the already much missed sultry summer nights of not so long ago. I’d hazard that the sake list wouldn’t excite certain people (you know who you are). I did have the Hiroki, produce of Fukushima, which was drinkable but neither dry enough nor exciting. Price-wise the sake seems a little steep considering the volume.

As for the cooking, the one time my dining partner and I did enjoy an o-toshi it came in the form of chunky pieces of octopus sashimi, a little on the chewy side and yet pleasantly robust, if a little bland. The pickles seem a little lacklustre too. Not dynamic enough, and the vinegar, i.e., pickled, taste was weak. The usual suspects appeared; cucumber, carrot, daikon, aubergine and cabbage. The katsuo-tataki, served with grated ginger and shiso leaves, has been good overall, not too fishy, fresh and of a decent size. The seared edge never seems seared enough though.

The morsels of pork on a stick (can’t remember the name) were tasty, but hardly polished. The bed of cabbage comes in handy as it helps to pad out the meal, which is say portions aren’t large even if they aren’t painfully small. Thankfully, the sanma was much, much better. But then again, even I can turn out decent sanma so no medals awarded. Still, worth ordering.

Salad… This particular example had a kind of smoky/bacon-y flavour despite there being not a slither of bacon therein. Tomatoes, leaves, mushrooms, mayonnaise and bonito flakes did make an appearance. The first couple of mouthfuls were very enjoyable, and yet the strong smoky flavour ultimately become overbearing. The kampachi sashimi was fair-to-middling, too.

Hongo isn’t bad, I actually enjoy it quite a lot, but it’s not great either. It promises more than it delivers, mainly because the chef(s) seem intent on playing it safe. I’ll give the place points for a being a welcome change for central Shibuya, and for the cats. Take a look if you are in the area. If not pleased, drink up quick, try the yakiniku-ya upstairs and let me know what it’s like.

Tel: 03-5774-0055