Whenever I get together with friends in Tokyo, it’s always Shibuya or Shinjuku. That’s because they’re easy to get to. Even among people who work in Tokyo, a lot of them live in Saitama, western Tokyo or Chiba because of rent and various other reasons, and commute over an hour each way, so if you want to meet in the evening and enjoy yourselves as late as possible without worrying about getting home, you pretty much have to meet somewhere like Shinjuku, Shibuya or Ikebukuro.
For the first time in a while, a get-together with friends came up, and since word has spread that I know a thing or two about food ^_^ I ended up choosing a place where we could have dinner over a few drinks. In a case like this, taste matters, but location, budget and the size of the place matter a lot too. Location means how close it is to the station and how easy it is to find. With a big group, there’s always someone who doesn’t like walking far. As for budget, the cheaper the better, but the best is when it doesn’t feel like a burden for one evening’s meal. Usually once it goes over 5,000 yen, people really start to feel it ^_^ When my friends get together it’s at least 5-6 people and sometimes 10 or more, so if the place is small you won’t get a table. Well… if it’s too big the service suffers and the food is often bad too…
After mulling over where would be good, I settled on Yanbaru, an Okinawan izakaya that opened recently. I didn’t really know about the food, but anyway it was close to the station, the prices weren’t high, and it didn’t look too crowded.
The entrance
It’s on basement level 1. It isn’t far from the station, but it isn’t easy to find either. Maybe that’s why it wasn’t very crowded, even on a Sunday evening. There’s plenty of seating, the interior is stylish, and it doesn’t have that loud, rowdy atmosphere. The moment we walked in, I knew we’d come to the right place.
The complimentary starter
Ukon (turmeric)
It’s a drink that’s supposed to be good for preventing hangovers, and it was only 30 yen. It tastes like herbal medicine. My Japanese friends really hated it, but I’m used to that kind of taste so I found it pretty good. We each downed a shot of it before we started drinking.
Awamori, Okinawa’s traditional spirit, mixed with water
Since it’s an Okinawan izakaya, I go with Okinawa’s traditional spirit.
Rafute
It’s a pork dish. At a typical izakaya the portions are stingy, so one plate is barely enough for two people, but I really liked that this place isn’t like that. Not just the pork, the vegetables were tasty too.
Goya champuru
There’s a Yanbaru in Shinjuku too, but this is on a different level from what I had there. Much better made. Around this point, people start praising me for picking a good place. So proud~
This is jimami tofu, a traditional Okinawan tofu dish.
It’s a tofu made with peanuts, and it’s sweet and delicious. You could eat it as a dessert, but since you dip it in soy sauce it also works as a snack with drinks. In a way it’s similar to almond jelly (annin tofu), but maybe because it’s made with peanuts, it’s a bit nuttier. I’d call it one of the best dishes of the day.
Umibudo
It’s a seaweed whose name means ‘sea grapes’. The fresh, popping texture is superb. It’s something you can only eat if you go to Okinawa.
Fried octopus
Nothing special, just a snack to go with beer.
Probably Ryukyu horumon-yaki (grilled offal)
This one’s ordinary. A good match for beer.
Shio yakisoba
A well-made yakisoba, and aside from the taste, I was surprised by how huge the portion was. When there’s a dish that fills you up without costing much, it’s a real blessing for people who came to have a meal.
Grilled soki
It’s seasoned, grilled cartilage, and someone had already eaten one piece before I took the photo. Really delicious.
Mimiga salad
A traditional Okinawan dish of pig’s ear. We were already full, so we ordered it just as something to nibble on with our drinks.
This is another pork dish…
I’ve forgotten the name, but it tastes like bacon.
Sweet potato croquettes
Nice as a kind of dessert. We ordered one plate, and sure enough the portion was generous.
After all that eating and drinking, it came to just under 3,000 yen per person. Everyone was impressed. All the food was delicious, and on top of that it was this cheap. Plus the atmosphere is good, so it’d be hard to find anywhere better among places young people can go around Shibuya. One friend asked me never to put this place on the internet because he wanted to keep it as his own secret spot, but, well, putting it on the Korean internet shouldn’t be much of a problem ^_^
Knowing about restaurants comes in handy quite often. This place was one I’d had on my list of places I was curious about, and finally went to. Building on this success, I plan to keep finding good places around Tokyo and introducing them. After all, there aren’t many things in life more worthwhile than having a good time over delicious food with close friends.