very Tom, Dick and Harry now have sushi lunches. Even the most culinarily challenged have at least tried miso soup. Wasabi is not italicised any more and even countryside supermarkets carry proper soya sauce. However, there is infinitely more to Japanese food than California-maki and grilled eel. To discover that you need to leave your high street takeaways and head out straight for Japanese expats' favourite hangouts.
Izakaya is the Japanese equivalent of the pub. It is where white and blue collar workers get together for a few drinks after office hours. However, unlike the English whose evening beers land right on top of lunch sandwiches, the Japanese eat before and while they drink. Your typical izakaya menu will feature not less than a hundred entries. That is real daily Japanese food, not sushi that are reserved for special occasions.
Asakusa, right around the corner form Mornington Crescent Tube station, is where you can find authentic Japanese cuisine as enjoyed in the Land of the Rising Sun. I find very charming its looks of a typical Tokyo watering hole back from the 70s. Even its name, Asakusa, is very becoming: in Tokyo, it's a very traditional, folksy area in the centre where Edokko, real Tokyoites, come from.
In Japan there are no starters, main courses and such. All food is served at once and shared between the eaters. The izakaya menu, hence, is broken down by the type of the dish: grilled, deep-fried, salads, marinated, liquid and so on. You order one or two of each type, some booze - normally beer or sake - and there you go. The Japanese hardly eat rice when they drink, I guess it gets in the way of getting tipsy.
All the traditional Japanese dishes we ordered came expertly cooked, if a tad on the smallish side. We went for:
- edamame (えだまめ)- steamed beans in pods with coars sea salt; half a hadful, really;
- sashimi moriawase (刺身盛り合わせ) - a platter of raw fish slices; kinda skimpy for the price;
- tempura moriawase (てんぷら盛り合わせ) - a platter of vegetables and shrimp deep-fried in light batter; very well done not a wee hint of oil!
- kurage no aemono (くらげの和え物) - lightly marinated jellyfish; slurpy and crunchy at the same time, just about 5 gram of it;
- korokke (コロッケ) - deep-fried mince and mashed potato croquette; crisp and moist where it matters;
- takoyaki (たこ焼き) - deep-fried octopus balls (not the testicles, but ball-shaped cakes!);
- ageashi-dofu (揚げ足豆腐) - tofu fried in light batter served with katsuo flakes; prefectly done but about 2/3 of the regular Japanese portion;
- nasu dengaku (なすでんがく) - aubergine broiled in miso; in Asakusa they make it glazed in sweet miso, very appealing to the eye!
- hiyayakko (冷奴) - silky tofu served in light dressing with katsuo flakes; the simplest dish of all, about half of what you'd be served in Japan;
- kaisou sarada (海草サラダ) - seaweed with a very light dressing；I expected the clear sourish ponzu-style dressing but it came with something faintly milky and mustardish that, nevertheless, was a very good combination;
- saba no misoni (さばの味噌煮) - mackerel stewed in miso; one and half very well made pieces;
- gyuniku no tataki (牛肉のたたき) - rare beef slices with marinade; the ground ginger and garlic dip was exquisite!
Pro's: An extensive menu of authentic Japanese food.
Con's: Miniscule portions. Not really cheap. Downstairs smells faintly of cats. The Big Izakaya Three are not on the menu: tsukudani, o-den and chawan-mushi.
In a nutshell: Gritty but great place for some real Nip grub.
Asakusa265 Eversholt Street
London, NW1 1BA
020 7388 8533
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