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| - Dozo Izakaya
440 W. Warner Road, Tempe, 85284
Our group arrived at 6:00 and was promptly seated. This is a relatively small restaurant and they had three large groups all at the same time, which made service a tad slow. Drink orders were taken, and I had a wonderful cup of hot green tea (possibly Genmai Cha) which had a nutty flavor to it. Over the course of the meal I think I drank at least 4 cups of it, it was so good.
For the starter, I ordered the Baked Green Mussels - Very nicely made - not smothered in sauce like some places do. We were off to a good start.
Next I tried some of the sushi. Because it was Eel Day in Japan I ordered Unagi (freshwater eel). It was nicely presented with the proper sauce on top and still nice and warm. Next was Tako (octopus). It was cut nice and thin so that it was not chewy at all and had nice flavor. I ordered Tamago (egg omelet sushi) and Inari (Tofu pouches filled with sweet rice), but never got to taste them because a number of my companions grabbed them before I could! They loved them.
Because happy hour was not over until 6:30 and we arrived at 6:00, I ordered a California Roll and a Crunch Spicy Tuna Roll at a reduced price. Both rolls were nicely made and of a good size. Special kudo's for the crunch roll which was extra delicious and had wonderful flavor.
Finally, I got to the Izakaya Menu. In Japan, Izakaya shops are known for small plates usually served with good cold beer. Most often they serve Yakitori which are individual small pieces of chicken on skewers, grilled over special charcoal and coated with a flavorful glaze.
The waitress brought out a large assortment of them for me. The Sunagimo (chicken gizzard) was nicely chewy, and the Hatsu (chicken hearts) melted in my mouth. The Negima (chicken breast with green onion) which is very popular in Japan was excellent and the Tori Momo (chicken thigh) was delicious. The Teba (chicken wings) were nicely cooked and had just a touch of spice to them and the Tori Kawa (chicken skin) was so good it brought tears to my eyes. At every bite I was reminded of eating in Japan because the food was so authentic.
Lastly, I had Tako Yaki (Octopus flour balls), a favorite street food in Japan. They were nicely made with a hardened outer shell, a type of bread filling, and a piece of octopus in the center. It had some Japanese mayonnaise over the top along with some bonito flakes. It was so good.
My ending bite was Saba (seasoned raw mackerel sushi) which was some of the best I have ever had.
Companions (6 of them) had some wonderful super light tempura, as well as a Curry Katsu (pork cutlet curry) and a Katsu Don (Panko breaded pork cutlet over rice with egg and sweet onions).
The restaurant was nice and clean, and while service could have been better, one has to take into account that they were trying to handle 3 large groups at one time.
4 stars for outstanding food, cleanliness, and trying their best to serve three large groups in a small restaurant. I will definitely be coming back to eat here again and again.
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