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| - 3.5 stars.
AMBIANCE
Really cute, like a Japanese beer hall with lots of communal long tables surrounded by the kitchen and bar. There are small tables as well with really uncomfortable, super tiny stools. The atmosphere is festive with the staff welcoming and thanking every patron who walks in and out of the door. As a result, the inside is extremely loud and the noise can start to become grating. HINT: Ask for a table outside if the weather is nice. It's much more pleasant and quiet.
FOOD
It's an izakaya, so tapas-style items. Order many and share. They have a really tempting party set menu that features many of the top dishes and is $25 or $35pp, depending on which menu you want. This makes ordering so easy, but unfortunately, it's for a minimum party of 4.
For two, we ended up getting:
++ Gyu carpaccio ($7.50)- seared beef sashimi with ponzu, wasabi mayo, and garlic chips. The beef was cut extra thin and was very flavorful with all of the toppings.
- Tuna tartare ($8.30)- sesame oil marinated tuna with teriyaki sauce and mango sauce. The tuna was extremely soft and not in the good melt-in-your-mouth way, so it was either not that fresh or just really tenderized from the marinade. The mango sauce was too sweet and didn't seem appropriate for this dish.
+ Karaage ($8.30)- five large pieces of deep fried chicken with garlic mayo. Crispy and satisfying, but not the best.
++ Kinoko bibimbap ($9.50)- rice, mushrooms, and cheese with seaweed in a stone bowl. This did not appeal to me as much as the more traditional Buta kimchi bibimbap with pork, but Kinoko is the one Yelpers rave about so we decided to try it. Surprisingly, it was unique and tasted really good. Tender button mushrooms with tons of seaweed mixed in the rice made for a savory clean dish. Didn't notice the cheese at all. Try not to mix your rice and let it crisp up for a tasty textural change.
++ Kakimayo ($8.80)- two baked oysters with mushrooms, spinach, garlic mayo, and cheese. These oysters are huge and extremely saucy/cheesy. Really heavy and reminded me of something you would get at a family chain restaurant, and I mean that in the best way possible.
+ Almond tofu ($4.50)- almond extract flavored tofu pudding. Extremely soft and tasty, but not very different from the make-it-yourself $1 almond pudding you get at the Asian market. Portion is really small.
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