Tonju Tonkatsu とん久 (Tokyo, JAPAN) ★★★☆☆

Apart from being the ultimate battlefield for ramen shops, Takadanobaba (高田馬場) also has its fair share of tonkatsu restaurants with Tonta (とん太) and Narikura (成蔵) pretty much on top of everybody's list. They are both very high on my wish list too but unfortunately, were closed on this day for various reasons (Tonta: regular holiday and Narikura: the chef was sick). Thankfully, we were able to find Tonju Tonkatsu (とん久) which were open till late.



At around 10pm, Tonju Tonkatsu (とん久) was still packed with customers with only counter seats available. At this point, we were too hungry to care so we gladly took these empty seats without hesitation.



It's always a plus when a Japanese restaurant offers menu in English.



Breaded and deep-fried Kurobuta pork cutlets (2,500yen) - We went with this version using the highest graded pork loin from Kirishima (霧島), a city in Kagoshima prefecture where it's famous for their Kurobuta pork.

Like any good tonkatsu, this was served with finely shredded raw cabbage and steamed rice. But wait, spaghetti Napolitan too? This has to be the first time I'm having tonkatsu with spaghetti!



The pork was wonderfully soft and tender with great flavors known from the Kurobuta pork. The fat content was also perfect and I particularly like the little bit of yuzu (I think it was yuzu) in the middle for an extra kick of acidity.



Breaded and deep-fried prawns (1,700yen) - They called these shrimps on the menu but trust me, they're prawns and pretty BIG ones too.



Again these were seriously good. The batter was probably a little thicker than I would like but nevertheless very tasty.








Food Rating: 5/10
Price: ￥￥￥
Address: 1 Chome-26-5 Takadanobaba, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan
Closest Metro Station: Takadanobaba
Tel: +81 3-3209-3900