Kushiage Kitchen Dan EKIZO Sannomiya 串揚げキッチン だん EKIZO神戸三宮店 (Kobe, JAPAN) ★★★★☆

The last couple of years, I’ve fallen in love with kushikatsu (串揚), a popular Japanese comfort food made of deep-fried, skewered bite-sized meats, seafood, and vegetables.

Unfortunately, there aren’t nearly enough kushikatsu restaurants in Hong Kong, so I can only get my fix during my trips to Japan. And what better place to have them than Osaka, where kushikatsu originated in Shinsekai in the early 1900s?

But wait — we were in Kobe. Yes, but tonight’s dinner venue, Kushiage Kitchen Dan (串揚げキッチン だん), is an off-shoot of the flagship Ishibashi Store (石橋店) in Ikeda City, Osaka. It’s also the casual sister of Kitashinchi Kushikatsu Bon, which earned a Michelin star from 2010 to 2023.

Kushiage Kitchen Dan is located in EKIZO, a dining complex right next to Sannomiya Station (三宮駅). 

Like most kushiage specialists, Kitchen Dan works around a spacious counter with the chefs working diligently behind (this place was full when we entered!).

With six of us including this guy, it was better that we were given a private room in a quiet corner of the restaurant.

I missed the introduction of condiments when I slipped out for a doughnut at nearby .donut, but the dipping options looked pretty standard (left to right): a light soy sauce, a mustard sauce (infused with ponzu/yuzu?), a traditional sweet-and-savory Worcestershire-based tonkatsu sauce, and of course, some specialty salt.

We were really hungry since we didn't have much to eat all afternoon. Needless to say, when this platter showed up, everyone's eyes immediately lit up.

Premium black wagyu beef chateaubriand — I was given the premium center-cut to kick off the meal. Not surprisingly, it's one of the restaurant's signature items.

The absolute thickest, most tender center cut of the beef tenderloin (極上黑毛和牛), elevated by the intense, buttery marbling. Beautifully cooked too!

Lotus root — Crunchy, but I always thought it wasn't the best choice with a thin, crisp batter but that's just me.

Black tiger prawn — Very bouncy and as always very very tasty.

Foie gras over zucchini — The foie gras came with incredible smokiness. Very nicely done. It was my first time enjoying grilled foie gras paired with juicy zucchini, and it was such a hit that I ended up having two of these.

Onion from Awaji island — Pretty juicy and worked well with the soy sauce.

Creamy corn and bacon croquette — Pretty decent.

It was absolutely packed with runny corn cream and corn kernels. No sign of the bacon though.

Wheat gluten rice cracker — Japanese rice cake covered with rice krispies. I thought this was kind of cute but everybody from my team thought it looked weird.

The texture was sticky and chewy almost like a mochi.

Sillago with tartare sauce — Surprisingly meaty. The tartare sauce on top was a nice complement.

Green asparagus — The light and crisp batter gave the green asparagus a nice, delicate texture, while the cottonseed oil added a subtle nutty, buttery notes. Love this~

Scallop — Pretty decent but I wasn't a fan of the pickled red onion on top. 

Crab claw — Pretty delicious but I still thought our Chinese version was better.

We ordered four skewer sets, so we got four choices of chicken rice, egg over rice, and/or wonton noodle soup. It looked like everyone wanted some eggy noodles, but it turned out to be glass noodles.

Dessert was a choice between fried bread (our server described it as "French toast") served with ice-cream, fried mochi, and fried sweetened red bean paste.

The fried mochi tasted a little funny.

The disk of red bean paste was served with a scoop of ice-cream. Not bad as a palate cleanser. 

 

What I love most about a kushikatsu meal is the texture—the way the meat, seafood, and vegetables come out light, crisp, and non-greasy, with a delicate bite that never feels heavy. This was a really, really good meal, and I’m glad I chose it over Kobe beef which often turns into a tourist trap.

Food Rating: 7.3/10

Price: ￥￥￥

Address: Zone B Kobe Sannomiya Hankyu Building EKIZO, 4-2-1 Kanocho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0001, Japan

Closest Metro Station: Sannomiya

Tel: +81 (0)78-381-7116

Website: http://www.kitchen-dan.jp/

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 11:00pm (Mon - Fri), 11:00am - 11:00pm (Sat - Sun)