A note on the words: ozoni is a traditional Japanese soup eaten around the New Year with mochi (rice cakes), made differently in every region—here comparing a light Hokkaido version seasoned with chicken and shiitake dashi against a Miyazaki version said to hold yuzu citrus, mitsuba (Japanese parsley), and bean sprouts. Zangi is Hokkaido-style seasoned fried chicken, namasu is daikon and carrot dressed in vinegar, kinpira is burdock and carrot braised in soy and sesame, and chicken nanban is fried chicken bathed in a sweet vinegar sauce and topped with tartar sauce. Sauce katsu is a cutlet dipped in a sweet-savory sauce, and nikujaga is a stew of meat and potatoes.
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BRUNCH PARK on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hello, this is Hangover Meshi. BRUNCH PARK is a cafe that opened in a building right next to TBS, the broadcaster, in Akasaka. I walked past it almost every day, but it was frequently running promotional collaborations with TV shows, Korean stars, and idols, drawing huge lines on weekends. Because the queues were always so long, I had never really found a chance to go. This time, as I happened to be walking right past the entrance, an intriguing sign caught my eye!
Four regional specialties + ozoni fair
I definitely wanted to try this!
There were no TV show or celebrity tie-up events going on, so it was completely empty, ha.
Hokkaido set — 1,100 yen
Gunma set — 1,100 yen
Kyoto set — 1,100 yen
Miyazaki set — 1,100 yen
I imagine the menu shifts constantly with each collaboration, so this felt like a once-in-a-lifetime menu. Ozoni is completely different from region to region. Which one should I get? The main dishes were zangi, sauce katsu, nikujaga, and chicken nanban. After hesitating a bit, I went with the Hokkaido set!
Inside, the high ceilings give it a nice feel. When it isn’t crowded, it’s actually quite a comfortable spot.
After a short wait, the Hokkaido set arrived! Wow, it looks so well-balanced and delicious!
Three pieces of zangi, namasu (daikon and carrot dressed in vinegar), kinpira (burdock and carrot braised in soy and sesame), and a salad. Plenty of vegetables, which is wonderful. This is quality you wouldn’t expect from cafe food. The zangi wasn’t freshly fried and had cooled down a bit, but because the meal was so well-balanced, it was very satisfying. There are times when this is exactly what you want to eat.
Here is the Hokkaido ozoni. A gentle, light ozoni with the flavors of chicken dashi and shiitake dashi coming through. There was a piece of mochi in it too. Delicious.
And here is the chicken nanban and Miyazaki ozoni set.
Aside from the main dish, the rest was mostly the same, ha. The chicken nanban looks delicious too.
This is the Miyazaki ozoni, which apparently has yuzu, mitsuba, and bean sprouts in it! How unusual.
So all in all, for cafe food this was a substantial set meal, and I thought it made for a really good lunch. I suspect that once another tie-up starts up, calm set meals like this probably won’t appear much anymore, I feel (though who knows, ha), so I thought I might drop by again whenever another tasty-looking menu comes along.
I think it will end in January, so if you’re thinking you’d like to go, you’d better hurry, ha.
By the way, it’s completely empty on weekdays, so that’s the best time to aim for, ha.
BRUNCH PARK (Cafe / Akasaka Station, Tameike-sanno Station, Akasaka-mitsuke Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.4
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
