A note on the words: tonkatsu is a breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet, rosu-katsu uses the richer loin cut with a rim of sweet fat, and hire-katsu uses the leaner, tender fillet. Kaki-furai are deep-fried breaded oysters, menchi-katsu is a deep-fried breaded minced meat patty, and shijimi-jiru is a savory miso soup brewed with small freshwater clams. Here, rice is cooked fresh for each guest.
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Tonkatsu Kagurazaka Sakura Akasaka ten on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hello, this is Hangover Meshi. Thinking that I had not eaten lunch around Akasaka lately, I looked around for newly opened spots and noticed a place called “Tonkatsu Kagurazaka Sakura.” Ah, come to think of it, I felt like something had opened near the Aomori antenna shop (a prefectural showcase store)! So, off I went without delay. Stepping outside, it was pouring rain, ha. Well, rain or not, you cannot skip lunch, so I went anyway!
Right past the entrance there are stairs leading down to the basement floor.
Once downstairs, the place is surprisingly spacious and has a nice feel to it.
Daily set — 990 yen
Rosu-katsu set — 1,000 yen
Premium rosu-katsu set — 1,500 yen
Thick-cut rib loin katsu — 1,600 yen
Fried shrimp mix set with hire-katsu — 1,300 yen
‘Yume no Daichi’ pork rosu-katsu — 1,700 yen
‘Yume no Daichi’ pork hire-katsu — 1,800 yen
By the way, this was what the daily set looked like.
I thought I would probably just go for the regular rosu-katsu, but I splurged a little and picked the ‘Yume no Daichi’ pork rosu-katsu.
Also, it seemed fried oysters had come onto the menu, so I decided to add a single kaki-furai on the side.
Condiments are salt, a sweet katsu sauce, a sharper one, a yuzu dressing, and karashi (Japanese mustard).
After a short wait, the rice arrived.
At this restaurant, it seems they cook the rice individually for each person before bringing it to your table.
This is impressive and a great point of differentiation!
Freshly cooked, piping-hot rice looks so good!!
And then the ‘Yume no Daichi’ pork rosu-katsu arrived!
Cabbage, miso soup, rice too!! They say free refills on all of them, which is fantastic.
Taking a bite: delicious!!
It is a tonkatsu cooked thoroughly through, but this is exactly what you want.
Of course, compared to ultra-high-end tonkatsu specialty restaurants there might be differences, but that is not what this place is about. This is the kind of tonkatsu that goes perfectly with rice, and that is what makes it so great!
Slather on plenty of sauce and karashi.
Plop it onto the rice and eat it in hearty mouthfuls. This is what tonkatsu is all about. The rice is delicious too, absolutely top-notch!
By the way, the miso soup is shijimi-jiru (miso soup with freshwater clams). Delicious!
Here is the kaki-furai. Even when ordering just a single piece, it is nice that they bring it on its own separate dish.
The tartar sauce is light on salt with a pronounced eggy richness, so pairing it with a drizzle of sauce might be even better.
This is the fried shrimp mix set.
A set with hire-katsu, two fried shrimp, and a menchi-katsu. The fried shrimp looked delicious!
Man, so satisfying. It is great to have a tonkatsu shop like this nearby.
- You can get in quickly without lines and eat without delay (famous places are often too crowded for a casual visit!)
- Delicious (though I have never seen a tonkatsu spot that wasn’t, ha)
- Free refills on rice, cabbage, and miso soup
- What is more, the rice here is freshly cooked!
Looking back, it really was wonderful. I am glad a tonkatsu shop where you can easily drop in and leave fully satisfied opened in Akasaka!
I will probably go again whenever the sudden craving for tonkatsu hits, ha.
Tonkatsu Kagurazaka Sakura Akasaka ten (Tonkatsu / Akasaka Station, Tameike-sanno Station, Akasaka-mitsuke Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.5
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
