A note on the words: tonkatsu is a breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet, served as a set with rice, miso soup, pickles and a mound of shredded cabbage. Hire is the fillet and rosu the loin — the two cuts every tonkatsu shop asks you to choose between. Hiyashi chuka is a cold noodle dish of the Japanese summer.
Tonkatsu Kokomade Yaruka. on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Drinkers, thank you for waiting. It is Hangover Meshi time.
I felt like tonkatsu, and looking for something nearby I found a shop with a unique name: Tonkatsu Kokomade Yaruka. — roughly, “going this far?”. That it seemed to take bookings, with no need to queue, was appealing too. I booked quickly and went.
Now, which tonkatsu? Looking at the menu, you choose from:
- Yamagata, Yonezawa-buta Ichiban-sodachi, premium fillet 160g
- Saitama, Mirei-buta, premium loin 200g
- Hyogo, Kobe Pork, premium loin 200g
- Hyogo, Kobe Pork, premium fillet 160g
There also seem to be things like deep-fried bluefin tuna and, of all things, hiyashi chuka on the menu — but I wanted to see how far they had taken the tonkatsu, so tonkatsu it is.
Hmm. Fillet or loin…
The ultimate dilemma. I prefer loin. But at places that have gone all-in on tonkatsu like this, the fillet is expensive and extremely good.
After long deliberation: the fillet this time.
Order placed, and they bring the sauces.
Soy, wasabi, mustard, and a spiced sauce with something of curry about it.
The cabbage comes on a separate plate, with refills. If it runs out they offer to bring more. The fresh, crisp shredded cabbage resets the mouth between mouthfuls of fried food, and keeps the chopsticks moving.
And the tonkatsu arrives.
That looks very good indeed.
The star, the premium fillet, is Yonezawa-buta Ichiban-sodachi, a branded pork from Yamagata. Lift the thick 160g piece with chopsticks and the crust is crisp and light, while the cut face is a pale rose. It has the look of meat cooked slowly at a low temperature and finished hot — moist all the way through. The crumb is fine and fries up light, with no sense of oil, and does not get in the way of the delicacy of the fillet. The firm lean meat comes apart softly as you chew; it is lean and refined, and yet the savour of the meat itself carries on quietly and for a long time.
The fun is in comparing the sauces. First a slice with nothing but good salt: the sweetness of the pork comes through straight. Next, through a warm sauce with a good acidity, and richness and freshness change the impression entirely. Coating a piece in ground sesame, or going clean with wasabi and soy — being able to change the face of it several times within one plate is a pleasure. Each sauce has its own character, and they are served in deep little bowls, so you can pick a sauce for a slice as the mood takes you. The same fillet can be enjoyed as a different dish depending on what you dip it in.
The rice, and the pickles, have had the same care taken over them. The rice is cooked plump with every grain standing, and how it goes with tonkatsu needs no saying. The pickles make a good pause, and the deep red-miso soup draws the whole thing together gently.
Very good. Built around a single piece of tonkatsu, with sauces, cabbage, rice, soup and pickles all thought through and assembled carefully, it has real completeness as a set meal.
That was very good.
Tonkatsu — going this far.
It was a little expensive, but good meat is good. And with this much care packed in around it, the satisfaction is very high indeed. As an occasional treat, this may be the finest sort of meal. Good tonkatsu enriches the days.
May you meet something good to eat today too.
Tonkatsu Kokomade Yaruka. (tonkatsu / Gaienmae Station, Omotesando Station, Nogizaka Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.9
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
