Gonpachi: A gaijin joint but a damn good restaurant nonetheless
It’s been a while since I did a full-on restaurant review so here is my take on one of the gaijin pillars of Tokyo — Gonpachi.
It’s a Japanese-style izakaya that believes good food starts with fresh produce. Very simple ingredients are used and what you appreciate is the juiciness of the meat and the depth of flavour in the vegetables.
One of my gal pals had a couple of friends in town from Shanghai so she pooled together a small group of us to eat, drink, and be merry on a Friday night.
The real stars of our meal were the yakitori skewers.
Cherry tomatoes wrapped in bacon were my favourite of the night. The warm tangy tomatoes blended excellently with the salty pork.
Grilled duck with wasabi was an unusual one but oozed savoury flavour.
Looks like a weird sea urchin or something right?
It was a prawn ball hidden underneath all that crispy crunchiness.
Shiitake mushrooms with minced meat and tare sauce are an all-time favourite.
I don’t usually like tsukune yakitori but this one wasn’t overly pungent and the half-cooked egg was a nice touch, as compared to a completely raw egg yolk that is usually paired with tsukune.
Grilled chicken wings Japanese style — with a sprinkle of salt on the grill — are always a winner.
The sashimi platter was pretty good but I’m a bit jaded with raw fish for now as I think I’ve had way too much recently.
That’s the kangaroo trying to be musical with the chopstick rests and a chicken bone. It was hilarious and it was good to see him hang loose and not feel stressed about work for a bit.
He likes his Genga…
And a final “installation art” piece.
My verdict? It’s a very gaijin place, that is English is on the menu, the staff speaks English, and the restaurant is half-filled with gaijins. Some people may frown on going to “gaijin” joints because it makes you look like an undiscerning expat who only hangs out at “easy” places.
Well, that’s true to a certain extent, but the quality of Gonpachi’s nosh would make me dismiss its image completely because some Japanese izakayas, especially the chain ones, may be very “Japanese” but their food is mediocre at best. A big dinner with a few drinks at Gonpachi would set you back about 5,000JPY, which is pretty reasonable for such quality fare. Highly recommended, especially if you have friends in town to show around.
Related posts:
- By the sea: A bustling joint for top-notch seafood at good prices
- Piss Alley
- Food tastes better in the countryside
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