A super cute and authentic izakaya-bar from the house of MenTenTen.
Since the opening I had the chance to sit there twice (once in a table, once on the bar), and in both times the food was perfect and sooo tasty, I think this is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Tel Aviv with the best casual vibes and amazing food.
On my first visit I ordered the tori udon which is definitely one of the highlights of this place - don't miss out on it! It's sort of a combination between a ramen and noodles bowl - udon noodles with a perfect bite laying in a super rich broth served with the most tender chicken thigh slices topped with some Japanese toppings such as green onion, bamboo shoot, dashi & spinach.
Another amazing dish I loved was their beef gyoza - super crispy on the bottom and amazingly juicy & tender inside, served with a delicious sauce I could basically drink in a cup - this is a another dish to no miss out, these are the best gyozas I've ever tasted.
Another great dish we tried was the magaro norimaki which is basically a nori seaweed filled with tuna tartare. Might sound simply but the fish was so fresh and melted in our mouths, and it has a spicy kick that creates one of the best fish dishes I've had.
Lastly, we ordered some sushi dishes - the super rich sahi maki which is a roll of tuna, salmon, hamachi & avocado, wrapped in a thin cucumber slice (with no rice), and the uramaki sun which is a more traditional sushi roll with tuna, avocado, asparagus and chives, wrapped in rice and a nori seaweed and topped with some more tuna.
On my second visit I couldn't get enough of my favorite dishes so ordered again the tori udon, magaro norimaki and beef gyozas, but this time I've ordered some new dishes I haven't tried during my previous visit.
We ordered the niko sashimi which is a dish of thinly sliced beef marinated in a traditional Japanese marinade - the beef was so tender and delicious it melted in our mouths and I love it.
Another new dish I tried was the gyudon which reminded me of a Japanese version of hot poke - thin beef slices served on rice with an egg yolk, green onion, pickled ginger and togarashi. This is more of a simple dish, but still it was perfectly made and very delicious.
For dessert, we tried their black sesame ice cream that has very similar taste to halva and it wasn't too sweet so it was a perfect ending to a perfect dinner.
To conclude, if you're looking for the coolest place in the neighborhood, or if you're looking for a traditional Japanese experience, I really recommend this amazing izakaya-bar, and I will definitely return here!
