Toshima City, Tokyo, Japan｜和酒酔処わく別誂

I need to leave a lengthy review for this place. Please read if you have time to and are thinking about coming here. I randomly found this place off the beaten path in a back alley of ikebukuro while I was walking one night. I just sort of wandered in. I was greeted by the staff and given a warm welcome. I’ve been living in Japan for 1 month so far, so my Japanese is limited. The staff spoke English as they could to help out with my poor Japanese. There are tables and also a long bar style table facing the chefs. I went by myself, so I sat there. You can go in a group or by yourself. They will give you a specials menu for the day, but it is handwritten kanji so you need to ask for help if you can’t read Japanese lol. The menu is also in Japanese. They will be happy to help you, though. Tell them what you like. I always go for dinner time because I work in the AM. They will recommend nihonshu for you based on which dish you order. I had seafood, so I was recommended the sake in the first picture (sorry I can’t read it xD). It was awesome; very fruity, tame. I had deep fried shrimp, which was crispy, seasoned well, and delicious. I also had cooked salmon. It was cooked very well and was seasoned just as well. I think this was my favorite dish for this night. She had recommended another sake for this, which was the “bunkajin liseur” that you can see in the last picture. She explained that “bunkajin” means “highly educated person”. This sake went down really smoothly and complimented well. Lastly I had chicken karaage. I’ve had this at a few other Izakaya thus far, but this was definitely among my favorite. Very tender, exterior crisp, seasoned well, and delicious. She explained that In Nara prefecture, there is a river called “tatsuta”, and it is famous for leaves falling into the river. This dish is called “tatsutage”, based on that. It was quite delicious. They will serve you some nice and hot green tea before you leave. I want to tell you next about the staff here. This is my fourth time coming here, so of course I should leave a review by now. I want to note that the staff here are exceptional, which is a huge part of why I keep returning. They make it their priority to serve you with expertise, and will check on you frequently. The server remembered my orders from the last times I came. She even remembered which nihonshu I had ordered and which size in ml. I was very impressed and happy. It was very easy to talk with her in English and also Japanese. The owner of the restaurant thanked me personally for coming there, to which I was honored. The prices are quite affordable. I had a lot this time because I was pretty hungry, so I spent around 6000 yen, but you can eat and drink for around 2000 yen or so and be satisfied, I’d say. The music playing is a classy jazzy selection. It works really well for relaxation after a day of work. Lastly I posted some pictures of food from the last few times I visited. Again, all really delicious. I think you should try this place. As a foreigner with little Japanese, I felt very welcome here will continue to come here regularly. I hope you can share in the experience. Thanks for reading my long review.

Very nice staff with great lunch. Aesthetically pleasing restaurant.

Nice Izakaya place in Ikebukuro. Reasonable prices good food. I liked it a lot.