IKEBUKURO: 500yen Pizzeria CONA has arrived!! 10/1/2012 OPEN!

I spent this summer away from Japan (there is a big gap in my foodie blog entries this year) and of course CONA was on my list of places to re-visit but little did I know they just opened up a brand new spot in IKEBUKURO~.  :)

Think we may have been charged for this as it is standard if you order alcohol... Otsumami?

Reserved a table for 3 on the second floor (all seating vs 1st floor all standing).

Great prosciutto.

Pickled veggies... keeps the mouth thirsty.

And of course.. the half boiled egg and prosciutto pizza... 

This was a great selection and the first time I tried shrimp avocado combo... guess its kinda like guacamole.

All three of us are novices when selecting wines but the 3 bottles we picked out were all smooth and very easy to enjoy.

Mexican Pizza with some tasty jalapenos.

To close we went for the Gorgonzola Pizza with Honey syrup topping.

Nice balance of young women and a few couples on dates... 

Final bottle of wine was a had a nice full bodied flavor.

Ladies... bathroom is shared but immaculately clean and fairly big.

The first floor is where you can get a great view of the chef at work... everyone here was friendly.

The pizza's compared to my favorite URA-Cona in Shibuya was a bit lacking in ingredients but the atmosphere was dead on comfortable.  Friendly and alert staff... I'm sure I'll be back again very soon.

Shop: IKEBUKURO South Side CONA

Gnavi: http://r.gnavi.co.jp/gcgf000/

Address J: 東京都豊島区南池袋3-14-12

Address E: Tokyo, Toshima-ku, Minami Ikebukuro 3-14-12
MAP:

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EBISU: Voco 500yen Pizzeria! Sister to my favorite Ura-Cona in Shibuya

Just an FYI entry as I was there for a wine and cheese tasting event sponsored by Andy Planning

https://www.facebook.com/AndyPlanning

I've been here a few times before for their great 500yen pizza's but I'd have to say that the atmosphere at Ura-Cona is a bit more my style.  

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.jp/2011/11/shibuya-ura-cona-500yen-pizzas-and.html

The pizza chef.

The counter is shaped like a U and I think its a mix of standing and sitting on stools. 

For food pics click here 

http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1303/A130302/13046327/dtlphotolst/1/

Well if you are ever in Ebisu and in need of a pizza that won't break the bank like most Japanese pizzeria's this is the spot for you.  

Shop: VOCO Pizzeria Ebisu

Foodie website: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1303/A130302/13046327/

Hotpepper: http://www.hotpepper.jp/strJ000724947/

Address J: 東京都渋谷区恵比寿1-6-1 グリーンハイツ高橋 １Ｆ

Address E: Tokyo, Shibuya-ku, Ebisu 1-6-1

MAP:

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AKASAKA: 500yen Lunch at Kudara... prices have gone up up! (REVISITED)

Tokyo is cold cold in the Winter... probably notice it a bit more than the US due to all the walking we do...  Anyways its been a while since I visited Kudara so off I went.

Noticed in black "all items 500yen" then under the Samugetan was 700yen...hmm... The attraction here was always the incredible value of the Samugetan at 500yen.  After I placed my order the waitress said its now 700yen, is this ok?  At +200yen its still a great value but it sure does taste better at 500yen~.

There seemed to be a bit more chicken inside this time... might have gotten lucky this day.

The crowd was unusually light today... perhaps increasing the price slightly in restaurant filled Akasaka caused a few lunch goers to wander elsewhere for lunch.

Don't think I'll be back anytime soon... time to give a few other Korean spots a try.

Address details here:

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.com/2011/09/akasaka-kudara-korean-restaurant-best.html

IIDABASHI: Standing Bar Musso... 500yen Pork Bowl! 100yen Salad Buffet!

There are special TV programs in Tokyo highlighting great one coin 500yen lunches throughout the city.  One of the best hands down is Nakame'kun in Nakameguro so I had to give this place a try.

Three lunch choices: Pork bowl, Chicken tomato stew bowl and Mabo bowl... all with 2 kinds of free self-serve soups. Plus 100yen for salad buffet and 100yen for a drink. 

Its nearly all counter seating as the place seems more like a British pub than a restaurant.  Pre-pay at the register and they hand you your bowl order... 

Even at 500yen my pork bowl was rather disappointing... beef was rather tough and sauce didn't compliment it at all, too sweet.  Mayo topping didn't help much.

There were 2 types of free soup: Seaweed or Cabbage soup... both quite boring.  As for the salad bar the selections were limited and most items seem to come directly out of a can but for 100yen I guess you can't ask for much more than that.  

I sat in one of the few counter window seats overlooking the street with sliding windows bringing in a nice breeze.  Overall this place was definitely not worth even the 500yen when average lunches in the area were 750yen.  Oh well... looks like a great place for drinks in the evening as the space allows for some friendly mingling but as for lunch it was...honestly... just very bad.

Shop: Standing Bar Musso

Train Station: Iidabashi

Foodie Blog: http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1309/A130905/13006302/

Hotpepper: http://www.hotpepper.jp/strJ000229056/

Address J: 東京都千代田区飯田橋3-3-11 ばんらいビル１Ｆ

Address E: Tokyo, Chiyoda-ku, Iidabashi 3-3-11

MAP:

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AKASAKA: Kudara Korean Restaurant... the BEST Lunch deal in TOKYO!!

This was the second visit to Kudara but they had ran out of the 500 yen Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup) on my previous lunch visit so I  had the spicy Korean chige.

Anyways I arrived at a very early 11:30am and scored the Chicken Soup!  Everything on the menu was lowered to only 500yen... Bulgogi, chige, motsu-nabe, bibimbap, yukke-jan etc.

The side dishes come with the meal... each super tasty.   Have to mention the service... a Korean older lady took my order with a smile and was super polite... A+ in my book.

500yen!  This was just sooooo good and probably the best value in all of Tokyo.  Normally shops will give you extra rice when you run out (Okawari) but this place charges 100yen.  Rice was cooked to perfection, super fluffy and cooked just right.

Interior is comfy and k-pop tunes very welcoming.  If you go alone they'll ask you to share your table as the lunch crowd begins to arrive.  A friendly salaryman joined my table and as courtesy asked if it was ok to sit down... sure~.

Located on B2 of this building.

Shop: Kudara Kalbi Korean Restaurant

Foodie Website:  http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1308/A130801/13017093/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/#!/kudarakarubiyfa

Address J: 東京都港区赤坂3-11-19 赤坂松秀ビル Ｂ１Ｆ

Address E: Tokyo, Minato-ku, Akasaka 3-11-19
MAP:

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