OIZUMI GAKUEN: Akeshi Izakaya with a 1.8 liter bottle of Imo-shochu! (Sony RX100)

Japanese friend invited me out to dinner with his in-law... a popo who heads one of the police boxes in Tokyo.  This guy was so old skool and talked like a truck driver... all kinds of inappropriate material in a very packed izakaya. 

Prices have increased a bit since my previous visit but this shop specializes in Akkeshi style food... a city located in Hokkaido.   Been visiting Akkeshi since around 2011.

https://tokyobelly.blogspot.com/2012/12/oizumi-gakuen-akeshi-izakaya-super.html

Have both Asahi draft but totally recomend the Red Star Sapporo bottle beer. 

Thinly sliced Ham Katsu... this used to be a bit chunkier.

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.com/2017/10/oizumigakuen-old-timers-izayaka-with.html

450 yen Hokkaido fish... a bit on the dry side.  Would probably suggest the massive Hokke fish thats more on the juicy side. 

Maguro sashimi 999 yen.  A bit too mushy for me.

Gyoza stuffed tebasaki (chicken wings) with is always nice and tender.

Not a fan of scaly fish so left this up to the guys to finish. 

I love Omu-rice (omlet rice) but below this egg was a bed of bean sprouts.  

Didn't impress... Would rather have a bed of seasoned rice. 

After the initial beer we shifted to Imo (Potato) Jochu.  1.8 Liters for 4,000 yen!  You can bottle keep here and plan was to have some leftover for our next visit but that didn't go as planned. 

The Popo.

One of the better dishes... chunky pork.

Yakitori chicken super juicy.

Seasoned eggplant and minced raddish topped with garlic.

Chikuwa tempura... think its made out of fish parts much like a hotdog. 

I can't believe the 3 of us were there from 5-9pm but we drank that 1.8L bottle of sake. 

No bottle keep this time.  One note... the guys I was with were coughing on and off... hopefully this wasn't coronavirus.

Earlier this Saturday I took a few neighborhood sakura photos with the Sony Alpha 57 and SAL50F14

Overall its nice to support locally owned restaurants and this place never disappoints.

Restaurant: Akkeshi 

Tabelog Foodie: https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1321/A132103/13040963/

Address J: 東京都練馬区東大泉5-41-13

Address E: Tokyo, Nerima-ku, Higashi Oizumi 5-41-13
MAP: https://goo.gl/maps/jZtKFMhjv276LVwN8

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AZABU JUBAN: Abe-chan Yakitori Restaurant... they rebuilt the building! Attentive staff! (Sony RX100)

My friends always goto the nearby budget Torikizoki Yakitori spot with everything on the menu only being 298 yen... but after so many years of passing by both the old and newly rebuild Abe-chan it was time to head inside. 

Consists of 1F and 2F.

Didn't see any English menu's but did notice a filipina and hapa staff members... I assume there are a few bilingual wait staff here.  No worries.

Sapporo Red Star bottled beer 660yen. My fav. 

Motsu-nikomi (Stewed offal).. super tender meat with  tofu. Tasty!

Spicy shichimi seasoning if want a little kick. 

Liver... Very flavorful.

The chef at the main entrance.  Might be fun to sit at the counter directly in front of him.

Rice set 320 yen that includes pickled veggies and a light soup. 

This little old lady who must own the shop was so incredibly attentive.  Always took away our empty plates and aware of how much beer we had left... Service here was just so spot on friendly. 

Yakitori spots continue to use the same Ta-leh (seasoning) for years... there is a pot filled with sauce that the skewers are dipped into.  Seems the sauce has formed a huge black mass outside the pot.

Overall if you are in the area you gotta head to Abe-chan Yakitori... During our 1.5 hours there they only turned away one couple but if you don't mind waiting a few minutes tables open up quickly.  Unsure how big the 2F is but alot of folks did head upstairs.  

There is another sister shop nearby called Abe-chan Bekkan with less character... my visit in 2013.

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.com/2013/09/azabu-juban-abe-chan-annex-for-yakitori.html

Restaurant: Abe-Chan

Tabelog foodie: https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1307/A130702/13007199/

Yelp: Abe-chan Yelp Link

Address J: 東京都港区麻布十番2-1-1

Address E: Tokyo, Minato-ku, Azabu Juban 2-1-1
MAP: https://goo.gl/maps/ry5pSHASkyPEeKZf6

べちゃん 麻布十番店, 居酒屋, 焼鳥, 丼もの, 麻布十番駅, Japan, Japanese, Yakitori, bar, pub, izakaya, foodie, yelp, tokyobelly, sony rx100, lunch, dinner, roppongi, juban,