Are you familiar with gyoza? These are basically Japanese pan-fried dumplings. A crowd favorite, you will almost never meet anyone who doesn't love gyoza. With its origins in China, dumplings are a popular dish that Chinese people make and eat with their families during the New Year. In Japan, gyoza has gained widespread popularity throughout the country. It is something that is loved by all irrespective of age and gender. In this feature, we talk about a famous izakaya in the Iidabashi area of Tokyo called TOKYO Gyo-za AKARI (東京 Gyo-zaバル AKARI).
The most interested thing about this place is that you can get "All-You-Can-Eat Gyoza" just for 1,500 yen!
The entrance to the storefront is on the side of the building.
Look for the sign!
There are quite a lot of seats and it has a typical izakaya atmosphere with dim lights. You will be served an otoshi, an appetizer, as soon as you are seated.
Let's take a look at the details of the All-You-Can-Eat course which costs 1500 yen. You can choose from the following 6 gyoza flavors. 1. Original gyoza 2. Cheese tomato gyoza 3. Shrimp gyoza 4. Crispy fried gyoza 5. Crispy shrimp gyoza 6. Boiled gyoza
Conditions: - All-you-can-eat for 90 minutes (order within 60 minutes) 1500 yen, excluding VAT. - Includes an otoshi (appetizer). - Each person must order at least 2 drinks. - You can only order one dish at a time. - Leftovers are fined at 500 yen per dish. - Cannot combine with other coupons.
As you can see in the menu, there are plenty of gyoza to choose from. This shows the restaurant's signature dumplings that are particularly popular. The flavors range from curry to genovese, not really conventional or what you would expect over your dumplings.
The other options are also quite unique. There is even a coriander option. There has been a surge of coriander products as it has gained popularity in Japan.
On the table, you will find gyoza sauces and you can mix these according to your preferences.
The first dish that we ordered is the original gyoza topped with tomato cheese.
The gyoza are cooked to perfection—crispy on the base, soft on the top. The filling is piping hot.
The minced pork and chopped vegetables go well with the thick and chewy gyoza wrapper. Utterly delicious!
On top of the gyoza are tomato sauce and cheese; the creamy melty cheese and slightly sour-sweet tomato sauce work surprisingly well with gyoza.
The next dish that we ordered was mentaiko (pollock roe) mayonnaise and curry cheese. The rich umami flavor of mentaiko matches well with mayonnaise.
As for the cheese curry gyoza, there is a thick curry with chunks of boiled carrot and cheese topped on the gyoza. If you like Japanese curry, try this gyoza combination.
A must visit spot for gyoza lovers; enjoy a unique experience for a reasonable price.
TOKYO Gyo-za AKARI (東京餃子あかり) Due to the pandemic, timings may change without prior notice. Please check the official website for the latest updates. Official Website; Instagram
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