We’ve been visiting a lot of restaurants I haven’t been to in years…Izakaya Nonbei is one of them! For those who are regulars, they went through a renovation right? It looks VERY different from the last time I came here! We came for an early dinner one night before a UH game – made me wonder why I don’t come here more often!

Truffle Fries | $7.00

Fries? Truffle? I’m there. I picked at this all night, very glossy because it’s very greasy. Didn’t taste too greasy, I just know it wasn’t healthy lol.

Tako Wasa | $6.50
raw octopus marinated with wasabi

I’m glad we dined with other people so I got to try dishes I wouldn’t necessarily order myself. This was a wonderful dish. Small dish but perfect pupu to eat, wasabi is nice and refreshing.

Agedashi Tofu | $8.50
nonbei signature crisped fried tofu served in a house-made broth, topped with grated mountain yam

Good dish! Never had agedashi tofu with this kind of crust before. I enjoyed it!

Karei Karaage | $26.00
nonbei signature whole crisp fried flounder served fileted with ponzu sauce

I think every table orders this dish. People love it because the bones are fried enough to eat like chips. I only ate a piece of the fish which was good. I didn’t nibble on the bones but my fellow diners sure did!

Stamina Tororo | $21.00
mountain yam, ahi, uni, natto & quail egg

I love this kine dish, I don’t know if I got to try it this time. We had too much food!

Tempura Soba (Cold) | $15.00
cold soba served with shrimp and shiso tempura (hot or cold)

This was the dish all for myself. You already know I love noodles…and they make awesome tempura. Basic dish but oh so good, delicious!

Nasu Kinoko | $14.00
nonbei signature sauteed medley of mushrooms and eggplant with a special butter-based sauce

I don’t usually like eggplant so I almost didn’t try this. Thank god I did, the mushrooms and eggplant in this dish are absolutely wonderful! I’m starting to think I actually like Japanese eggplant? It’s not mushy in the middle like other eggplants – the butter soy based sauce is wonderful. Give me a bowl of rice and this dish and I would be a happy camper!

Hotate (Scallop) Nigiri (2pcs) | $13.00
Maguro Sashimi | $23.00

Wafu Steak | $30.00
nonbei signature NY steak with special garlic and onion sauce

Another signature dish! It’s great dining with a couple of other people…I get to try all the different dishes! This was good, not great. Mainly because any steaks served on a hot plate will then be overcooked. Other than that, it was a good dish!

Yes yes, another sushi restaurant! We had a few celebrations in the past few months but this one was special. This was our first visit to Amaterasu Sushi and it was for Chan’s birthday! Very small sushi restaurant and it is $150 per head for the omakase. They opened recently in Ala Moana Shopping Center, they are located in the former Jack in the Box/Arby’s location…so it’s a bit hard to find if you don’t know. I tried my best to take notes but you might just be looking at a lot of pictures of good sushi!

Maine Lobster, Blue Crab with Kani Miso and Amaebi (Chan’s)

Maine Lobster, Blue Crab with Kani Miso and Chutoro (Mine!)

As you know, I have an allergy to raw shrimp so I couldn’t partake in the amaebi but thankfully they are always willing to substitute for me. Lobster, good. Blue crab and kani miso, oh my god yes. Chutoro, very nice slice of fish.

Striped Jack (Shima-aji) brushed with a star anise sauce

I really enjoyed the addition of star anise in the sauce, it gives it that spice kick that I enjoy.

Not pictured – Tai Snapper (Red Seabream)
Not picture – Chutoro Tuna (I forgot to take pic!)

Flounder Fin with Shiso

Hands down, my favorite dish of the night. Who knew flounder could be so good? Flounder fin meat specifically. In fact, here is two pics because I ordered it one more time! So good, I like the flavor torching brings. Just a perfect dish!

Kisu (Japanese Whiting) Tempura with Mojo(?) Salt and Lemon

Fried light and crispy – beautiful piece of fish fried to perfection. Loved the sprinkling of salt and lemon on top.

Chawan Mushi
shiitake, shrimp, ikura, crab

I love chawan mushi! And my goodness, how can you go wrong when it’s filled with all this? It tasted wonderful. It was made with love by a mama-chan in the back kitchen.

Hokkaido Scallop with Yuzu Salt

The sweet and soft flesh of the scallop is offset by a punch of yuzu and dash of salt. It all works so well to offset one another!

Not pictured – Blue Fin Maguro with Jalapeno (I forgot!)

Otoro Fatty Tuna

I don’t have much comments on the taste of this, it was good! And he sliced it in an interesting pattern and it was seared.

Hokkaido Uni

You know it’s good quality uni when it’s rich and sweet. I’ve had uni that is bitter and that ain’t it! They serve the good stuff.

Kauai Shrimp with Uni Garlic Sauce

One of the favorites of the night. Love shrimp and uni garlic sauce? Where do I sign up?? It was great.

Negitoro with Daikon Handroll

Loved the negitoro and he diced up the daikon small within the roll which added a nice crunch. They use the best nori so it’s super crispy when you bite into it!

Anago

Miso Soup

Yummy miso soup to end the meal with the Kauai Shrimp head, no can lose!

Chan’s Ala Carte Order – I forget what it was lol

All in all, it was a great dining experience. A bit expensive especially for drinks. You might as well bring your own bottle, because it’s a $35 corkage fee while the alcohol on their menu are sold by the bottle so they’re all $100+. Unless you’re okay with beer, the price of that isn’t too bad and it’s on tap. They have a wonderful green tea which I chose, it is brewed fresh and there is no additional fee for the green tea!

Funny story, we were dining next to a couple who were a bit obnoxious. The male was just a very flashy talkative and LOUD Chinese guy. The first fauxpas? He asked for wasabi and shoyu right off the bat. Then during the whole entire meal, he kept requesting for more and more wasabi and shoyu. It was insane, at one point, his shoyu plate just looked like wasabi paste and I swear he was just eating the wasabi by itself. I didn’t realize until deep into the meal that the wasabi was actually fresh wasabi the taisho was grating for him and I felt even more awful! That is so expensive! The guy at one point says, I love wasabi and the chef says, I can tell. I think he was too polite to say no but I think he should have charged him extra! That’s so awful to take advantage. Anyway, other than the wasabi eating champion ruining the ambience, it was a nice meal!

Yup! Back again at Tonkatsu Tamafuji – we were lucky enough to join in a friend’s reservation! It was still a 4:00 PM dinner lol. They changed their reservation system a bit, I heard that they now only take 2 months ahead of time – not sure when they open the times. Previous Tamafuji posts here and here.

Left: Clam & Green Onions Miso Soup, Right: Red Miso Soup

Hokkaido brand Nanatsuboshi with gloss and sweetness of rice

Jyukusei Pork Loin Katsu Set (300g) | $33.50

Oyster Katsu (3pc) & Pork Tender Loin Katsu (2pc) Set | $31.50

This was my dish and boy did I enjoy it. It was SO good. What do you think that white thing on the right side of the plate is? Silly me, I thought upon first glance that it was like some kind of fried fish cake and got excited. It’s just the empty oyster shell (ha!). The oysters were cooked perfectly, nice and fresh and I love tartar sauce so it was perfect with the oysters. The smaller pieces of pork tender loin katsu was so juicy and tender – I really enjoyed it. I just did my post on Tonkatsu Kuro yesterday and I think both are great, Tamafuji edges out in taste just by a little. But the reservation system and parking for Kuro is much better and I don’t have to eat dinner at 4PM. But hey, if I can jump on someone’s reservation for Tamafuji – I’m down! Excellent meals at both restaurants.

At this time of writing, Tonkatsu Kuro is having their soft opening. Yet another new restaurant in the new Ward condo village. They are right next door to Nori Bar for those who know. I liked that they have reservations on Open Table so we made our reservation before it got super busy. They are currently only open for dinner but I’m sure they would expand later as they settle in, and I certainly hope they also expand their menu soon too!

Love the aesthetic interior! Very modern and sleek.

Salt, Katsu Sauce, Goma (Sesame) Dressing, Ponzu Sauce

iPad Ordering System! There are a lot of wait staff around who are very attentive. If you’ve seen the videos, you’ve always seen the robots “serving” food. Well, all they do is load the robots up and then the waiter comes and unloads the food onto your table. I was wondering how it would work!

Tiny Mortar and Pestle with Sesame Seeds. I say tiny because it is very small compared to Tamafuji lol.

Kuro Soba & Half Katsu | $25.00

Kuro Soba
chilled buckwheat noodles in a cold tsuyu broth

The soba noodles are perfectly cooked, small bit of bite in it. Perfect texture and perfectly seasoned tsuyu broth. I loved it! They do have katsu sets with rice but I really love noodles. I love this option – Tamafuji does not have a noodle option.

Half Katsu
tenderloin (60g) & shrimp (1 pcs)

This was so good! The set was actually very filling. The tenderloin was…well…tender! Juicy and perfectly cooked. The panko crust is crispy but not too thick. The shrimp is great. Big plump shrimp, also fried to perfection. They serve the shrimp katsu with a garlic aioli type sauce, not tartar sauce which was a surprise but a good surprise!! The entire set was delicious.

Free Cabbage Refill

They allow you to order two free cabbage refills – love the cabbage with the goma dressing. All in all, it was a great experience. The wait staff were attentive and the food came out quickly – all perfectly cooked. They did very well in soft opening – will definitely return!