Izakayas. They are a staple of Japanese cultural drinking. You are a salaryman and you have had a hard day at work. Where do you and your coworkers go when you clock out? To an izakaya to enjoy a beer and different kinds of Japanese comfort food. I have gone to many izakayas myself. Some great, some terrible, and some so great that I don't remember. But today's post isn't about some run of the mill izakaya you may find near your town's station. This place is fancy. It is a place you want to take your date too, or your boss for a business dinner, or your wife who's birthday was coming up and you had no idea where to go but your friend recommends the place and you're saved. (Thank you so much Naoko!) Today, I am talking about Hitachinaka's own Abusan.
Abusan
I know that I usually talk about burgers, ramen, and sweets, but hey I can be fancy too...on..occasion.
Abusan is located in the Kastsutacho area of Hitachinaka. It is behind the Apa Hotel which is near Katsuta station. I want to say that it is about a 10 minute walk from the station.
As I stated before, it was my wife's birthday weekend and it is thanks to our dear mutual friend that I found out about this place. When you get to Abusan, it feels like you are walking up to some rich person's house. Everything screams Japanese traditional washoku place from the outside. Then you open the door, take off your shoes, and walk to your table to find that it is a mix of traditional washoku with some fancy izakaya vibes.
Inside
The inside of this izakaya feels nice and homey. Our birthday group sat at an all wood table and started ordering drinks.
I usually talk about the menu but we didn't really order from the menu. We reserved a course dinner before hand so in this post, I will be talking about what came with our course. I left out the salad and soup.
Ibaraki Juo Nihonshu
I decided to go with hot nihonshu (sake) to start off with which is a bold move. Nihonshu on an empty stomach will not bode well for later in the night. I took a sip of my nihonshu and automatically loved it. It was delicious and it went down smooth. That nihonshu kept me warm the entire time I was in the restaurant. At the end of our meal, I was pretty buzzed. I checked where this nihonshu came from and it looks like it is an Ibaraki original. Juo, you are on my list as an amazing tasty nihonshu.
Oven Baked Crab Miso
Our course was under way. After our salad we were given this amazing looking dish. The waitress said it was an oven baked crab miso dip. She had me at crab. I grabbed one of the toasted baguette slices, dipped it in the sauce, and gave it a try. I immediately wondered if we could order four more servings of this amazing dip. The dip was so creamy and delicious. Not too heavy on the crab flavor or miso. It tasted and felt like Abusan got the mixture just right. I highly recommend getting this dip if you decide to visit Abusan. As for me, we couldn't order more dip that night, so it would have to wait for next time.
Sashimi
This is a fancy izakaya so of course sashimi would be in the course. This sashimi came with the usual. Shrimp, tuna, yellowtail (I believe) and a bunch of other fish that I was too buzzed to remember. I do remember that the sashimi was very fresh. I especially liked the tuna. Dipping that sashimi into some soy sauce, eating it, and then taking a sip of nihonshu is one of the most Japanese things you can do at an izakaya.
Tempura Pufferfish
Fugu, or pufferfish can be a bit scary to people outside of Japan. Reason being that if it is not prepared correctly you could get really sick. I have had sashimi style pufferfish before and honestly, I think it is OK. Abusan was the first time I ever had tempura style pufferfish and I can report that it is way better than sashimi style. Abusan does pufferfish right! Just sprinkle some salt on the tempura, squeeze a little bit of lemon, and you got a pufferfish tempura to remember. The small little crunch from the tempura with some of that soft pufferfish meat was something that made me sit back and enjoy life. Mix that with the amazing nihonshu I was drinking and it was washoku heaven. I really was never a huge fan of pufferfish, but I am a fan of Abusan's pufferfish.
Yaki Tori Momo
Our course also came with some yaki tori. This was momo, which means thigh meat. I grabbed one of these skewers and chomped down on a piece of chicken. I was shocked at how great the yaki tori tasted. Usually, izakaya yaki tori is OK, but this yaki tori was fantastic. The meat was so tender and juicy, I wanted four more skewers. This yaki tori would have earned a place at my top yaki tori list, if it wasn't for the sauce. There was way too much salt in there. It wasn't completely overwhelming but it is noticable. If Abusan rethinks their sauce, I think they may have some of the best yaki tori in Ibaraki.
Gyuharami
Next, we come to the skewered beef. Gyuharami is skirt steak, and Abusan's gyuharami is heavenly. Again, tender and juicy meat that you can just savor forever. But again, the sauce was too salty. Abusan, you almost have this. I still dream about how tender and delicious your beef and chicken were. But then my dream is interrupted by an uncapped salt shaker that drowns the meat.
Abusan was a lot of fun and I am happy to report that my wife had a very happy birthday. After our course was finished, it was time to go. I had had more than a few small bottles of nihonshu by the end of our course. When we were ready to leave, I confidently stood up feeling fancy, thanked everyone for coming, and stumbled to the exit which ended up being the restroom. No worries, I found the exit on my own, probably.
So if you have a fancy date, business dinner, or a special birthday of someone important to you coming up, why not give Abusan a chance. Who knows, you might see me there, with my bottle of nihonshu and my amazing pufferfish and miso crab dip.
Enjoy!
For more information on Abusan, check out their website:
A lot of events this weekend!
There are many events happening around Ibaraki this weekend! Here are a few you can check out:
Village Market Tsukuba will be holding their market at Kenkyugauken park on Sunday, April 23rd. A lot of delicious food and coffee to be had.
Marche 96 Bee will be held at School Square Park, near Tsukuba IIAS, this Sunday, April 23rd. A lot of different shops, food, drinks, and a truck that sells Cuban sandwiches! Come check it out.
FoodFoodFood is a, you guessed it, food event that is happening in Ishioka city this weekend, April 22nd and 23rd. Come check out different food trucks and stalls from all over Japan, and tacos!
Tsukuba Peony Garden should be in full bloom this weekend. Come check out the beautiful scenery and amazing flowers.
Kaihin Koen nemophila season is in full swing in Hitachinaka city. A hill full of blue nemophila flowers has been drawing in crowds for years. Unfortunately, this maybe the last weekend you can see the full sea of beautiful blue flowers. So don't miss it!
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