Outback Steakhouse

Rating: Not great
Meal: Dinner for 2
Price: 9800 yen
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Drinks, two prime rib meals (250g)
English Menu: Yes
Smoking:  Yes

I met a friend in Shinagawa and decided to take him to the Outback Steakhouse as I had never been to one here in Japan.  It was happy hour, so drinks were half off, thank goodness!

We both had the prime rib and while it was ok, it was certainly nothing special.  Definitely not worth the price.  I probably won't be back to one of these places again.  Also, smoking.

Maruha

Rating: OK
Meal:  Lunch for 2
Price: ~2000 yen
Payment: Cash only
Dishes: Buta-don, two meat plates, two soft boiled eggs
English Menu: No
Smoking: Not sure, but probably not

My son and I ate at this random place near the Okachimachi station (one stop south of Ueno station).  It was late and we just needed food, so we didn't look long.  I saw meat dishes and figured it would do.  It's got a ticket vending machine, no english, touch interface.  Took a bit to figure out, but we eventually got some things that looked edible.  This place says they specialize in Hokkaido cuisine, which might mean something to anyone who has been there, but for the purposes of this blog, it's just Japanese food.

Buta-don

My son said he quite liked his buta-don (pork rice bowl, a classic dish from the area we visited in the mid-west), and I made do with two platters of what I think was beef, and a couple of soft boiled eggs.  It was filling enough, but nothing special really.

Meat plates with eggs (and butter)

Torishin

Rating: OK
Meal:  Dinner
Price: 2600 yen
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Drink, yakitori
English Menu: No
Smoking: Yes

Met a friend near Kanzawa-Hakkei station last night.  Afterwards I looked around for a new spot to eat and found Torishin.  Hadn't had yakitori in a while so decided to give it a shot.  It was ok, not bad, but not great either.

Gintora

Rating: Not great
Meal: Dinner for 2
Price: 7700 yen
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Drinks, avocado, tamagoyaki, bacon, meat platter, roast beef don
English Menu: No
Smoking:  Yes

This is the restaurant that replaced Station Grill.  It is a barebones izakaya with dark, unadorned, black boxes in which you will be inserted.

I have no idea how the price got so insane...my son and I were not very impressed with this place.  The smoke and noise seeped in from all around.

My son's main dish, the roast beef don, took forever to arrive.  All the rest of the food was eaten for a good 10 minutes before it finally arrived.  When it did he took a couple bites and declared the meat tough and not worth eating.

The avocado was unripe.  The tamagoyaki unremarkable.  The meat dishes weren't bad.

Overall not a place we're likely to ever return to.

King Chicken and Burrito

Rating: OK
Meal:  Lunch
Price: 740 yen
Payment: Cash only
Dishes: Bulgogi burrito
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: N/A

King Chicken and Burrito is a stand restaurant, so no seating.  It's takeout only.  They have a couple of types of burritos and some fried chicken available.

I got a bulgogi burrito and took it home to eat.  It was pretty good, if a bit sweet.

It's nice to have a grab and go option in town that isn't a fast food restaurant.

Khan Pina

Rating: Very good
Meal: Lunch for 2
Price: 4460 yen
Dishes:  Tandoori meat sampler, 2 lassi, palak paneer, mutton biryani, paratha
Payment: Credit cards accepted, but only for dinner
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

Our church is now meeting in a new section of Ueno, and that means new options for lunch!  The parking lot we used was very close to an Indian restaurant, so I knew we had to try it out afterwards.  At first I thought perhaps this was a true Indian restaurant, until I spotted the Nepalese flag on the sign.  Still, we had to give it a shot.  We ordered off the main menu, but there was a lunch menu with very affordable lunch sets.

I'm glad we did!  On the menu were at least 3 kinds of bread, always a good sign.  I asked for a salty lassi and they waiter didn't bat an eye, another good sign.  The salty lassi was clearly made with care, including fresh spices which tasted delicious.

I ordered the tandoori meat sampler with three kinds of chicken tandoori, all of which were quite tasty.  My son's mutton biryani was chock full of whole spices and flavor, and while a bit tomato-y, it was still delicious, with the mutton being of about medium tenderness and good flavor.  My palak paneer was suitable, notably not sweet.  The paratha was made with brown flower and pretty thick, but again, not sweet!  We were unable to finish it all, but they had no problem packing the leftovers up to go.

Overall, we were quite impressed and look forward to trying it again some day with my wife.

Caspian

Rating: Very good
Meal: Dinner for 2
Price: 6400 yen
Dishes:  Soup, eggplant dip, yogurt drinks, kebab, lamb shank
Payment: Credit cards accepted
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No (yes outside)

Caspian is the first Iranian/Persian restaurant I've found in Japan since being here 8 years.  I've known about it for a while, but it's in an odd place that we almost never find ourselves, so I haven't been able to get it yet.  But yesterday was a Friday and my son and I had to go to Costco, so I thought we should drive a bit further to try this place out.

Dough

It's very nice inside, spacious, and has a totally different feel from most restaurants in Japan.  The staff appear to be Iranian and the dishes are legit.  They even have dough, the Iranian version of laban/ayran/lassi and it's salty!  Also, they have their own parking lot, with only 3 spaces, but still that's 3 more than most places!

Soup

There were so many great looking dishes, though sadly fessenjan was not among them.  My son had the basic kebab, which wasn't terribly expensive, and I had a lamb shank which also seemed well priced.  Of course, we ended up buying a few other things that elevated the price by the end, but it was worth it.

Eggplant dip

I did order a shisha, but I removed it from the price above.  This was a serious disappointment, I do not recommend getting their shisha.

Lamb shank

The food was all good, but under spiced, especially in the salt department.  Luckily there was salt on the table so that is easily rectified.  The lamb was super tender, falling off the bone, and the sauce was delicious.  The bread was great, thin, but still chewy, freshly made.  My son's kebab was pretty good, and it looks like they have some very interesting more expensive kebab options I'd like to sample next time.

Kebab

I'll definitely be returning with my wife when she gets back from her trip.