Hachi is the name of the restaurant – translates to the number ‘8’.
Yakitori are japanese ‘Shish Kabobs’ grilled on a special imported Binchotan charcoal.
Izakaya are small plates like you would find at a Spanish Tapas bar. They also have the traditional Sushi, Ramen, Katsu selections but we wanted to try some other items not commonly seen.
If you are going to have a cheat day on the diet – make it a real cheat day and go big. Real Chicago pizza is hard to find outside of Chicago.
I am a big fan of bibimbap ever since i tried it in San Francisco at Surisan (along with their Millionaire’s bacon but that is another story). There are a number of quick serve ‘build your own’ bibimbap places around the country now. What caught my eye here is they have the option of putting it in a stone bowl. They heat the bowl up to the temperature of magma and all your items caramelize in the bowl. Never saw rice cake carbonara on a menu before and I would definitely get it again.
The old Evan’s has reopened as the Dam Bistro in town. Remodel looks good. The eggplant caprese salad itself is worth the trip. They use pesto in lieu of basil leaves and use crispy breaded eggplant. Pork Chop with Apples, Sage, Sprouts, on pureed squash was also very good. Not dry at all. Linguini and clams had a good sauce. Give it a try if you are in town.
First time to Monta Chaya. Overall it is solid but not magical. Spicy Tonkostu is pretty standard. Chashu was good but not super tender. Shishito peppers are always good to see on a menu.
Jinya is still the place to beat in town, unfortunately they don’t have shishito peppers. Ramen Kobo is by far the hottest ramen I have ever had in my life. Tajima in San Diego or Danbo in Seattle are probably still at the top of the list. So far.
The Mint Indian Bistro is the best Indian food we have found so far in the area. Last night was the Mango Masala, Chicken Vindaloo, Pagoda, Naan, and Mango Lassi. 5 out of 5 stars as always. The lamb rogan josh, biryani, and korma are also reliably wonderful. Put this place in your restaurant rotation.
