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Its been a long time since my last visit to Izakaya Den. Got a chance to visit again recently and finally remember to write a review about my dining e…
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A modern Japanese restaurant hidden in the basement on the corner of Russell and Little Collins. Descend down the stairs and follow the scent of smoki…
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Omg their black sesame creme brulee with orange peel is tooo good! Crack open the crunchy top layer of caramel/sugar to reveal the black sesame brulee…
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Izakaya Den is open for Casual Dining and Bar. Izakaya Den serves Japanese dishes. Incorrect or missing information? Make a report, or claim the restaurant if you own it!Details
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4 Reviews on “Izakaya Den”
Its been a long time since my last visit to Izakaya Den. Got a chance to visit again recently and finally remember to write a review about my dining experience.
You might miss the place since you need go down to the basement and find the entrance.
Like its name says, the restaurant offers traditional Japanese izakaya style dishes, which includes large selections of cocktail and Japanese wines and sake.
People just sat at the long, narrow cement and wood benches enjoying their Tokyo-inspired late snacking experience.
#salmon sashimi#-the nice sweet and tangy Yuzu vinaigrette made the fresh salmon sashimi shine, delicately melt in your month and loved the aftertaste of fragrant Yuzu.
#spicy agedashi tofu#-classic agedashi tofu with crispy coating and silky smooth tofu, the spicy and flavourful soup added extra depth to the dish.
#Den Fried chicken#-almost every table ordered this fried chicken dish. Not overwhelming,but good enough.
#special fried black rice#-not as great as expected. Black rice was not as tender as normal rice (lack of stickiness and chewy ness) but it had very distinct fragrance which I loved very much.
#grilled sweet potato and shiitake mushroom#-really mushy and nice sweet potato and perfectly char grilled mushroom, nice dish!
#tofu cake#-we had this tofu cake for dessert which served with raspberry and coconut ice cream. Umm…the texture of the cake was close to dense version of Japanese cheesecake. It was not really my cup of tea, I personally preferred more smooth and lighter texture. But the coconut ice cream came along was pretty nice and smooth.
The overall dining experience was good here, with quick and friendly service. Will I come back for more? Yes!
A modern Japanese restaurant hidden in the basement on the corner of Russell and Little Collins. Descend down the stairs and follow the scent of smokiness from the grills, and youll find yourself in a super funky Izakaya bar. We arrived at 5:30 on a Friday night and were able to get seats immediately, however by 6:30 the place was packed!
We were seated at the bar, which was a lovely experience in itself as we got to watch the chefs make all the dishes. You are normally given a drinks menu as well as an a la carte dinner menu – however, I do highly recommend that you request for the set menu, as I find that this allows you to sample a variety of different dishes and is worth more for the value. They offer 3 different sets – we decided to go with the Uemashita ($75pp) for the two of us.
The food came out relatively quickly – the dishes arrived individually but in order of starters to mains. Our set menu consisted of 15 different dishes, all of which were delicious! Some of the highlights of the night were:
– sweet corn kaki-age: crispy, sweet and delicious! The batter is very light, so it really allows the corn to shine. Just dont forget to dip it in the matcha salt which is served on the side – this wasnt explained to us by the chef, and due to the dim lighting we almost missed it! Definitely better with the salt though.
– den fried chicken: crispy and crunchy on the outside, and tender and juicy on the inside. So addictive, especially with that mayo sauce on the side!
– grilled fish of the day: I think the fish we had was cod.It was grilled to perfection, with nice smokey flavours.
– special black fried rice: what a delightful surprise! The black rice adds a nice chewy texture, very unique from your regular fried rice!
The two desserts which were part of our set menu were also delightful. We had:
– black sesame brle: I absolutely love creme brle, and black sesame is one of my favourite flavours. Put them together and you get the perfect dessert! A satisfying crispy sugar top, and a rich but not too heavy creamy brle underneath. The brle was a little watery in some areas, but other than that it was very nice!
– apple mille feuile: such a cute and simple dessert. Basically layers of dried apple and apple sorbet. Very refreshing, but nothing too special.
Overall, we had a lovely meal at Izakaya Den. The set menu was a very decent amount of food and we left feeling satisfied and happy. A great experience!
Omg their black sesame creme brulee with orange peel is tooo good! Crack open the crunchy top layer of caramel/sugar to reveal the black sesame brulee inside. Pair it with the orange peel to balance off the flavours. Delicious!
The most bland Japanese food I’ve had in a long time. I have no idea if it was the chef’s day off but nothing we ate justified the 4.6 rating. Drinks, service all very good but Japanese means flavours and none were apparent. Stick to saki and you’ll be OK.