Ootoya

Woah, it's finally cool and breezy outside again, and if I don't think too hard about the smell of lingering trash, it almost feels like summer time in Seattle. So anyway, this new Japanese restaurant finally opened down the block from work, Ootoya. I think this restaurant has locations all over the world, so some people were really hyped about it. It's great! I took it as a good sign that lots of people around me were speaking Japanese and that our hostess didn't really seem to speak anything except Japanese. I feel like if I'm not eating Japanese food that isn't sushi or ramen, I'm eating mediocre to soggy tempura, overly fried tonkatsu, really salty miso soup, or too much cabbage with kewpie mayonaise... I mean, am I right guys?? I think I know a lot more about good Japanese food (outside of sushi) in theory than I do in practice. So I was really pumped. And Yasu said it was really good and I trust him.

Katsu don (tonkatsu/breaded pork on rice with an egg)

The best part about this was that the runny, half cooked yolk made the rice get all creamy and but not eggy tasting (for all you weirdos who don't like eggs??). Plus mixed with the salty, crunchy pork and soy sauce, it was some lunch. The whole lunch set was huge! You can see in the top picture it came with pickled vegetables, steamed egg, and miso soup.

 David's rice bowl with all sorts of sashimi