Takashima

At Takashima, the signature katsudon pairs a pork cutlet laid over rice—not simmered with the egg—with egg seasoned in dashi. Visitors describe a satisfying mix of textures and flavours: crisp coating, soft, creamy egg and the savoury taste of the broth absorbed into it. One account mentions a thick pork cutlet spread across the rice, with some of its coating still crisp and other parts softened by the egg. It is a hearty choice when you want to make the house speciality the focus of your meal.

For a meal that includes noodles, the katsudon can be ordered as an “value set” with a small bowl of udon or soba. Choose the rice bowl on its own or add noodles to suit your appetite. Set meals include a mixed-fry plate of fried shrimp, cream croquette and white-fish fry with homemade tartar sauce, as well as grilled mackerel or salmon. Another rice-bowl option is konoha-don, an egg bowl with additions mixed in, offering an alternative to the fried set meals.

Noodles can take centre stage, too, with herring soba topped with sweet-simmered herring, or chilled grated-daikon soba. Takashima is in Ichijoji Akanomiya-cho. Its listed hours are 18:00–23:00, Monday to Saturday; it is closed on Sundays. With katsudon, set meals, soba and udon on offer, there are several ways to put together an evening meal.