Japanese ITO Noodle Cafe
Phone 9663 2788
ITO cafe is another great spot at the top end of town for a quick lunch at not too stupid prices. It is part Japanese cafe, part American diner, meaning you can either plonk yourself at the counter/bar or plonk yourself in a booth.
All your regular Japanese staples are offered, such as ramen, udon, donburi, sushi, tonkatsu, suki yaki, teriyaki, curry, tempura, gyoza etc. There are lunch sets for those who want a little of everything (like me), which is what the little salmon steak number is above.
Three slices of teriyaki salmon (thin) sizzle on a hot plate along with steamed broccoli, tomato and Japanese potato salad. It is accompanied by a white miso soup and steamed rice. For dessert, three slices of fresh melon.
They also do a very tasty (albeit quite unfortunate looking) katsu curry don, which is panko crumbed pork fillet, deep fried and smothered (swimming?!?) in curry sauce. This is Japanese comfort food at its finest.
Service is super polite, though you might find yourself left alone once your meal/drinks have arrived. And the place can get rather busy during peak times, so make sure you arrive earlier rather than later to nab a seat. All up, it’s not going to wow you with its originality. But what it does do, it does well.
Written by mellie on
March 5th, 2007 | Tags: cafes, Japanese, restaurants | Category: Uncategorized
| 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
| Subscribe to comments | Leave a comment | Trackback URL
March 8th, 2007 at 6:57 am
That looks amazingly good.
March 9th, 2007 at 12:41 am
Uh huh…it is pretty darn good, more so because it is super simple and somewhat healthy. It is the kind of meal you would make for yourself at home.
March 11th, 2007 at 8:14 am
Hey Mellie,
I’ve tagged you for a meme! No obligation, of course - I’ll still come visit here regardless.
March 12th, 2007 at 9:05 am
I love ITO! We always make a special trip to the city just for the ramens. I must admit that I can’t remember ever trying anything there apart from the ramens. Hmm.. must try that salmon bento you had next time I’m there.. if I can distract myself from the ramen section.
March 12th, 2007 at 11:25 am
This place looks great. I wish I worked closer to ITO’s. Maybe I’ll make a special trip up that side of town.
March 13th, 2007 at 6:13 am
I love Ito! It’s one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in the city… Great photos!
March 13th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
Hi Cindy - thanks for the tag to the vegetable meme. All done!
Hey ilingc - I haven’t tried their ramen yet, only the vegetarian/tofu udon (which was great!). I must tackle that one on my next visit. Thanks for the tip
G’day cherrie pie - uh huh, I know your pain. It’s terrible when there are so many places to visit “on the other side of town”. My advice, take longer lunches!!
Hi Kazmic - thank you for the compliment. BTW, what’s your favourite dish at ITO?
March 14th, 2007 at 7:22 am
yay, this blog is awesome… for future review, why not try Murasaki on Russel street, Torimatsu on king street or the real jap; Izakaya Chuji on Lonsdale
March 14th, 2007 at 10:41 am
Hey oliver - thanks for your compliment and tips! I love Izakaya Chuji (in fact, going there later in the week!), but am yet to blog it. Perhaps I’ll do so on this visit. And I’m yet to try Murasaki or Torimatsu - so I’ll put those ones on my list too
May 2nd, 2007 at 3:16 am
I thought the ‘unfortunate looking’ comment on the Katsu Curry was a bit odd. It looks that way wherever in the world you get it. At least at Ito it tastes nicer than most others and after living in Japan and being a regular curry eater for quite a while I can attest to that.
May 2nd, 2007 at 4:46 am
Hey random dude - I meant “unfortunate looking” because it really doesn’t look that appetising, despite the fact it tastes great. Katsu curry don doesn’t need to look like someone has had carrot chunk diarrohea on a plate, which is what this ITO version unfortunately reminds me of.
I don’t mean any disrespect. I love katsu curry don!