A very popular Japanese izakaya restaurant, Tokkuri-Tei has been on our list of places to visit for a while now. Located on Kapahulu Avenue next to Zippy’s, this small restaurant garners a lot of attention, and a lot of customers.

Inside Tokkuri-Tei

Tokkuri-Tei does not accept reservations later than 7:00PM. When we arrived the small parking lot outside the restaurant was packed, but Tokkuri-Tei offers a valet service for $3.00 to help customers overcome the parking challenge. After having the valets take the car, we stepped into the restaurant to find it was almost seated to capacity. We had reservations for 7:00, and took one of the few remaining tables.

The restaurant hangs its menus, which are very simply made of plastic page protectors, on a hook just above your table. The menu is packed with items from various categories from deep fried to hot pots. The little descriptions on the menu items are very entertaining at times, as many of them contain jokes or sarcastic comments.

For a first time customer the menu can be a bit daunting, so we enlisted the help of one of the servers to recommend a few dishes for us. Service is fast and efficient at Tokkuri-Tei, with the few servers running about checking on each table quite often. After our server made her recommendations, we placed our order and waited a few minutes before our food began to arrive.

Nasu Dengaku

One of our servers recommendations, and the first item to arrive at our table, was the nasu dengaku. This dish is described on the menu as a “miso painted dish with eggplant.” The eggplant was cooked through perfectly, still crisp on the outside but soft and tender inside. The “miso paint” was excellent, packing a very potent but delicious miso taste. The dish itself was presented very nicely, which I did not expect. Our server’s first recommendation was a good one!

Enoki Maki

The next dish that came was another recommendation. The enoki maki has two pieces of a skewered roll of pork and enoki mushrooms. These rolls are grilled and have a slight charred taste which I thought was great. The pork was very tender and flavorful, surrounding the soft and silky enoki mushrooms within. The dish was drizzled with a ponzu-like sauce which added a touch of tangy flavor. Another great recommendation!

Spider Poke

This poke dish was something that we had heard of prior to coming to Tokkuri-Tei. The Spider Poke was the 2000 Sam Choy’s Poke Contest winner. When I first pictured this poke, I imagined that it would come as a mix of ingredients. But when it arrived at our table so beautifully presented and wrapped into a crispy nori (seaweed), I was overly impressed by the presentation.

And this poke tastes just as great as it looks! The combination of fresh cuts of ahi (tuna) and the soft shell crab is wonderful. To top it off Tokkuri-Tei garnishes the dish with salmon roe and masago. Each piece is an explosion of fresh seafood flavors, with a wonderfully soft yet crunchy texture. This dish comes at a fairly high price of $16.00, but is worth every penny.

Spicy Cori Tofu

Yet another server recommendation, the Spicy Cori Tofu is a simple yet delicious dish. The cubed chunks of tofu are fried very well, retaining its moisture and soft interior while having a crisp exterior. The spicy sauce that was drizzled over the tofu complimented the mild taste of the tofu very well, with just a small spicy kick that makes this dish great.

Spicy Tuna Roll

After sampling the freshness of the ingredients used in the Spider Poke, I had to try at least one sushi roll from Tokkuri-Tei. The Spicy Tuna Roll comes with a generous portion of the tuna mixture inside a well seasoned sushi rice. The freshness of the tuna used in this sushi is apparent, and overall the flavors come together well.

Shishamo

The last recommended dish from our server was the grilled Shishamo. Shishamo is a small saltwater smelt that is typically grilled in Japanese cooking. These particular shishamo were prepared in the traditional Japanese fashion, and were filled with eggs. The perfectly grilled exterior of the fish and the crunchy eggs within make for a very simple combination of flavors, very reflective of traditional Japanese cooking.

Tori Karaage

No visit to an izakaya would be complete with sampling its tori (chicken) karaage. Tokkuri-Tei serves its karaage pipping hot. Each morsel of chicken was perfectly deep fried, leaving a crisp exterior while leaving the chicken within moist and juicy. A quick splash of lemon juice is a nice touch to this simple dish.

Salmon Ochazuke

I must say that my visit to Izakaya Nonbei got me back into eating ochazuke. And as I had been pleased so far with the quality of seafood at Tokkuri-Tei, I decided to get my ochazuke topped with salmon.

The ochazuke is a generous helping of rice and salmon in hot tea, topped off with shredded nori. This simple yet wonderfully comforting dish was delicious, and the taste of the salmon did not disappoint.

Final thoughts: Tokkuri-Tei certainly lived up to its reputation and the glowing recommendations I have received about it. All of our dishes were prepared well and served hot in a timely manner. Although the restaurant is not the most beautifully decorated, the quality of the food and service is more than enough to make Tokkuri-Tei an instant favorite of mine. The prices at Tokkuri-Tei are comparable to most izakaya-style restaurants, but the quality of the food sets it apart from many of its competitors. I wholeheartedly recommend Tokkuri-Tei to anyone looking for great Japanese cooking.

Tokkuri-Tei
611 Kapahulu Avenue Ste. 102 Honolulu, HI 96815
Phone: 808.739.2800