Text by Bassey

When you need a big, hearty meal to boost your spirits, katsudon is what you eat.

Well, it's not limited to just those kinds of situations.

This time, we'll introduce the top 5 tonkatsu restaurants in Tokyo: "Tonkatsu Enraku," "Tonkatsu Suzushin," "Niigata Katsudon Tarekatsu Main Store," "Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin," and "Koharuken."

For some reason, I get restless while waiting for my katsudon. I imagine my favorite tonkatsu (pork cutlet) being simmered with onions in a dashi broth and egg. There's no time that could make me happier.

That said, it must be noted that katsudon in Tokyo has become quite diverse recently, with as many as four different varieties available.

① Traditional katsudon with egg

② A crispy katsudon without egg

③ Tarekatsu Don

④ A katsudon (pork cutlet rice bowl) from a high-end tonkatsu restaurant, with a thick pork cutlet on top of an egg.

The author accepts options ① and ③. I'd rather not have ② or ④. I don't understand what's so good about them. Wouldn't it be better to just eat a regular tonkatsu set meal? Needless to say, my favorite is ①.

I wholeheartedly agree with the "three ideal principles" for katsudon as articulated by a great master of tonkatsu. These are the "three principles": "freshly fried, thin, and with the lid closed." Closing the lid and letting it steam for a moment creates a sense of unity.

Ideally, the pork cutlet in a katsudon should be freshly fried, not too thick, placed on top of simmered onions, then covered with a slightly runny egg, the batter soaking up the broth and becoming soft and chewy, and then covered and steamed for a bit.

Because it's one of the top tonkatsu restaurants in Tokyo.
The katsudon is also excellent!"Tonkatsu Enraku".

It's "Tonkatsu Enraku." It's the restaurant I chose as the best tonkatsu restaurant in Tokyo two years ago. In terms of genre, it's number 1.

(Please read the following regarding tonkatsu.)
"Tonkatsu Enraku" will be the number one restaurant in 2024）

This shop remains as honest as ever. You can really feel the owner's dedication in how he cuts the cabbage in batches of about three servings each time.

Last time, when I went in right when they opened, all the customers who came after me were ordering "katsudon," "katsudon," so I was extremely curious about it.

They were frying the pork cutlets right in front of me. After a short wait, a beautifully presented katsudon (pork cutlet rice bowl) with egg on top arrived.

In any case, the deliciousness of the tonkatsu is guaranteed. The cutlet is thick, yet the batter sticks to it so well that it hardly peels off, which is impressive. It's a little thicker than my ideal, but it's delicious so I'll forgive it. There's a generous amount of onion, and on top of that sits the cutlet, which is covered in egg. It's served without a lid. It's a little disappointing that it's not steamed with a lid, but the batter has absorbed plenty of the broth.

The broth isn't too sweet, it's just right. The white rice is firm, which is a good thing. There's plenty of broth, so much that it pools at the bottom of the rice. The pork miso soup and pickled vegetables are also delicious. So, there's nothing to complain about. Next time, I'd like to try the pork cutlet rice bowl.

Everyone will agree
The best katsudon in Tokyo is"Tonkatsu Suzushin" is the place to go.

As usual, I visited well-known katsudon and soba restaurants. However, I couldn't find anything good. The pork was either smelly, smelled frozen, was too thick, or too greasy, so I couldn't find anything that satisfied me.

However, this "Suzushin" is one of the first places that comes to mind when you talk about katsudon in Tokyo, and after taking a bite, I thought, "This is it, this is what I've been looking for." It definitely falls into category ①.

This is an old shop located in a secluded spot in Yotsuya Arakicho. I've passed by it many times, but this is my first time going inside.

The interior is dimly lit and not very tidy (laughs). It seems to have many regulars. The owner constantly engages in conversation with customers, but his gaze is sharp as he focuses on the pot. From his craftsman-like demeanor, I instinctively knew this place was a good find.

After waiting a while, the katsudon arrived, and wow, it was properly covered!

When I opened the lid, I saw a golden-colored pork cutlet glistening with egg! Some parts were still slightly undercooked.

I immediately took a bite, and the batter had absorbed plenty of the broth and become soft. I love this chewy texture. My teeth crunched into the carefully fried cutlet. It was incredibly tender and easy to bite. The meat had a sweet flavor. And then the broth from the batter and the creaminess of the egg came on top, making it irresistible.

The onions underneath aren't overcooked; they're still slightly crisp, which is great. The white rice is firm and high-quality, and moistened with just the right amount of broth.

The meal comes with pork miso soup, four kinds of pickles, and kinpira gobo (braised burdock root) on the side. What a thoughtful restaurant! I was impressed.

By the way, this restaurant actually has three types of katsudon, which they call the "Three Katsudon Brothers": "Simmered Katsudon," "Kake Katsudon," and "Sauce Katsudon." The restaurant recommends the second one, the crispy "Kake Katsudon," which is not topped with egg.

Looking around the restaurant, it seems all three types are available. The "sauce katsudon" served with grated daikon radish also looked delicious.

Even katsudon fundamentalists have tried it at least once
To "Niigata Katsudon Tarekatsu Main Store"I really want you to go and check it out.

In terms of genre, it's number 3, a katsudon with sauce but without the egg. There's a branch in the used bookstore district of Jinbocho that I've been curious about, but this time I decided to go to the main store. This was the right choice.

It's about a 3-minute walk from JR Suidobashi Station. It's a very popular restaurant, so it gets quite crowded during lunchtime. It's open from 11am until 10pm without a break, so if you visit a little outside of lunchtime, you can get in without waiting.

While waiting for my bowl, I read the instructions on the table.

"Waton Mochibuta: We use 'Waton Mochibuta,' a domestic brand of pork mainly produced in Niigata, and carefully coat each slice with breadcrumbs by hand in our shop before deep-frying it in pure lard until crispy."

"100% Niigata-grown Koshiibuki rice: Our rice is made with Niigata-grown 'Koshiibuki' rice, cooked slightly firm with 'delicious water'."

"Natural Yeast Organic Soy Sauce: This is a secret sauce made by adding sugar and a special broth daily to the finest Shimosa soy sauce brewed with natural yeast."

You can see their dedication to quality and their meticulous cooking. In the kitchen, the young man is constantly pounding pork tenderloin.

I ordered the "Vegetable Cutlet Rice Bowl." It consisted of two pork cutlets and fried vegetables.

The katsudon arrived looking exactly like the picture in the restaurant. First, the pork cutlet: it had been pounded flat and fried to a crisp, just as described. Hmm, the sauce wasn't too sweet, which was nice. Oh wow, this is really tasty! Because it's flat, it's very easy to eat.

The vegetables are broccoli, baby corn, eggplant, pumpkin, and cherry tomatoes, and they make a good balance when eaten between bites of pork. Instead of shrimp tempura, there's pork cutlet, so it's like a fried version of tempura rice bowl.

On the table were pickled ginger, Japanese mustard, sansho pepper, and shichimi spice, and I particularly like adding the Japanese mustard.

I don't need sansho pepper or shichimi spice. The rice with plenty of broth is delicious, and the wakame miso soup is also delicious.

Therefore, this restaurant is absolutely fantastic. You should definitely try it at least once.

Finally, I'd like to add that the service is impeccable. The staff use polite language and pay close attention to details like refilling glasses of water. This must be a reflection of the owner's philosophy. It's very pleasant. There were also several women dining alone. You can't go wrong with a place like this.

Speaking of katsudon that represents Tokyo...
It's "Tonkatsu Ginza Umebayashi".

This is another restaurant that represents katsudon in Tokyo. Founded in 1927, it's apparently the first tonkatsu specialty restaurant in Ginza. Lately, with the help of inbound tourism, the lines are incredibly long, so you'll be in for a rough time if you don't get in line a little early.

The cheapest katsudon starts at 1400 yen, but they also have a katsudon for 3000 yen, which is probably the most expensive in Tokyo. This time, I ordered the special fillet katsudon for 2700 yen. This is because I think fillet katsu is more suitable for katsudon than loin katsu. When loin is made into katsu-ni (simmered pork cutlet), the fatty part is a bit too greasy and feels slightly off.

And so, the magnificent special pork cutlet rice bowl arrived, steaming under the lid. The pork cutlet was thoroughly cooked and quite thick. As a result, the pork flavor was very pronounced.

The broth is a good balance of sweet and spicy, and there aren't many onions. There's only one egg, so it feels a bit sparse. If you order the "special," you get a soft-boiled fried egg on top, making it two eggs in total. That might have been a better choice.

Well, it's not something that will blow you away, but it's not disappointing either; it's a decent katsudon.

White rice is free up to a large serving, and it's cooked to a firm consistency, which makes it delicious. The miso soup is red miso soup, and the pickles are tasty, but there's not much of them. The tea doesn't have much flavor, but they refill it frequently, so they have a great service spirit.

The pork cutlet with demi-glace sauce is unlike anything else.
"Koharuken" is an old shop, and so are its customers.

This is a restaurant with a long history. After all, the first owner, Kojima Tanejiro, was the head chef at the residence of Yamagata Aritomo, a prominent figure of the Meiji era. He became independent after marrying his wife, Haru, and named the restaurant "Koharuken" after their names. How stylish! This was in 1912 (Meiji 45).

Our restaurant is considered one of the "Big Three Western-style Restaurants in Ningyocho," and we have a wide variety of fried food on our menu. The restaurant is old, so the customers are old too (laughs). There are a lot of old men here, and they're eating set meals with minced meat cutlets, croquettes, and hamburgers from lunchtime onwards, so they're quite energetic.

While some customers are eating oyster fry rice or minced meat cutlets, about half are ordering the "Koharuken Special Katsudon." It's a rare find even in Tokyo, as it's a katsudon with demi-glace sauce. In terms of genre, this also falls under category ③.

First, the perfectly cooked sunny-side-up egg is striking. Beneath it lie five or six small pork loin cutlets coated in sukiyaki sauce. The surface is also sprinkled with diced potatoes, carrots, onions, and bell peppers simmered in the sukiyaki sauce.

What's distinctive is the broth, which has demi-glace sauce added as a secret ingredient. That's what makes it a katsudon from a Western-style restaurant.

The small size of the pork cutlet makes it easy to eat. You'll appreciate the rich flavor of the demi-glace sauce, which is different from a regular katsudon with sauce. When you break the soft-boiled egg, the yolk flows out. It's best to mix it with the cutlet and eat it that way. Well, I introduced it as a variation on katsudon.

There are two things that bothered me a little. The white rice was a bit sticky. Actually, the rice is very important in a donburi dish, and this rice was a failure, so I hesitated whether to introduce it or not (was it just that it was not in good condition that day?), but I included it because there's nothing else like it.

Also, while the clam miso soup was good, I wish they'd included some pickles or something similar. I'd give a thumbs up to the waitress for being very efficient and pleasant.

Oh, that's right. The portion of rice is very small, so you might find it unsatisfying. I ordered a single minced meat cutlet on the side, and that made it just right.

Author profile

Bassey is a foodie who has been eating around for over 40 years. In addition to Japan, he regularly goes to Hong Kong to eat Chinese food at his own expense, and also travels to Taiwan, Singapore, Bangkok, and Seoul for delicious food. During his time as the editor-in-chief of a travel magazine, he visited many Michelin-rated restaurants around the world, especially in Europe, and later on in the World's Best 50 restaurants. We want everyone who loves food to try ``Crab Miso Bean Paste Noodles'' from ``Tenkorou'' (Hong Kong). Actually, I like the Chinese food at this restaurant the best in the world. Another example of the best Western food is "El Seger de Can Roca" from Girona, Spain, which was ranked number one on the World's Best 50 list. Ah, I want to go there again.