Torikita — Restaurant in Nagahama

My earliest encounter with oyako-don was in the early 90s in Tokyo. Chanced upon a shop after work and it was my best. Despite being a noob back then (maybe still today), memories of it remained till today. It was that good. So, when I was told that the oyako-don here was highly rated, I was looking forward to reliving my memories. A somewhat “simple” dish; the dashi, egg, chicken and negi must be simmered together in good timing and then poured over a bowl of rice. The egg mustn’t be overcooked and the flavour of the dashi is key. It needs enough volume and flavour to bring the out each ingredient in the bowl. When I took my first bite here, the taste came very very close. What I felt lacking was the flavour of the dashi and not enough negi. I chose raw egg over cooked egg (you have an option). The remaining heat should lightly cook the egg making it still runny, which it was. On the whole, still up there among the best — but just a notch below Tokyo’s (which I have no recollection of the name of the shop, just that it was near the palace grounds). Btw, their kashiwa nabe is super good too! Maybe a little of this broth should be poured into the oyako-don… And just me being fussy, their table had a shelf beneath for storage which forced me to sit uncomfortably far from the table’s edge — because my knees...

(Trip was made back then on 29 Nov 2019, 2 years before the Covid-19 Pandemic hit)

Heard that this shop is famous for their oyakodon, so we popped in to give it a try.

What I liked about it was that the dashi they used to cook the egg and chicken with wasn’t overly salty. And the egg was cooked just right (still soft and wobbly).

The dish was very clean and fresh tasting. A simple, comforting...

The staffs were very friendly and attentive. I love the clean place and nice homy ambiance. It felt like home and hold many stories.

I ordered oyakodon with raw yolk on top. It had gentle seasoning aside from the tasty sauce. The yolk make the bowl creamy. Overall, the oyakodon was very comforting and better than many oyakodon in franchise restaurants. I didn’t even pour any...