Totora — Restaurant in Tokyo

Mohawk and bowties for Ebisu nights

I am not sure why it has taken me so long to do this review, since I have been going to this Izakaya regularly for almost two years, and through all this time it has been consistently excellent. We often come to this place on Fridays, to start with a cold beer that tastes like the end of the week.

The manager is a fantastic chef, with a Chinese high cuisine background - you will recognise him for a very unique mowhak hairstyle that really stands in perfect shape all night long. Like a good coach to a team, he makes the environment in Totora a cool and relaxed place, improved with the staff (with bowties) that he works with.

To get into what we all look for in a review: this restaurant has a menu changing with seasonal specials (like shirako in the winter and saba in the autumn), and some dishes that stay all year round. The cuisine has a Japanese base, with dishes like chawamushi and excellent sashimi of seasonal fish directly brought from Tsukiji. It also has a strong Chinese cuisine influence, that you can find in spring rolls (made in front of you in that moment) or chinese yodare dori (chicken).

We always share everything, and the ideal order for us would start with a couple of totora classics, like Chinese style shrimp with mayonnaise and sashimi, followed with a boar meat shumai, or grilled eel. To finish with the shime (Japanese style closing with your share of carbs, just in case you are still hungry), you can order rice made in the traditional kama style or some delicious soba noodles. If it is the rice you want, make sure you order it early because they slow simmer it to bring out the best flavour.

We usually drink sake to go with the Japanese food, but they also have a selection of wines.

The consistency and the care for quality, and the fact that over time this has become the place in our neighbourhood that we can go knowing that they will always make room for us, and serve us fantastic food, are the reasons why I gave Totora 5 stars. It is a fantastic restaurant and it has become a highlight of our...

We were walking around Ebisu, trying to find a nice place to have dinner. The exterior of Totora beckoned to us and we decided to see if we could get a seat. Luckily we were given a spot at the counter and were able to watch a master chef and his talented crew deliver a fabulous dinner for us and, from the looks of it, for everyone else around the counter as well. Tommy, the chef and owner, speaks English well but we decided to leave everything in his hands and he proceeded to provide us with one delicious dish after another. We had a great time! One of the staff members speaks Spanish so we were able to have a short conversation with him as well. Trying to use our poor Japanese, mixing it with English and Spanish made it an interesting...

I was staying nearby and found this restaurant while searching Tabelog and Google for places to eat. I was easily able to make a booking a day or two ahead via Google. When we arrived we were warmly greeted and seated at the counter. Tommy, the chef/owner, and his team were wonderful! They were so kind and understanding of our inability to speak and read Japanese. We enjoyed several dishes including sashimi, tuna, namul, pickled vegetables, tempura, and a pork dish all with a few carafes of sake. Every dish was delicious and made with such attention to detail. The restaurant was buzzing and filled when we arrived. It definitely seemed to be a popular spot to eat! I would love to come back here next time...