続、呼塚の男
Title: "2022 July Hokuriku Touring Part 3, All-You-Can-Eat Rice! A Restaurant Guaranteed to Make You Gain Weight If It Were Local"
It's the first night of the "First Hokuriku Tour" in July 2022. I chose a route that starts in Osaka and goes counterclockwise to explore Hokuriku, so I am currently in Osaka. This is my fourth time visiting Osaka this year, but as usual, after taking care of some errands, I was looking for dinner along Sakaisuji street when I stumbled upon Yayoiken in front of the subway station. The ginger pork set meal on the menu caught my eye as it was priced at 640 yen, so I decided to give it a try. I arrived at the restaurant on Friday at 7:21 pm, and it was about 30% full inside. The seating areas were separated by high partitions, making it difficult to see the surroundings, which is a plus for solo diners. I purchased a meal ticket from the machine - the ginger pork set meal for 640 yen! And the best part? All-you-can-eat rice! There was also a soy meat version available, but I opted for the regular version with meat. The meal arrived in about 4 and a half minutes, which was surprisingly fast. I would rate it a 10 out of 10.
Salad: 8 points - The salad with sesame dressing consisted of cabbage, carrots, purple cabbage, and was pretty standard shredded cabbage.
Miso soup: 6 points - The miso soup with seaweed and spring onions was decent but nothing special.
Tofu: 5 points - The portion size was small, and it was just average.
Rice: 8 points - The quality and cooking of the rice were decent. But when eaten with the ginger pork, it was incredibly delicious! The fact that you could get free refills was a nice bonus.
Ginger pork: 9 points - The portion size was a bit small, but considering the price of 640 yen, it was a good deal! The pork ginger pork, onions, and bean sprouts were flavorful, and there was plenty of sauce. Mixing it with mayonnaise, putting it on rice, and adding shichimi spice took the taste to another level! I made sure to get a refill of rice, which was served in the same portion as the first bowl.
Overall, I would give it a 9 out of 10. For the price of 640 yen, the meal felt very satisfying in terms of portion size. The fact that you could get free refills of rice was also a nice touch. I was too full to try the ochazuke this time, so I'll have to save that for next time!
Afterwards, I realized that Yayoiken is not available in my local area of Chiba Kashiwa, but it was located near Kenbi no Yu in Minami Masuo! Next time I visit Kenbi no Yu, I definitely want to try Yayoiken, even though the dining hall inside the facility and the ramen at Nikaia nearby are also good options. As for the trip, I quickly returned to my regular accommodation near Nishinari Police Station from Dobutsuen-mae Station on the Sakaisuji Line. Since I have an early start tomorrow, I'll hit the hay now. (July 8, 2022)