I went to Murasaku, located a 3-minute walk from Nakano Station in Tokyo. The restaurant is on the 4th floor of a building and has both tatami and table seating. They serve a course menu with generous portions, including sashimi with the head attached and a 5-kind sashimi platter. I was surprised by dishes like salad, cheese-covered rolled omelette, and tuna with bones. The portions were huge and quite unique, like scraping the tuna with a spoon. They also served char siu, yakisoba, and kamayaki, making it a good value for the price. I was pleasantly surprised as I had underestimated the restaurant. Thank you for the meal!

Murasaki, located in front of Sun Plaza at the north exit of Nakano Station. It's on the 4th floor of a building, but you can see the sign from Nakano Street, so I knew there was a restaurant here. I took the elevator up to the 4th floor and the entrance was right in front of me. As soon as I entered, a staff member greeted me and showed me to my table after I told them how many people were in my group. The table was near the front, so I couldn't see what the back of the restaurant looked like, but it seemed quite spacious. I started with a highball (380 yen) instead of beer, as the draft beer was a bit pricey at 480 yen, which seemed like a typical setting from a Showa era chain restaurant. You could also upgrade to a mega-sized highball for an additional 200 yen, so I opted for that for my second drink to save on ordering each time. For food, we ordered the sashimi platter with 3 types of fish (760 yen), a homemade rolled omelette (340 yen), and steamed clams (440 yen), which are classic dishes at Showa-style izakayas. The flavor of the broth in these dishes was indeed stable and reliable, a testament to the long-standing reputation of this establishment. To fill our stomachs, we also ordered the "mega" portion of potato fries (680 yen), which seemed more geared towards a younger crowd. While the portion size was decent, the price didn't feel particularly worth it. In the end, when we settled the bill, it came out to be around 3500 yen per person, which felt slightly on the expensive side compared to the cheap izakayas that are common nowadays. The menu didn't have any particularly unique items, but that could be seen as a sign of the stability and reliability that this long-standing chain has built over the years, from the Showa era to the Heisei era. If you're looking for a place where you can drink in a familiar atmosphere without any surprises, this might be the spot for you. Thank you for the meal.

I visited a large izakaya near the north exit of Nakano Station. The seats around me were close together and quite noisy. I ordered the "Red Hoppy Set" and some standard izakaya dishes like seared mackerel. The service for drinks was quite slow, which was a bit bothersome.

I went to the Nakano Sun Plaza Hall to see the amazing drummer, Ponta Murakami, at his rare 45th concert! It was three and a half hours of pure emotion, gratitude, and overwhelming awe for Ponta's drumming, personality, and extensive network. Still buzzing with excitement, I left the hall and found myself being drawn into a nearby izakaya by the crowd of concert-goers. Everyone seemed a bit disoriented, but it was a lively atmosphere. I enjoyed a beer and snacked on a pickled cucumber while sitting comfortably at a sunken kotatsu table.

Came with my girlfriend to this restaurant with a friend on a Friday night. We originally planned to go to the izakaya chain Wan on the 3rd floor of the same building, but it was full, so we ended up going to this restaurant on the 4th floor. We were seated at a large counter table. It was a bit disappointing that Wan had private rooms while this place didn't. We ordered sashimi with horse mackerel and Pacific saury. The staff brought a wooden board with the horse mackerel before it was prepared, allowing us to see the fresh fish up close. The horse mackerel was very fresh and had a nice firm texture. The Pacific saury sashimi was delicious with its rich flavor. Other dishes we ordered included fisherman's fried rice with salmon and octopus, potato salad pizza with a tortilla-like crust, and flame-grilled rolled omelette with cheese. The performance of grilling the omelette in front of us was impressive, but the cheese overpowered the taste of the egg. The meal came with appetizers and cost around 3200 yen for the two of us. We only had water to drink. The restaurant focused on seafood dishes and the entertaining performances were enjoyable.

There are apparently 16 shopping streets at the north exit of Nakano Station. However, there seem to be few large izakayas where you can relax and drink, including at the south exit. In the midst of this, I visited the historic izakaya chain Murasakilai. The shrimp fry is large and cheap, and it's cut into easy-to-eat sizes. The seared mackerel is seared right in front of you with a burner, but it takes a long time (laughs). It might be better to sear it in the back to avoid awkward pauses in conversation. The "Otsunamirice," which was the second place winner in the Murasakilai Menu Grand Prix 2013, is a voluminous dish made by kneading rice like mochi and seasoning it richly. They have a tank with fresh sashimi and a variety of other dishes, so it's fun just to look at the menu on their website.

It's been a while since I drank in Nakano. Despite being close to Shinjuku, I don't often go outside the Yamanote Line. The drinking party started early. The izakaya menu was nothing special, but the thick rolled omelette with cheese on top, grilled with a gas burner, was quite delicious. It seemed like the omelette was properly rolled in a frying pan. The combination of cheese aroma and the sweetness of the egg was perfect. This dish might not be common in chain izakayas. Also, there were fish in a water tank!

On the 4th floor of a building with a Starbucks at the north exit of Nakano Station is a well-known chain izakaya. "Murasaki" is undoubtedly responsible for elevating the status of shochu highballs, previously a drink for older men, by adding sweet colored syrup. In my university days, I drank many apple-flavored shochu highballs at "Murasaki" before I truly understood the taste of alcohol. "Murasaki" once reached the height of glory but has since changed ownership multiple times to reach where it is today. I think I'll visit "Murasaki" after a long time. It feels like visiting a snack bar in a corner of town where a girl I used to be close with, who went through multiple divorces, now works. I'll start with a draft beer (483 yen) and the appetizer of frozen edamame (315 yen). The wet texture of the edamame somehow feels nostalgic tonight. The Nakano branch has a fish tank near the entrance, suggesting a focus on fresh fish (each "Murasaki" branch seems to have its own unique selling point now). However, I can't bring myself to order sashimi at "Murasaki." I prefer cheap fried foods. I ordered a one-bite fried cheese-filled chikuwa (357 yen) and the original shochu highball (252 yen). The cheese-filled chikuwa is quite oily due to the cheese inside and the batter outside. It seemed like a perfect combination, but I found that fried foods without cheese or cheese without frying taste better. Well, the excessive oiliness is also nostalgic in a way. I ordered another original shochu highball and also the pork kimchi skewer (126 yen) and crispy chicken cartilage (126 yen). The pork kimchi skewer is a menu item invented by a certain manager, consisting of white cabbage kimchi wrapped in pork belly. The ones wrapped with the core of the cabbage are particularly delicious with a crunchy texture. Considering the effort to wrap each piece, I think this menu item is quite a good deal. I could immerse myself in nostalgic feelings to some extent, but something feels missing. Ah, I don't hear the enthusiastic cheers of "ikki ikki."

When I was young, there were chain izakayas like Yorozu no Taki, Tsubohachi, and Suzume no Oyado, and Murasaku was an izakaya that opened around that time, if I remember correctly - sorry if I'm mistaken. Yorozu no Taki has decreased in number significantly, but it is still going strong. I haven't seen Tsubohachi and Suzume no Oyado recently, but I wonder if they still exist...? A few months ago, I saw a sign on the opposite side of the street while walking. I visited a few days later when I was alone at the izakaya. There weren't many people inside. Was it just by chance, or because it's not very noticeable...? I ordered a bottled beer and looked at the menu. There are quite a variety of options. There is an all-you-can-drink option, but only for banquet courses. Maybe that's why young people don't come - I'm happy with the quiet atmosphere. Recently, there has been an increase in cheap chain restaurants offering all-you-can-drink, but after going once and feeling overwhelmed by the noise and dirty toilets, I vowed never to go to a place with all-you-can-drink again. I ordered - Corn Butter with Shishamo. I rarely have corn butter these days, but I used to eat it often with friends when I was younger. It reminded me of the past - I often think about those days. In college, a new student named "Murasaki" joined the rock circle. My girlfriend at the time said, "He looks cool, like Deep Purple." When I mentioned that his name is written as "Murasaki" in hiragana, she burst out laughing, saying, "How deep in the mountains is 'Mura no Saki'?" I ended up writing about something irrelevant again (bows head).

It might be good for those who pursue affordability! I went with a friend who was short on money. Murasaku is wallet-friendly. Everything is cheap! Even the freshly squeezed chu-hai is only 399 yen. The food is also inexpensive. The taste is average. The grilled Atka mackerel for 504 yen was pretty good though. However, this place looks like a typical cheap izakaya, so it may not be suitable for women who prioritize atmosphere. It has more of a rural and homely feel. The menu mainly consists of seafood dishes, so I think it would be popular with men in their 30s to 40s.

Starbucks above the north exit of Nakano Station. I was torn between this and another izakaya in the same building, but I chose Murasaku because of its high name recognition. Big mistake. The customers were mostly elderly men (but that's not really important, haha). The staff were predominantly foreigners, and I got frustrated when my order didn't go through in Japanese. I ended up having to ask a Japanese staff member for help. The food and prices left zero impression on me. I was expecting it to be cheaper, but the prices were average. I have no reason to go back, so I won't be returning.