Constantin Lagemann, who was previously the General Manager of Las Dunas Healthouse Hotel and Hotel Villa Padierna,has rejoined forces with Jean-Pierre Decque, who served as the Maître at the famed Las Félix Bistro. Carlos Padilla, the former Executive Chef of Inch completes this trio who are very serious about their new venture but still manage to inject a lot of fun into the proceedings.

A New Japanese Concept For The Coast

Izakaya is the Japanese word for a tavern, typically found throughout Japan, serving a variety of smaller dishes which patrons can mix and match and this is the concept they have set their sights on. The menu at this taberna features a good variety of very reasonably priced tasty dishes and just perusing it will cause your mouth to water. Coupled with weekly specials, repeat visits are going to be a joy for regular customers.

The restaurant itself is compact and inviting, with an open kitchen running down the left hand side, adjoining a bar facing the seating area. The pièce de résistance is the heated covered terrace, where both the roof and sides can be opened according to the weather. It was to this latter that we repaired on a recent lunchtime visit, where we found ourselves spoiled for choice when deciding what to order.

This is a nice problem to encounter, accompanied by a cool Japanese beer – there are even three of these to choose from.

Food That Is Guaranteed To Entice You Back

After some amount of deliberation, we opted for the Aubergine Miso and KFC, Korean Fried Cauliflower to start. Both apt for vegetarians, the former was a delicious mix of Aubergines sautéed in Miso sauce with toasted Sesame Seeds. The KFC meanwhile was a revelation – battered and deep fried Cauliflower florets with Korean Barbecue Sauce – showing how a fairly innocuous vegetable can be transformed into a very addictive snack! The Laksa – Singapore Curry Soup with Chicken and Prawns – a special of the week, was a welcome addition to the above delights.

These were followed by succulent meat cuts served on wooden skewers of Guayu Entrecôte with Asparagus and Kimchi, Glazed Meatballs with Pickled Radish, and Asian BBQ Pork Rib with Pickled Cucumber – all three accompanied by Rice with Sesame. We also sampled Katsu Sando, a homemade Japanese bread sandwich containing battered Beef Tenderloin and Tonkatsu Sauce, as well as a special dish of the week – a flavourful Bao with Duck Confit.

It’s worth pointing out that this is not a sushi restaurant, but you will not miss it with the delicacies created at the hands of Carlos, who is of oriental descent and has travelled widely in the Far East and Japan. Vegetarians will also find plenty of welcome dishes on his menu and some Japanese dessert options will delight those with a sweet tooth, such as Mango Togarashi and Pastel Húmedo de Yuzu.

We could have tried the Chef’s Gyozas – there are three varieties – the Japanese Salad, Shiitake Mushrooms or other options with Prawns, Calamares, Salmon or Octopus. Particularly appealing was the Tuna plate, consisting of Almadraba Tuna with Ponzu Sauce, Wasabi, Wakame and Sesame Oil, and the tempting bowl of Ramen, so we resolved to return again soon on another occasion.