Niigata Style Tarekatsu in Kanda Tokyo

Niigata Katsudon Tarekatsu is a small restaurant in Kanda, with a typical blue Japanese noren hanging at the front—no frills, but always packed. At least, it was packed the last few nights I walked past it. It piqued my curiosity enough that I eventually sneaked out of the hotel room and made my way there one night, after finally identifying the place on Google Maps.

Niigata Katsudon, or Tarekatsu, is quite different from the usual eggy katsudon most people are familiar with. Instead of being dipped in egg, the pork cutlet here is thinly sliced, lightly breaded, and deep-fried until crisp, then briefly dipped in a sweet-savoury tare sauce made from soy sauce, mirin, and sugar.

If I’m being honest, I don’t usually go for katsu—especially pork katsu. But it was different. It’s from Niigata, after all: the rice capital of Japan. A place I had visited on a day trip just the day before, where I ate the best onigiri of my life. For the rice alone, I was more than willing to give the Tarekatsu-don a chance.

I went inside, took a seat at the counter, and ordered their famous Katsudon with a side of tempura—because everything is better with tempura.

A little while later, the chef placed the tray in front of me with the quiet hospitality typical of Japanese eateries. The katsudon arrived with neatly layered slices of pork resting on a bowl of glossy white Niigata rice. Along with two prawn tempura, a bowl of miso soup and a cup of ocha.

If I’m being honest again, while I could see the appeal of the tare-dipped katsu, it wasn’t something I found myself thinking about long after. What I enjoyed the most was actually the tempura and the rice. I can’t say for certain whether the rice was from Niigata, but even if it was just a placebo effect, I was happy to believe it—because Niigata rice will always, and forever, have a special place in my heart.

I paid, bowed to the chef, and left the premises happy and full. And that’s a satisfying enough experience of eating Niigata-style Tarekatsu.

Niigata Katsudon Tarekatsu address: 2 Chome-8-9 Nishikanda, Chiyoda City, Tokyo 101-0065, Japan.

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