Nakajima, Shinjuku Japan - Cheapest Michelin meal
I always thought food that is Michelin rated must be extremely expensive. Of course, that misconception was quickly dismissed when I visited Nakajima in Tokyo Japan.
Nakajima specializes in sardines and their lunch set is only about 800 yen. That's right. A michelin lunch that cost only about USD 6 (RM24) in Tokyo, Japan! Mind-blown. Don't worry if you cannot read Japanese. They have English menu (if they don't give it to you at first sight, you probably look Japanese). In fact, it has photo illustration making things a whole lot easier.
We went at about 11.40am and was seated by 12.20pm. There is a line but the wait wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be. So that's good news for those who are not willing to wait for food.
We ordered the nizakana and yanagawa nabe lunch set. It comes with rice, miso soup and pickles. What was interesting to know was that the second bowl of rice upon request will be free as noted in their menu but the 3rd bowl will be charged at 100 yen which is still pretty reasonable. Not entirely sure if miso paste or the pickles were made in house but it sure was tasty! Of course we didn't stop there. We had to try it all! So we had the additional order, half of sardine sashimi and half of fried sardines.
If I had to rank them in order of preference, it would be as follow:
1. Nizakana. I never knew sardines could be this sweet! It wasn't fishy at all and this cooking method really brought out the natural flavor of sardines. Just one thing though, there was quite a fair bit of bones. But for this dish, I'm willing to overlook it.
2. Yanagawa. Omg when the dish was served, it was still slightly bubbling. Fried sardines soaked up all the stock goodness, simmered eggs and onions went so well with the white rice. Make sure you have a mouthful of all the ingredients because trust me, it will be extremely satisfying.
3. Sardines sashimi. I never knew this was a thing. Again, the ingredients were so fresh there weren't any fishy scent to it.
4. Fried sardines. Okay for this, I'm glad we only ordered it as a side. Not that it wasn't good but in comparison, it didn't quite hit the spot like the rest. Possibly because there weren't any sauce to it like how nizakana and yanagawa had some broth to it.
Things to take note of:
Address
Nakajima specializes in sardines and their lunch set is only about 800 yen. That's right. A michelin lunch that cost only about USD 6 (RM24) in Tokyo, Japan! Mind-blown. Don't worry if you cannot read Japanese. They have English menu (if they don't give it to you at first sight, you probably look Japanese). In fact, it has photo illustration making things a whole lot easier.
We went at about 11.40am and was seated by 12.20pm. There is a line but the wait wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be. So that's good news for those who are not willing to wait for food.
We ordered the nizakana and yanagawa nabe lunch set. It comes with rice, miso soup and pickles. What was interesting to know was that the second bowl of rice upon request will be free as noted in their menu but the 3rd bowl will be charged at 100 yen which is still pretty reasonable. Not entirely sure if miso paste or the pickles were made in house but it sure was tasty! Of course we didn't stop there. We had to try it all! So we had the additional order, half of sardine sashimi and half of fried sardines.
If I had to rank them in order of preference, it would be as follow:
1. Nizakana. I never knew sardines could be this sweet! It wasn't fishy at all and this cooking method really brought out the natural flavor of sardines. Just one thing though, there was quite a fair bit of bones. But for this dish, I'm willing to overlook it.
 |
| Nizakana (simmered sardines in soy based stock) |
2. Yanagawa. Omg when the dish was served, it was still slightly bubbling. Fried sardines soaked up all the stock goodness, simmered eggs and onions went so well with the white rice. Make sure you have a mouthful of all the ingredients because trust me, it will be extremely satisfying.
 |
| Yanagawa (deep fried sardines lightly simmered in stock with eggs and onions) |
3. Sardines sashimi. I never knew this was a thing. Again, the ingredients were so fresh there weren't any fishy scent to it.
 |
| Fine sliced sardine sashimi, marinated with sesame and spring onion |
4. Fried sardines. Okay for this, I'm glad we only ordered it as a side. Not that it wasn't good but in comparison, it didn't quite hit the spot like the rest. Possibly because there weren't any sauce to it like how nizakana and yanagawa had some broth to it.
 |
| Deep fried sardines with breadcrumbs |
Things to take note of:
- They're not open on Sunday.
- Children under 6 y/o are not permitted. They even have a sign put out front. Sorry fellow parents.
Shinjuku Kappo Nakajima
新宿割烹 中嶋
B1F, Hihara Bldg, 3 32-5 Shinjuku,
Shinjuku, Tokyo Prefecture 160-0022, Japan
(Shinjuku Station North Exit)
新宿割烹 中嶋
B1F, Hihara Bldg, 3 32-5 Shinjuku,
Shinjuku, Tokyo Prefecture 160-0022, Japan
(Shinjuku Station North Exit)
