Denny's Japan, Ikebukuro

On our last full day in Japan we met up with a friend to go to karaoke, and beforehand went to get lunch. American readers may be familiar with Denny's as it is a popular place to go at 3am in the morning when there is nothing else open and you are not that choosy about the quality of the food/grease in the small hours! We were reassured by our friend that the Japanese version it is quite different. Apparently the Japanese Denny's are owned by the same company as Seven-Eleven, great conbini (again better than the American version) and one of the few places you can use your non-Japanese debit cards to take out cash. There was a very long queue stretching outside the door of the place and although after a while we did get to sit down while we waited for a table to be free, we did begin to wonder if it was ever going to happen.

Once we eventually got sat down, we got some brightly coloured drinks (yep, the melon soda again and some pinku lemonade). We got free refills, but have just been informed by our friend that they have just stopped doing so as of June, boo!



The menu didn't have an extensive range of vegetarian options but there was enough to get things we were happy with. There was no English menu, at least we weren't offered any, but there were nice pictures, so even if you don't read any Japanese it's easy enough to figure out the menu. IF and I got a salad to share and each had a pasta dish.



Like most items on menu, this seemingly 'western' dish showed its Japanese twist. The salad included Asian mushrooms and a light dressing, not a creamy one. It wasn't that big, but tasted decent enough.




The spaghetti with tomato sauce and aubergines was ok. It wasn't anything too special, but it did the job, definitely better quality food than American Denny's. Our friend had her favourite omelette rice (omu-rice オムライス) , another Japanese western creation that I wouldn't mind trying, but unfortunately it came with meat so I only got to try a small bite of it, which was nice. Guess will just have to try making it at home!




The desserts were definitely the winner here, and most definitely in a different class compares to American Denny's! The selections were very impressive! They looked great (as seen in the photo above) and tasted just as nice too!

The prices were quite reasonable (most main dishes were from ¥500-800; steak type entrees were more), though the portions were smaller than US standards, so maybe not so 'dirt cheap' like the American counterpart. They also change their menu quite a bit according to the seasons (the summer menu online now looks a bit different from the one we saw in January). It doesn't have the most amazing choices for vegetarians, so I'd say it's an OK choice for lunch or if you are not too hungry, or only want lots of sweets!


Denny's (池袋東口店/ Ikebukuro east exit branch)
〒170-0013　東京都豊島区東池袋１−１３−６ (2F)
Tel: 03-5950-9351

Japanese street crepes

We got back Tokyo this evening on Shinkensan. We had a vague plan for the evening but we changed our minds kind of last minute. So somehow we ended up in Ikebukuro, and by the time we were trying to find something we eat, the shops and restaurants in shopping/entertainment/hotel megaplex Sunshine City were closing (might have been interesting to visit Ice Cream City in Namja Town, one of these Japanese food 'theme park' type place where you could find all sorts of ice-cream/soft serve type creations).

Since we already had quite a sizable lunch in Osaka, we decided to just grab some Japanese street crepes at the Crazy Crepes stall next to the Sega Aracde. As the location of the stall suggests, Japanese street crepes are popular with young people. It's very causal and cheap food that you might eat while standing or walking on the street. Some of you might have managed to try this lovely Japanese interpretion outside Japan, as you can find them in San Francisco, Melbourne or Vancouver. I think the main difference between Japanese and French crepes are the toppings, but also Japanese crepes perhaps have slightly less egg?

Most of the selections at this 'Atlanta Crazy Crepes' were with sweet and cold toppings, but there were also a few savory toppings (tuna, egg salad, teriyaki chicken - the most bizaare combo was cabonara teriyaki chicken!) and also a few combos with chocolate or custard cream served hot. Depends on toppings, they were around ¥400 each. I got one with strawberries, and IF got a chocolate one. They were both quite yummy, but the downside was there was no place to sit down and we weren't too sure if we were allowed to go into the arcade with the crepes! Depends on the type of crepe (how much cream it has!) you get, I'd say it's definitely enough for a snack or light lunch.

If you visit Harajuku in Tokyo, you would see the two famous crepe stands on Takeshita Dori, Marion Crepes and Angels Hearts (which are right across from each other). We didn't manage to try them, but at least I managed to take a photo of what was on offer at Angels Hearts. Oh well, there is always next time!