Ten outta Izakaya Ten

Izakaya Ten

We walk past this sign almost every single day. But I've never heard anything about this place, so never checked it out. One night we were looking for a date night, but were really hungry, so wanted something close, convenient and without much of a wait. On a whim, we decided to take a chance on Izakaya Ten.

We walked in and I immediately fell in love with the ambiance. The bar was decorated with a large Japanese map, string lights, and bamboo. I've never been to Japan, so I can't speak to the actual authenticity, but I felt whisked away to a real izakaya. Obviously, pictures never do it justice, but I attempted all the same.

Izakaya Ten: Interior

We ordered a couple of cocktails at the bar for our wait, but a table was ready for us by the time we got our drinks, so we enjoyed them there. I tried the Shinkansen Shochu and it was delicious. From our initial cocktails, we let our server make some Shochu suggestions and we spent the rest of the evening exploring their shochu selection.

Cocktails

To accompany this shochu journey, we also asked our server for some food recommendations. The Tako Yaki balls were an easy sell.

Tako Yaki

However, our server also told us that the Spicy Pickled Cucumber is another very popular dish, but we had our reservations. We couldn't understand why a pickle would be so popular. Oh boy are we glad we heeded his advice. This is no ordinary pickle, but a fresh, crispy bar delight.

Spicy Pickled Cucumber

 I can't remember if the Pork Gyoza (dumplings) were on his list or not as well, but we had to try them too.

Pork Gyoza

Another no-brainer order was the Buta Kimchee- stir fried pork belly and kimchee. As good as it sounds, we were in no way prepared for the skillet of awesome that appeared at our table. Definitely our favorite dish of the evening.

Buta Kimchee

We also decided to try the ramen since we are always looking for a ramen place with less than a 2 hour wait. While it certainly doesn't replace our favorites, their ramen was enjoyable and will serve as our new backup during chilly weather.

Ramen

And for dessert, who can resist green tea mochi ice cream. A perfect two bite way to end the meal on a sweet note!

Green Tea Mochi

We left excited and happy to have found a new neighborhood favorite!

Ambiance: 5

Service: 5

Food: 5

Update 5-8-12: We have indeed been back here several times since our initial visit and continue to love it!