01 / ABOUT THE PLACE
About this place
Keep it simple with salt or sauce, or try egg yolk, wasabi, shiso, Hakata mentaiko, cheese or grated daikon with ponzu. Tsukuneya’s signature dish is skewered tsukune, making it easy to sample a few different flavours. Most varieties come as two skewers: salt, sauce and wasabi, for example, cost 300 yen for two, while egg yolk, shiso and grated daikon with ponzu are 330 yen. Some diners say the tsukune alone is reason enough to return. Start with a flavour that appeals, then add another to compare.
Chicken sashimi is another menu mainstay. Options include raw tsukune, liver and chicken breast, as well as an assortment. A regular recommends the sashimi, and another diner also singled it out alongside the tsukune. It makes an easy addition whether you are centring the meal on skewers or looking to try chicken prepared another way.
For a longer meal to share, hot pot is available from two servings. The miso hot pot costs 1,450 yen per serving, and the menu recommends udon to finish. The tomato version pairs tomato with Japanese-style stock; the suggested finish is rice porridge prepared in a risotto style. For something lighter, there is mizutaki, served with ponzu and made with a base of bonito and kelp stock. Diners have also praised the hot pots, which offer another way to round out a meal alongside the tsukune.
The freshly squeezed tomato chūhai has earned repeat visits from some diners, while others describe the combination of tomato and chūhai as easy to drink. Among the dishes, the dashi-rolled omelette in warm broth and the meatball soup with plenty of tofu have also been described by diners as light, Japanese-style options. Either could make a good addition between skewers and hot pot.
The restaurant is described as a relaxed place for conversation and suitable for groups. Dinner reservations are accepted, so booking ahead is an option if you are planning to gather around skewers and hot pot.
