Tonkatsu @ Tonkatsu Akari, Tenyamachi, Hakata, Fukuoka

 

This place has always been on my "to-eat" list for some time but it is always crowded with people. However, during an evening sojourn on a Friday, it was almost empty. So, I guess my dinner has been decided then!

Almost no one, lucky!

Tonkatsu Akari, or Akari in short, is a tonkatsu place (well, it is in the name) that has been selling its tasty porky treats for quite some time and has a decent presence to boot. Their reputation is mainly due to the high quality Itoshima pork that they use as the foundation of their business. With various cuts available of pork that is super high quality, it is just natural that it becomes a serious player. So much so, that the closest shop to my home is always packed for most nights. And since there is almost no one when I was passing by, and I have yet had my dinner yet, it just made sense for me to drop by to get something nice to eat. 

Hefty!

Being my first time, I got the thing that is the base foundation of any good tonkatsu place which is their loin pork set, standing at 1,560 yen. I know the name "rosu-katsu" may sound like "roast cutlet" but "rosu" actually means the loin part of the pig. And since there were only 2 other tables that were occupied when I was here, the food came quite quickly. The platter that was put forth before me was sheer beauty. It was simple, but still very appealing. The pork was deep fried to perfection, golden brown but not too dry. I suspect that they flatten it down further with a meat mallet seeing that it seems more spread out that what you can find from a supermarket's meat section. 

Perfect

Each bite of this pork treat was such a blast. You can taste the freshness of the pork and the slight bacon-like aftertaste but without that smelly gunk of bacon. Meat lovers would know what I mean. The outer crust has a very nice crunch, it has an earthy element to it, similar to a wheat biscuit in terms of flavour. It is so fresh, that the juices just keeps coming out of the meat. The crunchy bits also allow a great deal of surface area to help the sauces latch on to this meaty delight.

Pick your poison

 Speaking of crunchy bits on sauces, the condiments they provide are pretty good too. You have the classic sweet and sour tonkatsu sauce which I like. But they also have a Worchester variety that has a spicy kick to it. Mustard and wasabi came along with the plate as well, giving you more choices when it comes to turning up the heat. Personally, I like the yellow mustard with the classic tonkatsu sauce. The combination of sweet, spicy and salty was something that I really like. I am South East Asian after all. 

Surprisingly good

However, pork alone is not what a meal makes. The miso soup that came along this dish was surprising sleeper hit. It was quite earthy and had a deep element to it making it a great potion to help wash down the fat from the fried bits but at the same time, has enough punch not to totally clean out your palatte. if you do need to do that, there is the side of chopped cabbage that does the trick. Classic tonkatsu companion, although I do have a love-hate relationship with cabbage. Still, does the trick. 

Front of the house. With such a sign, its unmissable

The funny thing is right after I left the premises, almost a truckload of tourists decided to come in to order their meals there. My timing cannot be any better. Honestly, this is one of the better tonkatsu meals I have had for quite a while and I can see why their reputation is well deserved. It should be noted that there are a few other outlets around Fukuoka, mainly in Yakuin, Nishijin, Tenjin and Kurume. Including the one I been, that will be 5 outlets. So if you want to get some delicious fried pork why not give it a go? The address of the one in Tenyamachi which I visited is as follows:

 4-18 Tenyamachi, Hakata Ward, Fukuoka, 812-0025