What you eat is often a reflection of the kind of lifestyle you live. Ramen, beef bowls, standing restaurants. In busy city life, there is a tendency to fall into a eat to live pattern. Consuming one too many convenience store meals or fast food can be a detriment to your health. But in hectic Tokyo when you want to eat slowly and enjoy your food, the never ending lines of people will make it hard to relax and take your time.
If you’re not careful you will walk right by Katei-Ryori Ofuku, a small and unimposing restaurant. The name of the store if translated is actually “home cooked food ofuku”. According to the owners, the building was formerly an apartment and restaurant, with the storefront on the first floor and living quarters on the second floor. Knowing this, it is not surprising that the atmosphere feels as welcoming as a household.
In some sense this place is similar to Spanish style tapas. Ordering a number of smaller dishes allows you to try a wide variety of traditional Japanese food. Unlike other chain stores which thrive on hosting the most amount of guests possible, this store stays afloat in large part because of the loyal clientele.
“Everyday we make real dashi from scratch. We only use healthy food ingredients,” said the friendly staff, who was busy in the process of grinding up fresh ginger and wasabi. The store is proud of the fact that they don’t add any chemicals and are always thinking about nutrition when serving up the food.
The store recently began serving lunch in 2017, and the set menu is always well thought out to include a balanced meal. You can check the company instagram for the often changing special lunch of the day. If you decide to go for dinner make sure to try the handmade sesame tofu. When I asked the staff how it was made they simply replied “That is a secret, but we can guarantee it is delicious”
Name: Katei-Ryori Ofuku
Address: Tokyo, Shibuya-Ku, Kamiyama-Chou 7-8
☎︎ +81 03-5465-7577
Hours: 11:00am~1:30pm
18:00am～24:00pm