Budget Food

My favorite Oyako-don in Japan

20 February 2014

edit: The position of my favorite oyako-don has been usurped by Torikaku.

edit 2: Forget them all. I learned how to cook oyako-don recently and it’s LEGIT AWESOME.

You may know what oyako-don is, and may even love this chicken+egg rice bowl (like me!)

oyako-1

But do you know why oyako-don is called oyako-don? The first time I realized it (on my own, too!), I burst out laughing.

Oyako-don is written 親子丼. The -don part means rice bowl, as explained in this post.

Oya (親) means parent.
Ko (子) means child.

Therefore, oyako means parent and child.
Chicken and egg.

Geddit?

Such twisted (albeit accurate) naming!

My favorite place to eat it in Japan is not any expensive or fancy-pants restaurant (actually, not even sure if any high-end restaurant serves this…)

Like my favorite sushi and tempura-don places, this is also a chain. Good food does not have to be expensive!

nakau

Ikebukuro branch

This is the place – なか卯 Nakau (pronounced na-ka-oo, not na-cow :D )

nakau-2

The fact that it’s cheap is a bonus! (I think I paid about $10 for oyako-don in Singapore’s Sushi Tei)

I always order the mini (390yen, ~$4.80), because I wouldn’t be able to finish anything more than that!

oyako-2

At the end of the bowl is what we’ve affectionately dubbed the “ocean of deliciousness”. The chup (sauce) saturated with the flavors of egg, chicken, onions is the best!!! ^o^

If you’re in Japan and want to watch your food budget but still enjoy delish local food, this is a place I recommend! View other budget recommendations here!

Nakau serves many other dishes too, not just oyako-don. So if you’re traveling with people who don’t like chicken and/or egg, there are many other items on the menu. But oyako-don is my favorite and the one I heartily recommend!

Nakau なか卯

Official website: Here (Japanese)
Branches: Here (Japanese)

They have many branches, but I visit the Ikebukuro one the most because it’s most convenient. It’s just beside Sunshine City!

Map:

2 Comments

  • Reply Food sickness • tripleRIN 28 August 2014 at 4:06 am

    […] but still!), I’m also missing Japanese food so badly! My favorite sushi… bentos… oyako-don… udon… TEMPURA… GYU-DON!!! Gahhh, I can’t take […]

  • Reply Torikaku Restaurant, Tokyo • tripleRIN 10 March 2015 at 2:26 am

    […] But his Oyako-don was really delicious! At that moment, I thought, “Ahhh, this beats the budget Oyako-don hands […]

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