HONKAKUCYUUKANANAJURRUITABENOMIHOUDAI CYUUKARYOURIBIZEMBOU

I was staying in Akihabara last year and I stumbled across this little place late one night after a day's sightseeing. I had wandered too far from the Aki strip towards Taito and decided to chance this place as it was getting late and a lot of Akihabara had closed for the day. I was sure glad I did!... Straight away I knew the food would be good because it was late (after 11) and there was still a good crowd in there, all of them having come from work. It had that great vibe of a small local place that gets a lot of repeat custom. Real honest, nothing too fancy. Bizen Bou is a little out of the way for any hungry tourists who probably wouldn't venture this far from the Aki strip. As a result there is no English. At all. That said the lady who owns the place is super nice and will have no problem with you trying to order from the pictures hahaha. Although I would recommend bringing a little phrase book with you just in case. I wasn't always sure what I was eating, seeing as how I was ordering from pictures, but it was always delicious. The menu was really interesting and seemed to have a huge variety on offer. I just wish I had been able to read it! One thing for sure is that you will never go thirsty here! They have these great big bottles of Asahi beer which are just what you need after a long hot day of sightseeing. I came back here several times during my ten days in Japan, and by the end they were as happy to see me as any of the regulars. As I mentioned before this place is open LATE, so it really suits the tourist timetable. There is a TV in the corner, which much to my delight, always had those crazy Japanese reality shows on. One particular night the place was quite busy and I was sitting in the corner by myself. Suddenly the owner came over and she took a break to watch some TV with me so I wouldn't feel left out. We had a good laugh and it really made me feel welcome. I really can't recommend Bizen Bou enough. It is a bit out of the way for the casual tourist and there isn't any English, but the food speaks for itself and you will be treated well. I'll never forget leaving one night to head back to the hotel only to stop halfway down the street when I heard someone shouting after me. I turned to see the owner; she had ran out after me to wave goodbye. I had to laugh as I don't think you'd ever see that kind of thing in any many other countries. If you want my advice, try the spicy chicken bone strips!

Visited August 2014