Tokyo Table 東京食堂 - Irvine Location

People used to categorize Irvine as a "residential area."
The place has nothing but a bunch of expensive houses and apartments,
With a few grocery stores and restaurants scattering here and there.
Well, things have been changed because of this recently opened plaza,
---Diamond Jamboree Shopping Center---
It's similar to Diamond Plaza located in Rowland Heights,
But of course it's bigger and better.

Basically I can simply use three words to give you an overall image about this shopping center,
Asian, Asian, Asian.
Seriously,
I think at least 70% of the Asian population has been hanging out in this plaza since its grand opening.
I'm not complaining here because I contributed my small part for that 70%.

There are so many Asian stores in the plaza,
It's like a gigantic Asian magnet monster that keeps sucking Asian people into its stomach.
There's a Korean grocery store with a interesting name called H,
There are also several already famous restaurants like Tokyo Table, Guppy House, CeFiore, and 85 Degrees C,
What's even better? Spa, kareoke, and who knows what other goodies gonna move in and become part of the Asian magnet!

So this is where I went for dinner the other night in this Asian invaded plaza-


Immediately after I walked into the restaurant,
I see a bar area on the left,
You know, the area where you can watch sports and get wasted at the same time,
And then the dining area is on the right-


Here's where we were seated-


Me and my friend were impressed by the atmosphere that Tokyo Table created there,
Well, of course you can find tons of places like that in Los Angeles,
But we're talking about Irvine!
Can you give me the name of another restaurant that has this sort of vibe and mood in Irvine?

Here's the menu (cover)-


Inside the menu-


Menu with lots of pictures are always welcome.

We decided to start our night with Asahi and mango infused sake-


I was very pleased with the bottle and the container for sake,
They were so cute!
The mango infused sake was pretty sweet with minimal alcohol taste,
I think it makes a perfect drink for light weighted girls.
(That equals...me?!?)

Chicken karaage with spicy tartar sauce-


I can never resist the temptation of ordering fried chicken in a Japanese restaurant,
Especially the ones that come with tartar or mayonnaise flavored sauce.
The one from Tokyo Table was good, but not outstanding,
So far my number one chicken karaage still goes to Shin Sen Gumi.

Yuzu hamachi carpaccio-


Probably the best dish we ordered that night.
Kinda spicy because of that green little thing in the middle,
I don't know the name for that,
So if anybody here knows the name, please drop a line and let me know!
(Shishito maybe?)
This dish also has this tangy flavor from the yuzu sauce,
Spicy + tangy = great appetizer.

Beef tataki on balsamic sushi rice-


Not a good choice,
I was "mesmerized" by the word tataki there and ordered this item,
Sadly...it just tastes like seared beef on rice...it's that simple.

Garlic shrimp with rice (ishiyaki)-


Our waitress came and cooked the shrimps with this sizzling hot stone pot,
After the ingredients got cooked through,
A bowl of rice was poured into the pot and blended with the shrimps.
Very simple dish and the rice surely tastes wonderful (and buttery).

The overall experience was pretty good,
The service was excellent,
The environment was trendy yet subtle,
The food was mediocre though,
I mean, we did have a few nice dishes, but they weren't outstanding,
Will I come back again?
Yeah, there are still a few items I would like to try,
Maybe my rating will be higher for Tokyo Table after trying those dishes.
(Mochi cheese gratin, Yuzu pepper chicken, Fresh homemade tofu)

Overall Rating: 5 for the food and place alone but 6 if counting their excellent service

Tokyo Table 東京食堂 - Irvine
2710 Alton Pkwy
Irvine, CA 92606
(949)263-0000

http://www.tokyotable.com/index.php