Hurray for Haru Ulala!

The succulent Berkshire Pork Kakuni:

Haru Ulala, which is located on Second Street in J-Town where Furaibo used to be, has become one of my favorite Japanese restaurants. Haru Ulala is an Izakaya: a restaurant that serves Japanese bar food; or in other words Japanese tapas/small plates and lots of beer and sake.

There is something for everyone at Haru Ulala since they have about four menus. They have sushi and sashimi; various noodles such as yakisoba, cold or hot udon or soba (buckwheat or green tea); grilled rice balls with various stuffings; meat and vegetable kushiyaki (grilled skewers); meat and vegetable katsu skewers (panko crusted deep fried yummy stuff); fresh seafood such as the perfectly minimalist hamachi (yellowtail) collar; tempura; Okonomiyaki (like a Japanese frittata); and Japanese comfort food which is detailed in a five page menu. And let us not forget about the daily specials as well.

From the daily specials menu we ordered tempura fried stuffed shishito peppers stuffed with tuna and a roasted whole head of garlic. In the comfort food category we opted to get the infamous Kurobuta Pork Kakuni (Black Pork belly braised in a soy ginger sauce served with a schmeer of hot mustard), Chicken Kaaraga (deep fried pieces of lightly coated chicken), and grilled shortrib. Skewers included grilled asparagus, deep fried stuffed eggplant, deep fried stuffed bell pepper, and deep fried Camembert cheese (don't knock it until you've tried it!) And of course, the wonderful hamachi collar which was served with a light soy sauce dippie with green onion and some grated radish.

Drink of the day: Asahi beer

Fatty, creamy goodness: