Izakaya Sozai

We got to Izakaya Sozai, 1500 Irving St., at 5:20 pm, 10 minutes before it opened. There were already 3 people standing in line. Within 5 minutes, the line had filled in behind us and was around the corner. You can't be seated until your entire party has arrived. The poor guy in front of us was waiting for his friends, who arrived 10 minutes late at 5:40 pm. They ended up waiting 1 1/4 hours to be seated.



Garlc Sauteed Shishito Peppers--$6.50. This was the best dish of the evening. The peppers were perfectly charred on the outside and the garlic flavor was nice.

 

 

Spicy Tuna on Crispy Rice with Teriyaki Balsamic--$9. The tuna was just the right spiciness and worked well with the fried rice cake. This was our 2nd favorite.

 

 

Miso  Cod--$9.50. This was flavorful and the cod tasted like seabass but at $9.50, this was costly. It was 3 bites--3 very small bites.

 



Daikon Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette--$6. The daikon was shaved nicely but a little bitter. There was not enough vinaigrette on it. Another costly dish.

 



Braised Pork Belly--$7. The meat was tender but there was not much flavor. It tasted like it was just braised in soy sauce. The fat was too much to eat alone. It would have been better with a bun.

 

One of the specials of the evening was Seabass with Ponzu (skewers on left)--$9. This was bland. The skewers on the right were Bacon Wrapped Mochi--$5. This was nothing special. How hard can it be to wrap 1/3 slice of bacon around a piece of hard mocha and grill it. It was not worth $5.

Ankimo (monkfish liver) Pate--$10. This was disgusting. It was so fishy we couldn't finish it. It came with baguette slices that were broiled too long but not quite a crouton. That's a sliced strawberry and a sprig of Italian parsley. I ate the parsley to get rid of the fishy taste.

 



Tonkatsu Ramen--$9. Unflavorful pork broth with ramen that was too al dente, 1 piece of pork, 1/2 soft-boiled egg (the only saving grace of this dish) and a large piece of Nori. Orenchi's ramen has this beat by a mile.

 

 

Would I come back? Maybe if I was in the area, I would have a pre-dinner snack of the Shishito Peppers and that's it. I certainly wouldn't drive out of my way to eat here.

 

 

 

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