Food: Yutaka Izakaya

Date Budget: PhP 550
Actual Spend: PhP 545
Quality: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Accessibility: 3/5
Fun Factor: 5/5
Overall Experience: 4/5

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Highlights 

• Japanese feel in and out!
• Generously stuffed California Maki
• Niku Udon: great broth, great noodles!
• Tonkatsu with the most authentic sauce
• Koroke Bento: bang for the buck!

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The Experience

Before heading off to Boracay to celebrate our first happy year together, Kirsten and I went for an early dinner at Yutaka Izakaya: a seemingly out of place taste of Tokyo along Aurora Blvd (yes, this is a very late post... I have edited the pictures to have an Anime feel to compensate).

Unlike other Japanese restaurants in the metro, this one has a traditional Japanese feel in its interiors and in its facade as well. It reminds us of Little Tokyo, though Yutaka stands out as it is the only building of its kind in the area.

To start off, we got some California Maki. Unlike the more commercial ones, theirs is stuffed with a generous amount of ingredients.

We then tried their Niku Udon, which is basically beef soup with thick noodles. It is somehow similar to Yoshinoya's beef noodles, though this one has much less MSG and a lot more authentic taste.

We also got their cheapest bento, the Koroke Bento, which was served with rice, soup, gyoza, and side veggies which went well with the breaded meat (ground pork and chicken pieces).

We also tried their Tonkatsu Set which also came with rice and soup. The sauce is the most authentic we've had so far!

Yutaka Izakaya is one of the few affordable Japanese places that we highly recommend. We hope to be back here soon!

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Spend Breakdown

California Maki	95
Niku Udon	175
Tonkatsu Set	145
Koroke Bento	130
Actual Spend	545

Note: This post is long overdue. We dined here early 2012. Prices may no longer be updated.

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How to get there

1. From LRT (Line2) J. Ruiz Station, take a jeep going towards the direction of UERM / SM Sta.Mesa (usually with "Stop and Shop" signboard)
2. Get off at the Aurora Arcade before CCP and in front of the Caltex Gas Station. Yutaka is located at the Ground Floor.
   
   Landmarks: UERM, Central Colleges of the Philippines (CCP), LRT J.Ruiz, Caltex Gas Station
   Address:
   GF 41D Unit-X Aurora Arcade
   Aurora Blvd. Quezon City
   Philippines
   Contact Number/s:
   (632) 713-6558
   Website: YutakaIzakaya.com
   Operating Hours: 11am to 9pm
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