Hakata Ton Ton - Revisit

A revisit worthwhile.

Hakata is a place that requires reservations, unless you're the uber lucky type. If you're interested in my first visit, take a look here.

So, jumping right into it. There were two items that I definitely wanted again and for the rest, it was fairly new.

Kitaya Ai No Hime

Kitaya Ai No Hime (Beni)

J was interested in trying the blue and pink sake. I was just amazed at how pretty it looks. I really wanted to like the pink one but the blue actually won me over because it was a lot smoother and sweeter with no weird after taste. The pink had a bit of a tart to it which I'm going to pass.


Hakata Mojito

One of my favorite drink from HTT was their mojito. Definitely different than the usual ones because this one tasted sweet, which I looove.


Atlantic Salmon Carpaccio

Another favorite of mine. Very refreshing but you can still taste the salmon, that under the water seafood scent and taste just lingers with each bite.


Japanese Veal Liver Sashimi

This was an interesting dish, similar to the seared one in my previous visit. This came with two sauce, a sesame oil based and a soy based. I prefer the soy based because I like salty sauces... the sesame one was way too oily for me. The liver sashimi is very close to cooked liver, but it has a much more bouncier texture, also a lot chewier. It still has that gamey and irony affect though.


Himi's Famous Homemade Gyoza

Moving on to something that's not raw. The gyoza was quite an eye-opener. The gyozas that I ever had had always been the wrap enclosing the filling. But for this, they left each end opened... pretty neat. The dish also came out piping hot and oil splattering everywhere, it hurts! But it was good. J was having trouble keeping the meat inside the dumpling wrap, it was too hilarious watching him eat.

Onto the main course.
We were too amazed by the massive pot placed in front of us that I totally forgot to take a photo of it before we ate it. The photo above (which was taken at my last visit) is very similar if not the same as what we had. We ordered the Hakata Ton Ton Hotpot for two, it consist of collagen broth, tofu, dumplings, vegetables, pork belly, and tonsoku (pig's feet). The broth is amazing, a lot better than last time. There was a lot more flavor and wasn't as salty. I can eat this all week long. One down side, we had to wait 20 minutes for the pot to boil so everything would be cooked, but it was so worth it!

We also ordered ramen to finish up the delicious broth, good thing this didn't take 20 minutes. It's just regular packaged ramen but it was the broth that made it oh-so-awesome.

I love the idea of hotpot and then putting in noodles afterwards to finish up the meal. I love noodles and this is like a happy ending gone totally right. Although, I do suggest going here in the winter since it does get a bit warm inside when you start boiling away.

Hakata Ton Ton
61 Grove St
New York, NY 10014
(212) 242-3699