50. Cafe Review: Cafe Ordinaire

If it wasn't for the sign out front, Cafe Ordinaire would be easy to miss. That is something you don't want to do if you are in the mood for a tasty 'European style' sandwich, served in a relaxed atmosphere. And, they want you to be relaxed. All lunch sets come with an alcoholic drink!

I started out with a shot of Cinzano Rosso on ice (an Italian vermouth). Other choices include Cinzano Dry, sake, or shochu. While you enjoy your drink, they will prepare one of the following for you:

Baguette Sandwiches
*BLT 800 yen
*Tomato and Mozzarella, with fresh basil 800 yen
*Italian prosciutto, Parmesan, and Reggiano 900 yen
*Roast Beef and 'Tona-to' Sauce 900 yen

*Egg and Zucchini bruschetta 900 yen
*Rice Omelet 1000 yen
*'Hayashi' (beef and onions in brown gravy) with rice 1000 yen
*Pasta of the Day 1000 yen (Shrimp and Broccoli the day I was there).

After lunch, you also get a choice of hot or iced tea/coffee.
On my first visit, I tried the prosciutto, parmesan, and reggiano sandwich. Very tasty. On my second visit, I ordered the tomato and mozzarella sandwich. The baguette was lightly toasted and filled with two thick slices of tomato and two thick slices of mozzarella; seasoned with some tasty olive oil. It was served with a lettuce mix covered in oil and vinegar. A great sandwich! I'm definitely going back to have another one of these. I will say that this is not a man's sandwich. It was a perfect size for ladies, however.

Cafe Ordinaire consists of two floors. The 3rd floor contains a long bar counter with 7 stools, two tables for 2, a table for 4, and two tables for 2 along a window overlooking the street. There are a few more tables upstairs, including one coffee table with a two-seater sofa looking out onto a balcony.
The interior of the cafe is cream and white. There are many records and Cd's behind the counter, but jazz piano was playing during my visit. The restaurant is mostly lit by natural light streaming through the window, making for a cozy atmosphere. The counter and wall shelves are lined with Japanese books covered in see-thru white sleeves. Reading material is also provided on a magazine rack. Actually, they advertise that they are a cafe and library.

The dessert menu has a lot of interesting choices, and the staff recommended trying one (but I wasn't hungry enough).

Choices included: Green tea chiffon cake, red wine cheesecake, banana tart, Jasmine tea cheesecake, biscotti, scones, and more. The biscotti were 120 each, all other desserts were between 480 and 550 yen.

Not so ordinary, this is another Shimokita cafe that I recommend.

Hours of Operation: 12:00 - 23:00. Lunch is served from 12:00 - 14:30.

Address: Kitazawa 3-25-1, Shimokitazawa MT Building, 3-4 fl.
Phone: 03-5738-0880

Website: http://www.ordinaire.net/

49. Cafe Review: Korko

Korko is another one of those great little cafes that Shimokita is famous for. The kind of place you want to hang out in.

Old wood floors and cream stucco walls surround earth-tone furniture. Decorative plants, strings of lights, and old Motown music add to the ambiance. One wall of Korko is all window. There is a coffee table with two small sofas, a four person 'floor' table, and a two person 'floor' table against this window. They give a really good view of the street and crowds below. Away from the window is another coffee table with two small sofas, two regular tables for two, and two stools at the bar.
All items on the lunch menu are served with a salad and choice of drink (coffee, tea, latte, orange juice, grapefruit juice, or Jasmine tea).

This is the complete lunch menu:

*Vegetable, sausage, and bacon 'Po tofu' , with choice of rice or bread 900 yen

*Tomato sauce pasta with bacon and spinach 950 yen

*Tandoori chicken and grilled vegetable 'don' (over rice in a bowl) 950 yen

*Vietnamese beef Pho 900 yen

*Beef stew, with choice of rice or bread 1000 yen

*Rice omelet topped with demi-glace sauce 1000 yen

*Butter Chicken Curry 1000 yen (sometimes they have green chicken curry instead). I ordered the beef stew with rice. First came my drink (iced Jasmine tea) and salad. Both good. My stew came with yellow saffron rice, yum. The stew was tasty, but I wouldn't order it again. Although good, the beef slices were too big to eat easily, and they were too difficult to cut without a knife. It wasn't traditional beef stew, I would have called it 'Sliced steak with stew'.
Hours of Operation: Open from 12:00 - 24:00. I am not sure what the dinner menu looks like.

Location: Korko is located about 3 minutes walk from the North exit of Shimokitazawa Station, at Kitazawa 2-33. It is on the 2nd floor, across the street from 'Robber Gabriela' (see earlier blog).

48. Store Review: Village Vanguard

This is by far the coolest, and most famous, store in all of Shimokita. Although it calls itself a book store, it is full of magazines, comics, CD's, posters, toys, jewelry, international snack foods, and much more. It is like a mini 'Don Quiote', full of all kinds of knick-knacks. If you visit Shimokita, make sure you check it out!

Hours of Operation: 10:00 - 24:00

Address: Kitazawa 2-10-15, Marche Bld. Very close to the Ozeki Supermarket.

47. Cafe Review: Asso

Asso is gone and has been replaced with a clothing shop.

Asso has a great location for people watching. When the weather is nice, the entire front wall of windows are folded back, making the cafe 'open-air'. There are four tables for two in this area, and dogs are welcome there.

Inside is a narrow room with tables one each side. Large screen TV playing movies. The room is well decorated, but I was surprised that many of the seat cushions were really stained. Not really that important, but it really takes a lot away from the place. In addition to the main room, there is also a 'secret room' for parties of four, and a VIP/reservation room that I have not seen.

The menu is extensive: appetizers, salad, soup, pizza, pasta, omelettes, rice dishes, sandwiches, steak, and more. Most dishes run around 1000 yen or less.

They offer a good selection of inexpensive lunch sets. I had a Japanese 'bento' box style lunch, it was very tasty.

There is also a long list of coffees, teas, and alcoholic drinks.

Address: 2-3-6 Kitazawa
Phone: 03-3413-0220

46. Restaurant Review: L.A. Cocina fu fu

This restaurant has closed and has been changed into a store.

45. Cafe Review: Alicia

Alicia is tiny cafe run by an older Japanese lady and her young assistant. There is a long wood counter with ten seats, and one table for 2. Red and white checkered curtains hang in the window. There are wood carvings all over the place, many with the name 'Alicia' carved into them, many others are animal figures. The place is cluttered and older, but interesting. Light piano music plays in the background. There is a small newspaper and magazine rack for those who want to read (Japanese only). In the far corner is a display of jams, rice, and other foods for sale. On display on the counter were: apple pie slices (no sugar or egg) 420 yen, and small bags of homemade cookies 470 yen.

The lunch menu is completely in Japanese, and is a little bit of a challenge to understand. The focus is 'natural foods'. I don't think the menu changes, so if you just remember what I've written here, you'll be all right.

A) Alicia's Lunch 1100 yen

B) Mixed Fry Lunch (potato croquette, fried tempe, fried white fish) and a salad 1250

C) Sesame Seed Soba Noodles and Seasonal Tempura Lunch 1500

D) Homemade bread sandwich with your choice of two fillings (potato croquette, fried tempe, cheese, mixed grain croquette). Comes with hot coffee or hot tea (for an extra 50 yen, you can have ice coffee or ice tea). 1250

E) Recommended Vegetable Lunch 1250

Other menu items:

*Vegetable and egg fried rice 890
*Sesame dare soba noodles 800

*Coffee or Tea 250 yen
*Apple or Iyokan Juice 350 yen

There is a dessert set (cake + coffee or tea) for 480 yen. And, a dessert + herb tea set for 600 yen.
I ordered 'D'. It was tasty, but I wouldn't order it again. I think the lady near me had 'A'. It looked really healthy and delicious. There was miso soup, rice, pickled vegetables, another small side of vegetables, and one of the croquettes with shredded cabbage.

Location: From Shimokita's South Exit, turn left down the hill. Just past the Baskin Robbins, turn left and go under the 'Greek Pillar' train bridge. Alicia is just a little farther down on the left, 2nd floor.

44. Cafe Review: Karate Chop

Karate Chop is a lovely little Vietnamese cafe. The interior is painted in vivid colors - bright canary yellow and brick red, with little Vietnamese touches here and there. Everything is a little worn, like a real cafe on a side street in Vietnam.
Karate Chop is a small cafe, there are only three regular tables for 2, two tables for two with chairs side by side with coffee tables, and one table for four.
The menu is standard Vietnamese fare. For lunch, my husband had the Pho; and I had a pork, egg, and vegetables over rice. It came with a side of soup - a tasty, herb broth.


We added the dessert and tea set for and extra 200 yen. We were both very happy with our meals, everything was delicious.

Just out front of the store are some inexpensive Vietnamese dishes, and other knick-knacks.

Location: Kitazawa 2-7-3
Phone: 03-3468-0481

Hours of Operation: 12:00 - 23:00 (until 1:00 am on Fri., Sat, and day before a holiday), lunch is from 12:00 - 16:00