Written by What kind of Japanese restaurant is this? No sushi. No sashimi. No tempura. No ramen. No teppanyaki.
Izakaya Kazama is an Izakaya in the Japanese spirit, the kind of hole in the wall where a Tokyo salaryman might stop off for a couple of sakes or beers and some snacks to go with them. Unlike most of the Japanese restaurants in the Twin Cities, Izakaya Kazama is actually owned by a Japanese guy, Mathew Kazama, (born in the US, raised in Japan), who also owns the very popular little Kazama Ramen, two doors away.
There are more than 30 different small plates on the menu, all priced from $3 to $5, ranging from breaded shrimp or mackerel with tartar sauce, grilled beef tongue, and squid with cod row, to skewers of pork belly. grilled eel or broiled shiitake mushroom caps. Combo sets of 6 or 7 items cost $20-25. Nearly every dish teases the palate with a unique combination of flavors and textures.
There are a few pricier items, including the wagyu hambagyu and tonkatsu (breaded pork cutlet), both $15; a veggie curry, $10; and beef curry, $11, plus optional toppings ($3-5), but we filled up nicely for around $25 per person, plus the cost of drinks
All of the ordering, except for drinks, is done online from your, starting with a QR code. At first, I found this rather annoying, but that’s the way it’s done in Japan these days, but it turned out to be quite efficient, and our orders arrived quickly.