06/19 Dinner: Hamburg steak

After a failed attempt to buy a cellphone, my husband and I were disappointed,  hungry, and in need of easy gratification. Vowing to stop at the first restaurant we passed on the long bike ride home from the station, we wound up at Bikkuri Donkey.

This oddly-named chain restaurant specializes in hambaagu. In Japanese, hambaagu refers to a hamburger patty served without the bun, as distinct from a regular humbaagaa (In Canada we'd call it a Salisbury steak or a Hamburg steak). You choose your size then you choose your sauce and toppings. You can top your patty with a fried egg, pineapple, cheese or beef stew. Or you can have it topped with oroshi (grated daikon) like mine above. It came topped with a shiso (perilla) leaf and a mound of oroshi, and before eating you pour the sauce (a tart soy-based sauce) over it. Check out hambaagu menu here.

It was tasty, and totally unlike the sad gritty Salisbury steaks I've had back home. More like a mini meatloaf, but better. I don't know what has prevented me from trying Bikkuri Donkey more-- my memories of horrible Salisbury steaks, or the name (bikkuri means "surprised", and I've always wondered what that had to do with with the place-- is the donkey surprised it ended up as a Hamburg steak??). But the food is good, and even better, it's dirt cheap. We rarely eat out these days, but I can see us coming here again. Especially after checking their website and finding that they have their own microbrew. How could I have not noticed? We'll definitely be going back soon.

Bikkuri Donkey

Locations throughout Japan, address list here (Japanese)

Comments

[illahee]

i've never eaten there before. i've heard good things, though.

[Carlyn]

Amy;
The name of the restaurant is interesting. Any history on the name? The patty looks wonderful with the daikon...

[joanna]

You had me catch my breath there for a second...I thought you had made all this food yourself, achieving yet another level of culinary complexity.

I can smell the sizzling smoke!

[Amy]

Illahee, if you like Japanese-style hamburger steaks, then you'll like Bukkuri Donkey!

Carlyn, no idea about the name. The site says the original restuarant was called "Beru". They should have kept that name!

Joanna, I definitely didn't make any of that food. I've tried making hambaag before and it's always a miserable failure.

[Jennifer Pack]

Amy, the name of the restaurant means "surprise donkey". Which really cracks me up. I'm sure they aren't serving donkey meat....but what a name.

[Malia]

Wow. I didn't know anyone actually really called them Hamburg Steak in English. It's always driven me crazy hearing Japanese call them that in English as I've grown up with Hamburger Steak (in Hawaii) or yes, Salisbury Steak (TV dinners!).