Izakaya Ittoku

I love all of the Japanese restaurants in Porter Square. Came here with a group of friends. The place is spacious, so it is good for groups, but you will need a reservation because it gets busy. Overall, the food was not as good as I expected, but it wasn't bad either. My favorite was the mentaiko udon and fried calamari. The udon was very creamy and had a lot of flying fish roe. I was disappointed with the torched salmon because it was completely cooked rather than raw.

We tried Izakaya Ittoku for the first time after wanting to go for a while. The interior is interesting -- it has bright fluorescent overhead lighting that I wouldn't expect from an izakaya type of restaurant. Overall the food came out pretty quickly and we got to try a variety of dishes. The niku udon stood out with irregular wide noodles, comforting broth, and tender sliced beef. We liked it so much that we ordered it again. The chicken thigh yakitori was tender and flavorful -- definitely a highlight. The tako wasa was quite good and reasonably priced. The ringo mocktail was also really delicious. The shishito peppers with savory dashi broth were a unique and tasty experience, though a bit pricey. The butter mushroom dish had a nice flavor with sliced king oyster mushrooms. The squid and chicken karaage were both pretty good but not the best I've had of either. The seafood okonomiyaki looked beautiful, especially the plump and delicious shrimp, but overall it was okay, not my favorite. The takoyaki wasn't special, and the grilled chicken wings were not great—seemed slightly undercooked inside and lacked crispiness. I'd definitely reorder the niku udon, tako wasa, and chicken thigh yakitori. I prefer the niku udon over the hot niku udon at Yume around the corner due to better noodles and broth. We were lucky to get seats quickly, but I recommend coming early, especially on busy evenings.