Today's spotlight is on Coocy Curry (クーシー-カレーライス専門店). Since it's been rainy the past few days, I thought something warm and stew-like would hit the spot so finally crossed off one of the curry locations in town. Doing some research ahead of time, I had seen that the yaki-curry (焼きカレー) or broiled curry is a restaurant specialty (and is a dine-in only option) so I had to try it. I decided to get the braised pork (豚バラ軟骨) and fried garlic as toppings. I was also in a splurge kind of mood so I also got a mango lassi and a side salad.
I must say, I feel like I could be a regular at this place. You can't go wrong with a salad topped with fried shallots with sesame dressing so that's a great start. The curry itself was easy to eat but had some subtle complexities. The initial taste was what one expected with Japanese curries, with a nice rounded beef flavor. A few seconds later though, an undertone of spice and heat (shichimi like) emerged. Some of the toppings, including the shoyu+mirin braising liquid from the braised pork and fried garlic, helped to add pockets of flavor and umami as one works through the curry. At the very center was a poached egg, where the egg yolk added a silky richness, amplifying the curry's mouth feeling. If this is somehow too much flavor for someone or potentially exhausting, the pickled ginger in the middle was very refreshing and lightens the curry, giving one's palette a nice bit of relief (though a mango lassi does a pretty good job at this too). Finally, spots of caramelization from the edge of the bowl and broiled cheese on top were just so satisfying in a curry experience. Just an amazing roller coaster of flavor.
The pièce de résistance,taking this place place over the top though was the braised pork cheek/neck. Oh lord, it tasted so much better than the cha-shu I've had at the ramen spots in Tsukuba from how prevalent the shoyu+mirin braise was while being so tender. I think one trick is because they used a cut with cartilage in it, the piece still had quite a bit of structure. Unfortunately, I don't know if this is something they always have so I hope if a reader goes to this place, they might strike gold and find this as a special.
As a final remark before I score the place, the ambience of the location is worth mentioning. It's very well lit, incredibly spacious, some light jazz playing in the background, cute menus, dedicated staff/chef, just amazing. I think this place definitely deserves a 9/10 from the range of experiences I had in this one dish (with plenty of highs). I am definitely incredibly excited to come back with some coupons they gave me! :D
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