Learning to love charcoal with Izakaya Ju

Izakaya Ju is a Japanese restaurant that is located in J-Town, the same plaza where Shiso Tree Cafe is located.  The interior resembles that of Guu, but with less of a crowd and quieter.  I generally prefer a quieter/less rowdy dining experience so this suited me just fine!

We actually had a bit of a rough start with this restaurant; however, we have definitely grown to love this izakaya and it is now part of our regular dining rotation.  Our first visit to this restaurant was a little disappointing- based on what we gathered from our subsequent visits, I would probably chalk this up to a combination of an off day and ordering the wrong items..

Tako yaki ($5)

Octopus balls

These are definitely a must-order for me whenever I visit an izakaya.  They were delicious and a reasonable price.  I realize that these are only little balls of dough and are really easy to make, but they just taste so darn good!


Yakitori-Don ($10)
Bincho grilled teriyaki chicken on rice

This grilled teriyaki chicken is possibly the best I've ever had!  There's a healthy filet of skin-on chicken and it is grilled to a perfect crispy golden brown.  The char/barbecue flavour is very intense and the chicken is cooked just right, as in cooked through without being dry.  I order this dish every time I visit this restaurant and I recommend that you do the same!

Gyu-Don ($9)
Simmered thinly sliced beef and onion on rice

Stanley admitted that he orders the Gyu-Don because I always order the Yakitori-Don and we don't want duplicates..  That said, this bowl is also very good with a generous portion of meat and rice.  The sliced beef is slightly thicker and less fatty than the typical hotpot meats, which I really like.  The rice is also not drenched in broth like it is at some places, and that's a positive in my books.   Overall, this is a very tasty bowl of rice!

Momo (leg) Yakitori ($2.5/skewer)
Choice of salt/teriyaki flavour

They also make some very good skewers here!  We usually order them with salt- they are well-seasoned and the meat is nice and tender.  Again, the char/barbecue flavour is strong- I think these skewers stand up to the ones at Zakkushi and Izakaya Ju is much more conveniently located (for us)! However, they definitely do charge downtown prices on these skewers.

Negima (leg and leek) Yakitori ($2.5/skewer)
Choice of salt/teriyaki flavour

These are similar to the Momo skewers but with less meat and grilled leaks- also delicious! Unfortunately, when compared against the momo, the value proposition does not justify the cost (lose juicy chicken, add tasty leek).

Osaka Omelet ($8)
Osaka style omelet with pork belly

This was definitely a miss for us.  While this omelet is supposed to contain pork belly, it tastes more like an egg omelet filled with Cheez Whiz.  This is doubly unfortunate as Stanley really wanted to try this dish and he hates cheese!  I would suggest staying away from this dish to avoid disappointment.

If you live in the Markham area and are craving izakaya-style dishes, I would recommend checking this place out!  But maybe avoid the omelet.....