Recently, our reporter Seiji Nakazawa has been checking out Tokyo restaurant recommendations from foreigners on Reddit, and he’s come to the conclusion that some foreigners know more about Japan than Japanese people.
After reading some of the discussions on Reddit, he’s discovered some unusual dining spots he didn’t know about, and now he’s just unearthed another — a curry chain he’d never heard of, called Sama.
▼ This chain was highly recommended by foreigners on Reddit.
Sama has 14 stores nationwide, with three branches in Tokyo, and Seiji decided to visit the branch in Okachimachi, which was located in a calm alley between Okachimachi and Akihabara. After doing a little research on the chain, Seiji discovered that most of the branches are located in Hokkaido, where it was founded, and unlike other Japanese curry chains, which specialise in Japanese curry rice dishes, this chain specialises in…
▼…Hokkaido soup curry.
At Sama, you can choose from five types of soup: Tomato soup, coconut soup, plain soup, shrimp soup, or creamy shrimp soup. As these are all Hokkaido soup curries, though, the common base is a light chicken broth throughout.
In Seiji’s mind, soup always seems like an appetiser rather than a main meal, so he was concerned over whether it would fill his belly or not. So he decided to order the tomato soup Mega Sama DX Curry for 2,500 yen, as it looked to be the biggest meal on the menu.
▼ And when it arrived, it was sufficiently huge.
The soup was more like a stew, with thick pieces of vegetable and pork poking out of it, and even a leg of chicken in the back.
That wasn’t the end of the surprises, though, because when Seiji dipped his spoon into the mix, he pulled out…a hamburger patty.
This was a soup that was filled with surprises, and as soon as he tried it, he was hooked on the flavor. It was meaty, yet light, thanks to the mild curry soup, which was sweet and subtle in spices, making it incredibly easy to eat.
The wide variety of vegetables made every mouthful exciting, and he and his dining partner, who’d ordered the equally delicious Tandoori Chicken and Minced Meat Coriander Cheese Curry (1,500 yen), agreed that they would happily add Sama to their list of regular dining venues from now on.
When Seiji spoke to a friend in Hokkaido about the chain, even they said they’d never eaten there, despite seeing branches around town on the regular. Seiji, now converted to Sama’s soup curry, found himself recommending the chain to his Hokkaido friend, which just goes to show that sometimes, restaurant recommendations from out-of-towners are worth looking into.
Store information
SAMA Kanda store / SAMA 神田店
Address: Tokyo-to, Chiyoda-ku, Sotokanda 6-15-4
東京都千代田区外神田6-15-4
Open: 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (last order 3 p.m.); 5 p.m.-9:30 p.m. (last order 9 p.m.)
Closed: Second Wednesday of the month
Images © SoraNews24
Read more stories from SoraNews24.
-- Japanese ramen chain becomes a hot topic with foreigners on Reddit, but is it any good?
-- A taste of Japanese curry usually only sold overseas, at Tokyo’s Curry House CoCo Ichibanya World
-- We eat an Italian-inspired lobster curry…at a cheap curry chain!
- External Link
- https://soranews24.com/2023/07/30/japanese-curry-chain-is-highly-recommended-by-foreigners-on-reddit-but-is-it-any-good/
27 Comments
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falseflagsteve
OMG Ooona has done it again!
Oh dear, if you want the best Sapporo Soup curry you have to eat at Suage
In fact I believe they have one or two stores in Tokyo, please come to Osaka, lol
i wouldn’t take advice from Reddit users to find anything good actually.
Here’s a link to Suage, miles better than Sama and better value
https://suage.info/stores/
Sapporo trip soon to visit my partners family with my dear son for the first time.
Im so excited and I just can’t hide it, aren’t I a card, lol?
Aly Rustom
Not a big fan of Japanese curry. I find it too sweet.
But to each his/her own.
Redemption
Looks good but beyond what I would pay.
Tom
Japanese curry seems to serve the job of a gravy dinner - in fact, it's made in pretty much the same way as instant gravy granules. Wholesome, hearty, can't say I don't enjoy it, but honestly the quality of Indian food in London/Birmingham/Manchester is just off the charts compared to Tokyo/Osaka.
Euro Dude
How much is the rate for hidden advertisement nowadays?
Strangerland
Yum, I'm going to try this when I'm in Tokyo next.
falseflagsteve
Tom
Had a blinding meal last night at Nakatsu with my partner and my son. Place called Diamond Biryani, absolutely splendid and totally authentic Indian cuisine. I had a lovely mutton on the bone biryani, the meal was over;y generous and my partner and I were unable to finish our meals but me dear son ate all his and polished off what I had left, bless him.
Elvis is here
Lol. Authentic Indian cuisine? Oh please. You don't get that in Osaka. Or London. Lol. Bless.
Elvis is here
And biryani isn't even Indian! Lol
wallace
Kobe is the best city for authentic Indian curries.
This one looks tasty.
Reginald Bok
?
It can be, though varieties also originate in Pakistan, for example, amongst many countries.
wallace
The origins of biryani can be traced back to ancient Persia (modern-day Iran), where a similar dish called "pulao" or "pilaf" was prepared. Pulao is a one-pot dish in which rice is cooked with meat, vegetables and a medley of aromatic spices.
Reginald Bok
@wallace
Munchery.com
Copy and paste
wallace
yes?
Reginald Bok
Well, why would you do it
Trying to look knowledgeable. Sorry, it's tacky
wallace
No, and I would normally use quotation marks but I missed them with this one.
gcFd1
I have to agree.
Thank you for pointing that out.
Hopefully it results in some future restraint.
wallace
gcFd1
Of course, you would want to butt in.
You can check my archives and discover 99.99% of the time I have used quotation marks. Missing them once does not make it bad.
PK.
gcFd1
Weird.
Give it a rest and move on.
wallace
gcFd1
quit trolling my posts
PK
Reginald Bok
Apologies chaps. I didn't mean to start such a row.
Have a nice evening, both.
opheliajadefeldt
I have never tasted curry, it is hard to find it in my all vegetarian diet. Unless of course some one makes a salad dressing in a curry flavour one day, but I doubt that happening.
kintsugi
There are many Indian vegetarian dishes and in the UK you can find Indian vegetarian restaurants. Not all Indians eat meat.
kintsugi
opheliajadefeldt
found this one for you
VEGAN EATS OXFORD
https://veganeatsoxford.com/tag/indian/
Paustovsky
Er... isn't most Indian food vegetarian ? It's other countries that add meat.
餓死鬼
You’re missing out. Vegetable curry, dhal curry, aloo sag, aloo samosa, vegetable pakora and probably plenty of other dishes should be suitable for you.
Strangerland
I eat vegetarian curries all the time. Not Japanese of course, that one is pretty inextricable from meat. But lots of vegetarian Indian curries.