Arlington, MA: Toraya Japanese Restaurant
Let's Eat by Kitty Kaufman
Toraya centers the Japanese universe in Arlington. Here, small is beautiful with 18 seats and five at the bar. We're here for lunch early but you can't be late because by 11:30 it's full. The line is growing, it's right before Christmas but still. Shinji Muraki, owner and chef, is calm. I, on the other hand, panic seeing people waiting but no, he's doing it all, as in just him with one server, Hitomi. I've eaten here many times and as with most things, you have to kiss a lot of frogs.I'm here with Lim, who opened his first restaurant in Waltham a long time ago, and knows Shinji 20 years. He eats here often and when he says we need to leave Brookline now, you do it. He's right and it's worth it. With no assistants, Shinji must have started working the fish hours ago. Shrimp are peeled and lined up like good soldiers. Nearby is one of the tigers, a motif. Tigers don't go for shrimp, right?



But the pièce de résistance today is yours for .95 and it's chirashi, modestly listed as an "assortment of fresh fish, egg and vegetables placed on top of sushi rice." (No egg on my fish, nor my hamburger and I don't see any here.) It is by any standards a beautiful bowl. The last time I saw chirashi, or chirashizushi, was in San Diego where everyone was having it for lunch. Chirashi means "scattered" so what you get depends on where you are. When the bowl is set before the person who orders it, do not expect to be offered a bite or a piece. I didn't and it wasn't. The same bowl of chirashi, I am assured, costs in Tokyo.


I need a drink. There's sake cold: ozeki dry, hakushika junmai ginjo, kaguyahime,kira, kaori, kimoto and others. Sake hot: house. There's Sapporo, the original, and Kirin Ichiban (meaning number one) plus three whites ( a pinot, a chardonnay and a sauvignon) and three reds that include plum wine. It was lunch, we didn't drink. No raw fish, you say? No worries, there are tempuras, agemono of pork, chicken and salmon, and teryaki for all plus udon, salmon okabe, wafu steak, and other fried specials.

Toraya Japanese Restaurant
890 Mass Ave
Arlington, MA 02476
781. 641. 7477
© February 19, 2016 See more at Corporate Edge and on Twitter.
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Italian Western

Fine kettle of fish

Food, and art

Red hot and blue

Yes, we have no meatballs

Meatballs and calamari in Roslindale

Pon cooks with fire

Happy, happy new year

New York state of mind

Industry standard

Ta dah

Eat dessert first