Gengen-en

There’s the pleasure of choosing a few kushiage—skewered ingredients coated and fried—and the reassurance of a set meal substantial enough to make lunch. At Gengen-en, you can build your meal around meat and seafood or focus on vegetable katsu. The large prawn set costs 1,800 yen and includes 2 large prawns, scallop, squid, whiting and 2 seasonal vegetables, alongside a small side dish, red miso soup and rice. It’s a good option if you’d like a range of seafood in one meal. The fried horse mackerel set costs 1,600 yen and comes with fried horse mackerel, large prawn, scallop, squid, whiting and 2 vegetables. For a set that also includes meat, the chicken katsu set (1,700 yen) pairs 2 pieces of chicken katsu with large prawn, scallop, squid and 2 vegetables. All are listed with a small side dish, red miso soup and rice; the choice comes down to how much seafood you’d like, or whether you’d also like chicken katsu.

For a vegetable-led lunch, there’s the vegetable katsu set for 1,300 yen, with skewers of lotus root, pumpkin, broccoli, aubergine, spring onion and black maitake mushroom, plus a small side dish, red miso soup and rice. One diner who tried it recalled the sweetness of the broccoli and onion. The menu offers a way to compare the combinations and make vegetables the focus of your meal. The croquette set costs 1,500 yen. It includes 2 hearty, meat-filled, barrel-shaped croquettes, a large prawn, scallop, squid and 2 seasonal vegetables. Extra skewers can be added to any set; a skewer of soft-boiled egg costs an additional 200 yen. Other options include black maitake mushroom, lotus root and whiting, as well as dessert skewers such as Yukimi Daifuku, pineapple and banana.

Diners who have tried the kushiage have described the batter as light rather than oily, and the squid as notably soft. Another visitor mentioned that the set came with red miso soup and rice, and enjoyed ordering extra dishes as well. These are individual impressions, but they suggest one way to order: choose a set as the foundation, then add a skewer or two that catches your eye.

For something other than fried skewers, the lunch menu also lists a mapo plate for 1,200 yen and mapo udon made with nodoguro broth. They offer an alternative to a set meal centred on fried food. Lunch drinks include beer, highballs, wine, sake, original cocktails and soft drinks. Takeaway is available, and there are counter seats. Visitors have posted about stopping in after visiting Sumiyoshi Taisha, as well as dining alone, making it an option for a meal after a shrine visit or a solo lunch break with kushiage.