I won a prize in the KITTE Hakata Happy Gourmet lottery, so it was my first visit. During lunchtime from 11:00 to 14:00, you can enjoy crispy tonkatsu at a great price. I liked that the shredded cabbage is served separately from the tonkatsu and that the dressing container is clean without any drips.

This is a tonkatsu restaurant located on the 9th floor of KITTE Hakata, on the left side after exiting Hakata Station on the JR side. It is a nationwide chain. The interior is spacious with a woodgrain design, featuring counter and table seating. On this day, I ordered the aged premium pork loin katsu set meal for 1,100 yen including tax. Rice, cabbage, and miso soup are all-you-can-eat. The breading is crispy and the meat is tender. The miso soup and cabbage with sesame dressing were delicious. It's also a nice service to offer a free hot coffee to go during weekday lunchtime.

I tried the 55th-anniversary menu! For an additional 110 yen, I upgraded to 130g of premium pork for the cutlet. I decided to go with oyster fry! The oysters were surprisingly delicious with large meat. I felt like they outshone the cutlet... Maybe because I had them first? When I was in Tokyo, I used to often get takeout from this place, so it brings back good memories. Thank you for the meal.

I enjoyed it very much! It was actually my first time trying saboten, and I was surprised by how good it was. It's safe to say that they have established their own unique style, which has become a staple in the tonkatsu industry. Tonkatsu equals rice, cabbage, and miso soup, with free refills. In this era, where we want to satisfy hungry people and make them happy, it's safe to say that this restaurant does just that. Thank you for the meal!

Located in a corner of the 9th floor dining floor of Hakata KITTE, Hakata Station Meshi is a tonkatsu specialty restaurant with over 50 years of history in Shinjuku, Tokyo. I ordered the Roast Pork Tonkatsu (1380 yen excluding tax), which is made with original pork seasoned with flaxseed oil. Upon entering, I was seated at a table even though I was dining alone. The meal started with shredded cabbage on a plate, along with a sesame grinder and sesame seeds. The cabbage is refillable. Before the main tonkatsu arrived, I ground the sesame seeds and poured the dressing over the shredded cabbage. It had a sweet flavor, so I only added a little bit. After a while, the main tonkatsu with rice and miso soup arrived. Mixing the sauce into the ground sesame seeds created a fragrant flavor. The tonkatsu had a crispy coating, tender and juicy meat, and a refreshing taste. I had coffee after the meal for 200 yen, but it was complimentary when I presented my Marui Card. It was a nice touch to have three different types of pork loin to choose from.

I came to KITTE Hakata and had a meal before heading home. I chose the KITTE Hakata Saboten Nagomi set meal, which included five types of cheese and delicious menchi katsu, fillet tonkatsu. The menchi katsu was incredibly delicious. However, as shown in the photo, the side dishes and vegetables were a bit disappointing.

I have always wanted to visit Shinjuku Saboten at KIITE Hakata, so I finally went there this time. I ordered the 1680 yen Saboten lunch set which came with crab cream croquette and shrimp fry, making it a good deal. However, I felt a bit disappointed because the presentation could have been more attractive. The double black and white sesame seeds were a nice touch for differentiation. Also, I found it a bit insensitive that the staff held the serving plate up to the first joint of their thumb... maybe that's why the large portion and loud chatter started to bother me. This is something I don't experience at Hamakatsu or Anzu, haha.

I came to the post office near Hakata Station on my day off to apply for a qualification exam. I don't have much time on weekdays recently. Starting next week, I have to go to Kumamoto for work. Before the deadline, I wanted to apply early. It was lunchtime, so I planned to have lunch before heading home. On the way to the post office, I noticed the dining area panels at Hakata KITTE. It seems to open at 11:00, which is a good time. I can probably get in right after opening. After finishing my business at the post office, I walked through the dining area on the 9th and 10th floors of KITTE. It's been a while since I came here. The last time I was here, I think I was living in Ehime and had dinner at "Obon de Gohan." That was about 2 years ago. One shop that caught my eye while walking around was this one. It's Shinjuku Saboten, a long-established tonkatsu restaurant in Shinjuku founded in 1966. Until last year, I had a home in Saitama, so I had many opportunities to visit Shinjuku and thought I could visit anytime, so I never actually went. The last time I visited was about 10 years ago. This shop offers unlimited rice, miso soup, and cabbage refills. I decided on this shop. I searched on Tabelog right away. There were two listings that seemed to be this shop: "Shinjuku Saboten KITTE Hakata Store" and "Tonkatsu Shinjuku Saboten KITTE HAKATA." At this point, neither had any reviews. The one for "Shinjuku Saboten KITTE Hakata Store" had one photo posted, so I decided to post there. However, someone had already posted before me... I arrived at the shop around 11:20. There were about 10 customers in the table and counter seats. I was seated at an available table and checked the menu. I originally planned to order the popular No. 1 menu, Saboten set meal. However, I was also interested in the limited-time menu. I'm weak against limited-time items. This time, I ordered the "Ultimate Set Meal" from the limited-time menu. The Ultimate Set Meal includes a delicious 5-cheese Menchi and three-element wheat pork loin cutlet set. You can choose between white rice and barley rice, and I chose barley rice, which I love. Cabbage was brought to me in about a minute. I divided it into small plates and dressed it with sesame dressing and yuzu dressing. I used both, but I prefer to eat it as is without any dressing. The natural sweetness of the cabbage is nice. I usually eat cabbage and tofu without any dressing. I wait while grinding sesame. It was brought to me in about 10 minutes. It's been a while since I've seen this visual. I put the sauce on the table and first tried the 5-cheese Menchi. It's delicious. The cheese is rich and flavorful, and the Menchi inside is fluffy. The coating is crispy. Next, I tried the three-element wheat pork loin cutlet. It's delicious as expected. The coating is crispy, and the inside pork loin is tender and juicy. When you chew, the high-quality fat inside seeps out. I tried each with sauce, and then I tried the rest with the rock salt on the table. I think the flavor of the Menchi and loin cutlet is more pronounced with the rock salt. I prefer the rock salt. The miso soup was made with red miso. It's rich in flavor. It reminds me of when I lived in Nagoya. I quickly finished the rice. It's barley rice, so I couldn't help but have 3 refills. The first two refills were a bit small, but when I asked for the third refill, the staff gave me a generous portion. I'm delighted. It was quite challenging to keep eating until the end, but I persevered... I kept eating. I finished it in no time. I'm full. The third refill worked. I feel like my stomach is going to burst. This shop is located farthest from the elevators and escalators on the 9th floor of KITTE, so there were fewer customers compared to other shops. There are quite a few seats, so it's a hidden gem.

This time, I visited Shinjuku Saboten KITTE Hakata store located at 9-1 Hakata Station Central Street, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka City. After exploring various options, I settled on tonkatsu! The interior of the restaurant is clean and well-maintained. I prefer to eat tonkatsu with both sauce and salt. The crispy fried pork fillet and shrimp were also delicious. Thank you for the wonderful meal.

Seasonal limited? The asparagus was delicious. There was as much finely shredded cabbage as you wanted (lol)