Taihou, Meguro: The Premium Tonkatsu Set

Salut! It's Yoko, a food blogger who can't resist a pork fillet cutlet when it comes to tonkatsu.

On my way back from the Meguro Parasitological Museum, I stopped at Taihou, one of Meguro's three great tonkatsu shops!

One of Meguro's tonkatsu big three

When I want something meaty, tonkatsu is right up there with yakiniku!

My tonkatsu cravings are especially strong when I'm in Meguro.

That's because Meguro has famous, popular tonkatsu shops known as the big three.

One is "Tonki," where I went at New Year; another is "Katsuki," which I haven't been to yet; and the third is "Taihou" here.

I happened to be walking nearby, so I decided to try Taihou.

A line before the shop even opens

Famous food lovers like Kan Sekine, Kazuki Kosakai and Tatsuo Umemiya have apparently visited, so my heart was racing!

The shop is a five-minute walk from the station, just down Gonnosuke-zaka slope, so it's easy to reach.

I arrived around 5:00 p.m., but it wasn't open yet, so I killed time at a convenience store...
Three minutes before opening, nearly ten people were already lined up.

Popular indeed. I was worried we wouldn't get in on the first round, but we just barely made it.

After we went in, one or two solo diners who were fine with shared seating came in, and then it was full.

Opening time is the sweet spot.

Inside, there's a counter by the entrance and tables toward the back.

A radio was playing, and it was thoughtful of them to have an English menu.

I ordered the premium fillet cutlet set.

In about five minutes, tea (powdered tea), lettuce, wakame and pickled daikon arrived.

You dress it with either French dressing or sesame-soy dressing.

I like restaurants that bring a little starter like this so you don't get bored during a long wait!

After about 30 minutes of munching on the salad, the premium fillet cutlet set arrived ♥

The miso soup is simple, with just green onion and a few tiny pieces of tofu.

The rice is on the less sticky side, with a clean flavor.

The fillet cutlet is cut into perfect one- or two-bite pieces and served with cabbage and lemon.

Let's dig in... starting with the fillet cutlet.

The coating, made with large fresh breadcrumbs, is big and puffy, and so crisp!

The oil is drained really well, so there's zero greasiness.

The pork is fully cooked but soft and tender!

I put half of each of the two dressings on the cabbage.

Eaten between bites of tonkatsu, it's three times as tasty lol

Dabbing some mustard in the tonkatsu sauce and eating them together tightens the flavor, which is delicious too.

But the best thing of all was Taihou's recommended Himalayan rock salt.

It has a mellow saltiness and a mineral depth, and it's really delicious!

It was so good that I might even prefer it to the sauce...!

It's simple, but the coating and pork are so high in quality that it's delicious with just salt, I felt.

The cabbage and rice come with free refills, but you get quite full, so it might be tough for small eaters.

And this is the premium pork loin cutlet set!

I don't like fat, so I don't usually eat it, but I tried one piece.

The fat had no off flavor, was sweet, and was fried to a tender finish!

They don't take reservations and it's a popular place, so it's not easy to get in,

but there are also bento boxes you can reserve by phone.

If the timing works out, I hope you'll give it a try.

There are still so many places I want to go, like Tonkatsu Meguro Kogane, opened by someone who trained at Taihou, and the big-three member Katsuki...!

I'd like to head to Meguro for tonkatsu again.

See you next time. Au revoir!

Tonkatsu Taihou
1-6-15 Meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-0063
11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Closed Thursdays
03-3491-9470