Toraya Arlington

Toraya in Arlington is really THE place for sushi and Japanese dishes in Arlington. It fills up quickly for both lunch and dinner. I got here at 11:45 and got the last seat at the sushi bar.

They have parking behind the restaurant and also on the side street.

It's small and seats about 24, and that includes the sushi bar. One sushi chef and one waitress. This could be anywhere in Japan.

You get green tea and Miso Soup. No spoon. The bowl was ice cold, so the soup quickly became cold. When warm the miso soup is actually OK.

Today's choice was a Bento Box with Pork Katsu ($11.95). I really like the salad dressing here, and the molded rice is tasty. The apps section had some cold cooked salmon, fish cake, marinated shitake mushrooms, egg pancake, gyoza (cold), edamame and some Tatsuta-age (deep fried chicken also cold). All of it was delicious and well prepared. The pork katsu was cooked perfectly, and come with some hot mustard, tonkatsu sauce and a slice of lemon, and this is exactly how this dish traditionally should be served.

Chef Shinji Muraki is breaking down a whole loin of tuna. Doesn't get any fresher than this.

Address 890 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA 02476 Phone number (781) 641-7477