restaurant review: harajuku gyoza lou

So close and yet so far....

(Tokyo, Japan).  While shopping along Omotesando (near Harajuku) - and getting carried away by all the awesome stores - I was suddenly hit by a feeling quite foreign during my trip to Japan thus far ... namely hunger.  I had not planned for a meal since this was one of my "spontaneous" days so I decided to go onto yelp and see what was nearby.  Out of the choices that popped up, I quickly noticed that Harajuku Gyoza Lou had an amazing amount of reviews and lots of stars - always a good sign.  The written reviews were all quite glowing and consistent.  This restaurant served a very simple menu of gyoza (fried or steamed) and cucumber salad, and by all accounts, it was delicious and cheap.

Refreshing sake and cucumber salad

I mapped out the restaurant and it was in one of the side streets off of Omotesando.  We quickly found it using google maps, as well as the throngs of people waiting in line.  It wasn't obvious at first, but there were apparently 2 lines - one for the gyoza restaurant and one for the Thai place next door.  (Note - we found out afterwards that the Thai place is considered one of the best in town, so we'll have to check that out the next time we are in Tokyo.)  We got into the line for gyoza and waited for about 40 minutes.   

 

This is part 1 of the line; part 2 is on the other side of the alley.

By the time we were seated, I was actively salivating and a bit faint from hunger.  Luckily the orders come quickly.  We stuffed ourselves silly on gyoza.  Order after order of glorious meat-filled dumplings were basically inhaled.  It was one of those meals where you wished you had an extra stomach so you could continue enjoying the delicious flavors without suffering ever-tightening waistlines.

 

The fried gyoza were awesome...

but so were the steamed ones .... decisions, decisions....

If you are looking for something delectable and cheap - definitely try this out.  I think each order (6 pieces) was under $3.

It's located in an area with lots of hipster boutiques, great vintage shops and cool looking bars/restaurants.  I could definitely have spent more time exploring this area - which is less hectic and more grown-up than the nearby Harajuku area.