Tanaka (restaurant)

Tanaka is a Japanese restaurant in Portland, Oregon.[1] The original location has operated in downtown Portland since 2022, and a second location opened in Bridgeport Village in 2023.

Tanaka
The restaurant's exterior, 2022
Restaurant information
Food typeJapanese
Street address678 Southwest 12th Avenue
CityPortland
CountyMultnomah
StateOregon
Postal/ZIP Code97205
CountryUnited States
Coordinates45.5207°N 122.6838°W / 45.5207; -122.6838

Description
Interior display case at the original restaurant, 2022

Tanaka is a Japanese bakery and katsu sandwich shop on Morrison Street in downtown Portland's West End.[2] Brooke Jackson-Glidden of Eater Portland has described the business as "part Japanese patisserie, part katsu sandwich shop, [and] part brunch cafe".[3] Andi Prewitt of Willamette Week called Tanaka a "spinoff of Japanese-based chain Kushikatsu Tanaka, which specializes in skewers (kushi) of bite-sized, breaded cutlets (katsu) served with a dipping sauce whose recipe has remained a well-guarded family secret for 70 years."[4] The restaurant has indoor and outdoor seating, and the interior features a wall decoration with the text, "Of everything in the world, who knew bread would bring all these beautiful people together?"[5]

Sandwich options have included chicken, pork, chicken, Oregon rockfish, and wagyu beef, all with shokupan (Japanese milk bread). The restaurant has also served a vegan option with oat milk, which Jackson-Glidden said in 2022 was the city's only dairy-free milk bread option. The menu has also included Japanese fruit sandwiches with milk bread and whipped cream, dorayaki, macarons (such as pistachio and ume varieties), matcha and miso croissants, mochi doughnuts, and coffee.[3] Other pastries have included "black-sesame-raspberry Paris Brest, yuzu meringue tart with shiso and blackberries, a pyramid of pistachio sponge with raspberry compote and dark chocolate mousse."[6]

History
Interior of the original restaurant, 2022

The team behind Afuri[7] opened Tanaka on June 25, 2022,[6][8] in a 5,500-square-foot space which previously housed a Blue Star Donuts shop.[3][9][10] A second location opened in Bridgeport Village on August 22, 2023.[11] Taichi Ishizuki is the business' chief executive officer.[12]

Reception

Katherine Chew Hamilton of Portland Monthly recommended the chicken katsu, eggplant, and pork katsu sandos, as well as the matcha opera cake and the miso chocolate chip cookie. She described the restaurant as "welcoming and expansive" and wrote, "Our take, overall, is that you can find better baked goods at Oyatsupan, and better sandos at Tokyo Sando. But on days that call for a sit-down lunch downtown, perhaps as an escape from the office or between museum-going, Tanaka is a good bet."[5] Eater Portland's Brooke Jackson-Glidden included the business in a 2022 list of "The Hottest New Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland".[13] The website's Michelle Lopez also included Tanaka in a 2022 overview of "Outstanding Bakeries in Portland and Beyond".[14]

See also

References
  1. Elise, Ayo (2022-09-19). "Tanaka in downtown Portland serves up savory sandos and sweet treats". KPTV. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  2. Hamilton, Katherine Chew (2022-06-23). "Portland City Council Unanimously Votes to Extend 10% Delivery App Fee Cap". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on 2022-08-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  3. Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2022-04-08). "The Team Behind Afuri Is Opening a Portland Cafe Dedicated to Japanese Katsu Sandwiches". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  4. Prewitt, Andi (2022-10-12). "Downtown Is Coming Back, Along With What Was Always Its Most Beloved Feature: Restaurants". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  5. Hamilton, Katherine Chew (2022-08-25). "What to Order (and Skip) at Tanaka, Downtown's Newest Katsu Sandwich Shop and Japanese Bakery". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  6. Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2022-06-24). "Inside Tanaka, the New Shokupan Sandwich Shop and Japanese Bakery in Downtown Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  7. Russell, Michael (2022-07-12). "22 new Portland restaurants to know for summer 2022". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2022-08-07. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  8. Wong, Janey (2021-01-27). "A Guide to Portland's Bar, Restaurant, and Food Cart Openings". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  9. Russell, Michael (2022-03-31). "Afuri team building big new downtown Portland bakery focused on Japanese milk bread, katsu sandos". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  10. Russell, Michael (2022-04-18). "Dough Zone, Phuket Cafe debut, star chefs expand beyond Portland, plus more local restaurant news for April 2022". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  11. Wong, Janey (2021-01-27). "A Guide to Portland's Bar, Restaurant, and Food Cart Openings". Eater Portland. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  12. Lorell, Clair (2023-06-01). "Hit Japanese Bakery Tanaka, Shake Shack to Open in Tualatin". Eater Portland. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  13. Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2015-04-02). "The Hottest New Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland, October 2022". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2022-06-13. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  14. Lopez, Michelle (2015-12-01). "Outstanding Bakeries in Portland and Beyond". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-06-03. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
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