I recently noticed that Okan Diner was open for lunch. Since my first visits in March, I'd pretty much left the place alone. What I had was decent to pretty good; but I thought the prices were a bit on the high side. Now that the place was open for lunch, I was interested in checking out if anything had changed.
You see; I really don't think a $17 Kamameshi for lunch would be sustainable.
I was happy to find a lunch menu; the prices weren't too bad; though, based on the udon I'd had during a previous visit; those prices still seemed a bit high.
Still, it was nice to see a simple set of lunch specials. Picking one out was easy; the Katsu-Ni ($11.50).
Think of it as being Katsudon; without everything poured over rice..........though I wished that they perhaps did donburi instead of these types of preparation....it would be in character of a "diner" in my mind.
Overall, I thought the focus of the meal was well prepared. The sauce had a nice balance of salty to sweet. The onions were tender; though I enjoy having some scallions as well. The tonkatsu was tender and still crisp, a very important thing when it comes to these type of dishes. The egg was a bit overcooked and not "fluffy" enough for my taste, but that's splitting hairs. I did see the dish sit on the counter for a while, so perhaps that had something to do with things. The rice was perfect for this dish; though again, I prefer it saturated with sauce.....but no complaints here. The miso soup was decent, not too watery, not too salty. The side dishes....well, I expect more than mass produced seaweed salad and bland moyashi. This after all; carries the Okan banner and even at lunch the sides are at the least interesting.
So therein lies the problem for me. This place is even more expensive than having my favorite lunch at Okan. And it's not nearly as completely good....notice I said completely. It is still good, but hasn't quite hit the mark yet. Perhaps they are still finding their footing?
I hope so.
Okan Diner
5430 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117
Open Daily
1130am - 2pm
5pm - 1030pm
wow expensive...
Posted by: kat | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 12:27 AM
The prices are on the high side Kat.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 06:33 AM
The high prices have kept me away as well. Hard to justify when the original is better and cheaper.
Posted by: Junichi | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 09:55 AM
So true Junichi.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 11:41 AM
That Tonkatsudon looks better than most places in SD. May swing by for some oyakodon.
Posted by: LL | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 12:15 PM
Give 'em a shot LL....they did a decent job with the Katsu-ni
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 22 May 2017 at 12:43 PM