[Azusa] [Japanese] Black Cherry Garden

Black Cherry Garden
530 S Citrus Ave #13
Azusa, CA 91702
(626) 339-6058

Wen read about Black Cherry Garden in J-Goods Magazine and visited the new yakitori restaurant.  This restaurant has only been opened for 3 months.  But Wen already visited 3 times and couldn't stop raving about it.  After reading her 3 visits on her blog, I really had to go try it myself.  And Wen had her 4th visit with me.



The restaurant is located in Azusa, inside a strip mall, next to a.... uh.... adult shop. 




You can order individual yakitori, price range from $1.50 to $2.00.



Or you can order dinner sets, which come with salad, rice and dessert.



They also have a few daily specials.  Currently Black Cherry Garden does not have alcohol license.  But you can bring your own sake or beer and there is no corkage fee.


Salad

Dr. P and I ordered a set A (12 sticks for $20), a set B (16 sticks for $25), and the 4 specials to share.  The meal started with salad and their http://www.eileenlikestoeat.commade miso sauce.  The miso sauce was yummy.  I can eat a bowl of white rice just with the sauce.


Shiso-maki ($2.00) x 2
Pork wrapped in spice leaf

Most of the time, Chef Atsushi runs the entire restaurant by himself.  That night he had a friend Shingo there to help.  Atsushi san would come to the front to make sure everything was ok, and go back to the kitchen to cook.  Surprisingly, the service was a lot faster than we expected.  Delicious hot sticks kept on coming out of the kitchen for the next 2 hours.

The first one was Shiso-maki.  The inside was tender pork, then wrapped by shiso leaf, then more pork.  I love the fragrance of shiso leaf.  Right after eating the first 2 sticks, we knew we were there for a great feast.


Asparagus-maki ($2.00) x 2
Asparagus wrapped in pork

Next came the Asparagus-maki.  Thick asparagus were wrapped with paper thin pork.  How did Atsushi san grilled the asparagus but not burn the thin thin pork?  This guy must got mad grilling skill! 


Zucchini

Next was a simple zucchini stick with garlic salt.  Dr. P immediately said "this is so simple but so good!"  Indeed.  The zucchini was grilled perfectly with all the juice still sealed inside.


Sasami ($1.50) x 2
Chicken breast

Next was chicken breast with wasabi specially made for us.  The story with the wasabi goes like this.  On Wen's first visit, her hubby casually mentioned that wasabi would go great with the chicken breast as the sticks came out from the kitchen.  Atsushi san apologized that they didn't have wasabi at the moment.  But the waiter friend quickly said "I'll go get it" and ran out the door.  30 minutes later, he came back with wasabi.  Not just your regular green paste in the tube wasabi, but fresh wasabi that need to be grated.  Now that's some service.

Since Wen and her hubby were dining with us, we also got the special freshly grated wasabi chicken breast.  The chicken breast was a little drier than the pork, but I supposed that's just how chicken breast is.  It was still delicious.  The wasabi trully went well with the meat. 


Tebasaki ($1.50)
Chicken wing

I LOVE the chicken wing!  Perfectly charred skin with tender meat.  A dash of 7-spices, yum!  Little Jonathan (Wen's son) couldn't get enough of those!


Japanese Style Miso Tofu ($2.00)

Then came the special of the day.  Dr. P couldn't resist and took a bite of the Japanese Style Miso Tofu before I took a picture.  The tofu steak was YUMMY!  The miso sauce was sooooo good.  If you see this on the special menu, get it!


Beef Tongue ($2.50)

The beef tongue I had before was always kinda soft, but the Beef Tongue stick was chewy and a little crunchy on the outside.  It was really good, just different than the tongue I had before.


Chicken Heart ($1.50)

I love organ meats!  Chicken heart was another yummy stick.


Chicken Liver ($1.50)

Chicken liver was even better!  It was grilled just right.  Hard on the outside, soft on the inside. 


Tsukune ($1.50)
Chicken meat ball

Tsukune was Jonathan's favorite.  Dr. P and I also like the chicken meat ball a lot.  It was soft and very flavorful.


Negima ($1.50)
Chicken and green onion

Negima was chicken and green onion stick.  The chicken meat was really tender.  I have never seen green onion that thick.  Must be a Japanese breed?


Gyu-miso-yaki ($2.00) x 2
Beef with original miso sauce

Gyu-miso-yaki was my favorite of the night.  The beef was marinated with miso sauce and grilled to a perfect medium.  The meat was juicy, tender, and full of flavor.  Perfect with rice, too!  This stick concluded the set A.


Buta-bara ($2.00) x 2
Pork rib with basil

For set B, we got 4 more sticks.  Buta-bara is Wen's favorite.  Love the basil flavor with the pork rib.


Ebi ($2.00) x 2
Shrimp

The last 2 sticks were shrimp.  Dr. P and I peeled the shrimp, but Wen said they just eat the shrimp with the shell.  Hmmm.... I'll try the it with the shell next time.


Green Tea

We were so full after all the food.  Shingo san brought us some green tea.


Vanilla Ice Cream ($2.00)

Jonathan got a vanilla ice cream treat.  He was so happy.


Coffee Jelly ($2.00)

The grown ups got http://www.eileenlikestoeat.commade coffee jelly.  The dessert tasted so Japanese.  Not a hint of sweetness.  Just coffee jello and some cream.  It was the perfect ending to a perfect meal!



The humble grill master, Chef Atsushi!  (26, single, dated a model when he was in Japan.)  <---- Just had to add that for the single ladies.



Couple notes for people who would like to go to Black Cherry Garden for some yummy yakitori:  (1)  Cash only; (2) bring your own alcohol, and don't forget to offer your waiter and chef a cup, too (Japanese way of thanking them); (3) They don't open on Wednesday; (4) I dont' think they're opened for lunch at the moment; (5) best to call for reservation because Chef Atsushi will turn you away if the place is full (he doesn't want to make his customers feel rushed).

Atsushi san's family has a yakitori restaurant in Japan.  So he has been working in a yakitori kitchen ever since he was like 10 or 12.  He is truly a skillful chef.  He's very particular about the quality of his food.  Even the charcoal was all imported from Japan.  Since Atsushi san just open the business, there wasn't enough fund to hire more staffs.  Service could be a little slow at time, especially when they are busy.  But the food is really worth the wait.  The service was also exceptional.  Shingo san was polite, friendly, and very funny.  Atsushi san goes to every table to make sure the customers are happy (he kneels down by the table when he talks to the customer!).  When you say "thank you" to him, he replies with a 90 degree Japanese bow.  It was almost like we were in a Japanese restaurant in Japan!

I am in love with Black Cherry Garden.  I definitely will be back again very very soon!

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