I don't venture to Rowland Heights very often, but I may now just
because of this curry house. A girlfriend and I happened upon this place by
accident as we were surveying the area for something yummy to eat. It
was between shabu-shabu and Kula sushi when my eyes drew me to "Curry
House." I didn't even see the actual name of the restaurant, CoCo Ichibanya, when I yelled out, "Oh my God, there's a curry house! We've
gotta check this out!" And check out we did.
The atmosphere is quaint and cute. It's not a big space, but the seating is cleverly placed. The walls are white and a little bare, but perhaps adding color might make the square footage feel smaller. There are a few stand-alone round tables, half booth & chair seating against the wall in the back of the restaurant and to the right, a cute, little, bar seating area as if you were at a sushi bar. It's actually quite a welcoming space.
We were graciously welcomed and were seated immediately. The menus are on the table, and my God, they had a TON of curry plates to choose from. Calamari? Chicken? Beef? Pork? Fish? Vegetable? They've got it. Not only are there more than 30 entrees, they have a number of salads, lunch combo sets (which are great value, by the way), a section on the menu for "mini curry" (same regular-sized curry choices but in a much smaller portion), a "children's curry" section, and randomly a side order of french fries.
The most interesting part of the menu, however, is the "How to Order" section. 1) You choose what kind of curry you want, i.e. beef curry, 2) then choose your rice size, from small: 250g (the smallest for a regular curry dish [150g is for the mini curry]) to XL, or 550g, and 3) you choose how spicy you want your curry. They have a chart from mild & regular flavors to levels 1-10, 10 of course, being the spiciest. Do know, the more rice you eat, and the spicier you want your curry, the more money you'll pay. No worries though, the most you'll pay to stimulate those taste buds is $1. Oh, and there is also an area on the menu where you can add toppings to your curry. From hard boiled eggs and corn to tuna and fried squid, it's nice to be able to customize your own dish, for a few more dollars, of course.
I opted for the chicken cutlet curry (regular size) at spice level 3 (the standard of truly spicy hot curry), while my friend had the thin-sliced pork curry at mild. The plates came out piping hot with the rice on one side topped with your choice of meat while the curry sat on the other close to dripping off the plate. It was beautifully presented, and boy were we hungry! We had been sitting there studying the menu and breathing in the delicious smell of curry. We couldn't wait to dig in.
It was absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, hands-down the most DELICIOUS Japanese curry that I have ever had the pleasure of devouring!!! And for the longest time I had been a fan of Hurry Curry in LA. Their stuff is good, but Coco Ichibanya blows them out of the water. The curry isn't too thick nor is it watery -- it's just right. And my friend gave it a thumbs-up as she had lived in Japan for five years, and said it was just the way it should be. I should also mention that the spice level 3 had a good kick to it. I love my foods spicy and am excited to work my way up to spice level 10.
Besides the delicious curry, which is reason enough to come back, I have to say the service was just as delightful. All the servers were friendly; quick; knowledgeable; and attentive (one replenished my friend's glass of water with a new glass of water all together).
In summary: the place is clean and comfortable, the staff is friendly and efficient, and the curry is heaven in your mouth.
The atmosphere is quaint and cute. It's not a big space, but the seating is cleverly placed. The walls are white and a little bare, but perhaps adding color might make the square footage feel smaller. There are a few stand-alone round tables, half booth & chair seating against the wall in the back of the restaurant and to the right, a cute, little, bar seating area as if you were at a sushi bar. It's actually quite a welcoming space.
We were graciously welcomed and were seated immediately. The menus are on the table, and my God, they had a TON of curry plates to choose from. Calamari? Chicken? Beef? Pork? Fish? Vegetable? They've got it. Not only are there more than 30 entrees, they have a number of salads, lunch combo sets (which are great value, by the way), a section on the menu for "mini curry" (same regular-sized curry choices but in a much smaller portion), a "children's curry" section, and randomly a side order of french fries.
The most interesting part of the menu, however, is the "How to Order" section. 1) You choose what kind of curry you want, i.e. beef curry, 2) then choose your rice size, from small: 250g (the smallest for a regular curry dish [150g is for the mini curry]) to XL, or 550g, and 3) you choose how spicy you want your curry. They have a chart from mild & regular flavors to levels 1-10, 10 of course, being the spiciest. Do know, the more rice you eat, and the spicier you want your curry, the more money you'll pay. No worries though, the most you'll pay to stimulate those taste buds is $1. Oh, and there is also an area on the menu where you can add toppings to your curry. From hard boiled eggs and corn to tuna and fried squid, it's nice to be able to customize your own dish, for a few more dollars, of course.
I opted for the chicken cutlet curry (regular size) at spice level 3 (the standard of truly spicy hot curry), while my friend had the thin-sliced pork curry at mild. The plates came out piping hot with the rice on one side topped with your choice of meat while the curry sat on the other close to dripping off the plate. It was beautifully presented, and boy were we hungry! We had been sitting there studying the menu and breathing in the delicious smell of curry. We couldn't wait to dig in.
It was absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, hands-down the most DELICIOUS Japanese curry that I have ever had the pleasure of devouring!!! And for the longest time I had been a fan of Hurry Curry in LA. Their stuff is good, but Coco Ichibanya blows them out of the water. The curry isn't too thick nor is it watery -- it's just right. And my friend gave it a thumbs-up as she had lived in Japan for five years, and said it was just the way it should be. I should also mention that the spice level 3 had a good kick to it. I love my foods spicy and am excited to work my way up to spice level 10.
Besides the delicious curry, which is reason enough to come back, I have to say the service was just as delightful. All the servers were friendly; quick; knowledgeable; and attentive (one replenished my friend's glass of water with a new glass of water all together).
In summary: the place is clean and comfortable, the staff is friendly and efficient, and the curry is heaven in your mouth.
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| Tofu & okra curry with eggplant |
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| Fried squid & clam curry |
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