Izumiya is a Japanese eatery in the Japantown district of San Francisco, and one I believe we’ve eaten at more than once. It’s located in the Kinokuniya Building, and like so many other San Francisco eateries (and unlike places in Atlanta) there is an outside display of food, so that people can choose what they want to eat. Izumiya has a large menu, with foods to fit almost any preference. They offer a huge variety of sushi rolls, a whole page of appetizers, and combos of various kinds. It’s a mix and match approach to eating, if you want a little something extra. Izumiya seems to be best known, however, for their okonomiyaki, served either Hiroshima or Osaka style. It had the distinct advantage that my mother-in-law, full blooded Japanese, was comfortable here.
Izumiya is proud enough of their okonomiyaki (a kind of omlette or pancake) that they inscribe the name of the dish onto the wrapper of their chopsticks.
Food, once served, was simple in presentation. There is nothing ostentatious in this eatery. This day we had a lot of bento boxes, a fair amount of yakisoba, and I had an okonomiyaki, since I had never eaten one before. The food in general was good, but not mind blowing. My wife was commenting that they used the right kind of yakisoba noodles. She’s not really fond of using ramen noodles instead of the kind she likes. My mother-in-law, I believe, got a bass dish she liked. Croquettes, fried round chunks of potato and other goodness were common on the table. The younger girls were eating curries any chance they could get.
Service, as I recall, was pretty good. Please note though, this place was packed when we arrived, so the sheer number of customers made sure it wasn’t instant.
Verdict: Good, unpretentious eatery in Japantown, known for its okonomiyaki. Recommended.
Izumiya
1581 Webster Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
(415) 441-6867
Notes: Foodhoe has some excellent coverage of the various okonomiyaki here.