He who fries last fries best! And when it comes to the fry game, the Haikara tandem intends to throw a little oil on the fire. The spot? A feverish fooddhist sanctuary (brutalist walls, a counter top running all the way around, shop window inked with an oni folklore creature), where Sho Miyashita and Jérémy Mégaly hold agemono high. Served atop the pretty donburi rice bowls: triangular chunks of fried cheese flanked by a sour umeboshi paste; a prodigious array of tempura, each more crunchy than the next (sea bream fillet, eggplant, shiso leaf, eryngii and shiitake mushrooms) and doused with sweet soy sauce and salmon roe; before cutting through the grease with a simple dessert, poached peach quarters wedged cozily in a fruity jelly. Equally enticing are the thick slices of tonkatsu pork and the karaage chicken gleaming with mayo. Overall, some pretty bold grub! // Pica Canister

FEELING THIRSTY? Draft Kirin (€4 for a half) or a Lemon Sour, a go-to izakaya mix of shochu, lemon and sparkling water (€8).

PRICE: Fried foods only €11.50 to €15, donburi €15 to €18.50, sides €3-6, dessert €6.