Kongusto (Ningyocho)
Enjoy downtown Spanish with different options for different times of the day
Owner-chef Shingo Sakata has loved izakayas since his student days. He pursued a career in Italian and French cuisine, but was drawn to more casual bars and switched to Spanish cuisine. He has honed his skills in a wide range of genres, starting with El Pulpo in Kagurazaka, Zurriola in Ginza, and Anchoa in Kamakura.
"Sardine Coca"
Coca is a type of bread originating from eastern Spain, made from a leavened dough of flour, salt, and olive oil. The dish features pickled sardines, a mojo sauce made with Italian parsley, cumin, garlic, and olive oil, and garnished with anchovies, smoked butter, and roasted pine nuts. All dishes start from the 8,800 yen course.
"Piquillo peppers"
While Anchovies are stuffed with shrimp and cod paste, Sakata uses horse meat from his hometown of Kumamoto. The tail and tongue are slowly simmered and shredded and used as the stuffing. Combined with a consommé sauce made by boiling down the stock, the two aim for a synergistic effect of flavor.
"Squid ink fideuwa"
Oven-baked pasta is fried with squid ink, then the soup is added and the dish is returned to the oven. This pasta paella is infused with the delicious flavor of seafood and can be topped with aioli sauce to your liking. The outside is crispy and the inside is moist, creating a mixture of two different textures.
The dishes served in the course menu fully demonstrate this experience. For example, the starter is a combination of sardines and coca bread, an essential part of Spanish cuisine. "It's a dish that combines sourness and saltiness with the richness of butter and the aroma of roasted pine nuts," says Sakata.
Piquillo peppers are a specialty of Anchoa, and are "easy to arrange with countless variations," paying homage to the horse meat of his hometown, Kumamoto. The final dish, fideuwa, also has a playful touch, with "the flavor of the paprika powder is great. It feels like fried noodles."
After 9pm, they offer izakaya-style a la carte dishes.
Shingo Sakata is loved by his colleagues and is currently working alone. 
Part of the counter is movable, so it can also be used as a table.
