Filling And Nutritious! Sutadon's Garlic-Rich Stamina Rice Bowls!

What Is Sutadon?

Sutadon (short for stamina don) is a type of donburi that consists of pork marinated in a garlic-soy based dipping sauce that is then sautéed and placed on top of rice. The dish originated in a ramen restaurant that was established in 1971.

The creation of this dish was triggered by a thought the ramen restaurant owner, who was fondly referred to as “Oyaji” (old man), had, “I want to heartily feed young people with food that is cheap and delicious.” The first version of the dish was the makanai-meshi (a meal provided to staff in a restaurant) eaten by his employees.

A hearty dish that comes in a large portion, it's also quite healthy. Sutadon, which stimulates your appetite thanks to the garlic, is a dish derived from that original makanai meal's deliciousness. During a time when food guide websites did not exist, word spread by mouth and the dish quickly rose in popularity.

What Is Densetsu no Sutadonya?

Sutadon may have originated in a ramen restaurant, but a specialty restaurant now exists by the name of Densetsu no Sutadonya.

The restaurant is now so popular that the chain not only exists in Japan, but has also expanded to America. You can easily find a location in the area if you’re at a large station in Tokyo.

Densetsu no Sutadonya serves meals that are made to order as your food will only be prepared upon placing an order.

The garlic-soy dipping sauce stimulates your appetite and has an addictive flavor that you won’t be able to forget after eating it once.

The normal serving off the donburi menu at Densetsu no Sutadonya has a very large volume of approximately three bowls of white rice. A small mini-don size is also available that light eaters will appreciate.

Aside from the mini-don and normal serving sizes, you can also choose from options such as extra rice (+100 yen plus tax) or extra meat (+150 yen plus tax), making this a restaurant that anyone can enjoy.

This time, we paid a visit to Densetsu no Sutadonya Shibuya Udagawacho and asked about their recommended menu.