"After a week of saying that you just want to keep this year's birthday casual, only to retract that statement day-of, head to Itsumono. This Japanese gastropub in the International District works great for a last-minute group hang where you might share pork katsu swimming in tikka masala curry, caesar salad topped with garlic whip, and loco moco-inspired scotch eggs. Make sure rounds of sparkling sake jelly shots hit the table—they're tasty enough to knock back by the multiple, but have a pretty low ABV." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley
"At Itsumono, you'll find a relaxed space that has everything from Iron Chef to New Girl playing on TV. You'll also find a short menu of mash-ups like tonkatsu tikka masala, loco moco scotch eggs, cheesy dungeness crab arancini doria, and miso soup risotto, as well as a $100 tasting menu option if you reserve a table at least 24 hours in advance. Use this place for an initial meeting alongside drinks and tots, and if things go well, order more food. If things go extremely well, invite us to your wedding." - aimee rizzo
"This Japanese gastropub works great for a boisterous last-minute group hang or Happy Hour. You can share things like yuzu cauliflower karaage, nicely seasoned nori tots, or mac salad. Order sparkling sake jelly shots for the table—they are tasty enough to want more than one, but have a low ABV so you’ll still wake up the next morning in one piece. And if you’re lucky, the bartender may even pull out a dinosaur dentist toy from your childhood and make a drinking game out of it." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley, gabe guarente
"The Deal: $5 Rainier Tall Boys, $6 Well Drinks And Draft Beer, $8 Chu-Hi, $10 Boilermakers, $10 Cocktails, $3 Off Small Sake Bottles, Discounted Snacks Use this eclectic Japanese gastropub as a place for a first date alongside drinks and terrific small bites. And if things go well, order more food (like the crispy nori tots). If things go extremely well, invite us to your wedding." - aimee rizzo, gabe guarente
"At Itsumono, you'll find a relaxed space that has everything from Iron Chef to New Girl playing on TV. You'll also find a short lineup of unlikely mash-ups like tonkatsu tikka masala, loco moco scotch eggs, cheesy dungeness crab arancini doria, and miso soup risotto. This gastropub is mukokuseki-themed, which translates literally to "without nationality," and makes sense why there's biang biang noodle bolognese and scallion pancake birria quesadillas on the same menu. Use this place for a first date alongside drinks and snacks, and if things go well, order more food. If things go extremely well, invite us to your wedding." - aimee rizzo, carlo mantuano, kayla sager riley