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7 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,O ctober 31,2019 w aterloochronicle.ca OCTOBER 17-20 4 DAYS ONLY! THUR 9-9 FRI SAT SUN 9-9 9-6 10-5 WEEKEND DEALS 1362VICTORIA ST N. KITCHENER MON-FRI 9AM-9PM SAT 9AM-6PM SUN 10AM-5PM $117 RANDOM LENGTH LAMINATE REG 2.99REG 2.99REG 2.99REG 2.99REG 2.99REG 2.99 / SQ FTFROM89¢ MODERN LAMINATE 1.991.991.991.991.991.99 / SQ FT FROM89FROM89 12MM THICK! 99¢ 2"x4" POLISHED BACKSPLASH 4.994.994.994.994.994.99 / SQ FT ¢ / SQ FT ¢ FROM99FROM99 $279 FLOOR / WALL PRINTED TILE REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99 / SQ FTFROM $399 ¾" x 7" WIDE ENGINEERED REG 10.99REG 10.99REG 10.99REG 10.99REG 10.99REG 10.99 / SQ FTFROM $299 CLICK ENG. MAPLE HARDWOOD REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99REG 6.99 / SQ FTFROM HANDSCRAPED $167 MODERN CLICK VINYL TILES REG 5.79REG 5.79REG 5.79REG 5.79REG 5.79REG 5.79 / SQ FTFROM $147 4.5MM CLICK VINYL PLANKS REG 3.99REG 3.99REG 3.99REG 3.99REG 3.99REG 3.99 / SQ FTFROM STAIR TREADS NO TAX LAMINATE OR HARDWOOD AREA RUGS NO TAX FALL STYLES HAVE ARRIVED! At the centre of owner Chris Lee's res- taurant is a wood pergola, which is known as a yatai. It's a replica, of sorts, of a Japa- nese mobile food stall that is wheeled out, erected and opened to serve customers be- fore shutting down and being wheeled off again in early morning hours. "I love to eat outside, and I want this to feel like outside," Lee told me. Surrounding the yatai, there's a forest of wood: wood tables, wood benches, wood chairs. The other stimuli include a tin-de- sign ceiling, flags and banners, and interest- ing and engaging bric-a-brac and curios. There are lanterns emblazoned with "Ramen" in large black lettering but also the kitschy "live laugh love"-style posters that extol the virtues of wine, for instance, and a reproduction of the Eisenstaedt sail- or kiss. Staff will greet you from 15 metres away asking for the number in your party and directing you to a table - or to the yatai, where you can sit opposite your compan- ions, or beside. Juxtaposed to it all is a Japanese Zen- style garden taking up most of one corner of the restaurant. Izna is a vibrant venue that captures the spirit of an izakaya: I admit I love that chat- ter and frenetic energy, but I like the food, too, at Izna. The appetizer menu includes at once vegetarian japchae and takoyaki deep- fried octopus. There are two dozen donbu- ri rice bowls, about a dozen noodle dishes as well as a blend of classic Japanese dish- es like okonomiyaki pancake and Korean dishes such as galbi on sizzling cast iron. There is both sake and soju, the latter the Korean distilled beverage; interesting- ly, you can also order a schooner of beer. "This food is my history," he says refer- ring to his 12 years as a cook and restaura- teur. Korean, Japanese or Chinese, each item has been tweaked and reimagined from former menus. "I love fusion food," Lee says. Among the donburi selections, there is kabuto don ($14.95). It takes its name from the Japanese samurai helmet, the image of which Lee has captured in two large and wonderfully crisp tempura-battered shrimp that he mounts on top of the bowl. The base is delicious and gently tangy sushi rice on which is layered fine slices of avocado, a couple of pieces of crab, an as- sortment of mixed greens, crispy shards of fried batter and house-made kewpie-style mayonnaise slightly thicker and slightly sweeter than Hellman's. A punch of fla- vour is by virtue of furikake, a seasoning rich in umami. Nori tops it all off. Like its bowl-of-food cousins Korean bi- bimbap and Vietnamese bun cha gio, don- buri is a satisfying rice "salad" (in a way a salad can rarely satisfy). Mix it up or eat the individual components: either way, it's delicious and filling. In the yatai, on the tray replete with a placemat advertising the best dish for your astrological sign, you'll find side dishes of pickled Korean radish, some kimchi and an excellent miso soup with cabbage: the urban cacophony, real or imagined, sub- sides as you dig in, the warm rice doing its soothing work. Andrew Coppolino is a Kitchener-based food writer and broadcaster. Visit him at waterlooregioneats.com or email: apcoppo- lino@rogers.com. DON'T SKIP THIS DISH: KABUTO DONBURI AT THE IZNA JAPANESE DONBURI HOUSE The kabuto donburi. Andrew Coppolino photo OPINION IT TAKES ITS NAME FROM THE JAPANESE SAMURAI HELMET, WRITES ANDREW COPPOLINO ANDREW COPPOLINO Column 137 King Street E. Kitchener, ON Phone: 519-570-1304 Website: www.iznadonburi.com Hours: Monday to Thursday, 10:30 a.m. to 12 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 1 a.m.