El Camino College is lucky enough to exist near a multitude of Japanese restaurants. With over 20,000 Japanese-American citizens in Gardena and Torrance, it’s not hard to find some good, authentic chicken katsu that’ll leave you wanting to come back for more. You know what they say: a katsu a day keeps the hunger away, so here are the top five chicken katsu joints within 5 miles of El Camino College.
1. Azuma Japanese Restaurant:
For just $12, Azuma offers a flavorful and crispy experience for a hearty lunch. The katsu comes with a fantastic miso soup to start, a rice bowl, macaroni salad, and a shredded cabbage salad with house dressing. Each chicken cutlet is fried to perfection-and sliced to precision.
Address: 16123 S Western Ave., Gardena, 90247
Hours: Monday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 5 to 10 p.m.
Phone: (310) 532-8623
2. FuRaibo Teba-Saki Chicken:
Originating in Nagoya, Japan, FuRaibo offers a unique experience with a traditional Japanese environment. At $16.95, the chicken katsu is some of the highest quality in the South Bay. Characterized with a ginormous portion of chicken cut into thin pieces, it pairs great with the Tonkatsu sauce. FuRaibo presents each customer with miso soup, a bowl of rice, and their own version of a cabbage salad.
Address: 1741 W Redondo Beach Blvd., Gardena, 90247
Hours: Monday, Wednesday-Friday 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Phone: (310) 329-9441
3. Kotohira:
Starting the meal off right, Kotohira has by far the best miso soup on the list. The only problem: it’s expensive, coming in at $19.95 for a chicken katsu plate. Kotohira prepares each plate with exactly six large pieces of chicken that sit gently upon a cabbage salad that looks identical to that of FuRaibo. Each piece of chicken makes up for the small portion by being cooked flawlessly. The hard crunch is followed by a soft, juicy taste that can bring tears of joy.
Address: 1747 W Redondo Beach Blvd., Gardena, 90247
Hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 11:30 a.m. to 8:45 p.m., Friday-Sunday 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Phone: (310) 323-3966
4. Kagura:
This chicken katsu spot resides in the Japanese grocery store, Tokyo Central. This particular location is more like a fast-food restaurant, but it still packs a punch of flavor. Huge pieces of chicken katsu with a crisp that can rival a Lay’s potato chip, are complemented by the Tonkatsu sauce. The plate comes with miso soup, a bowl of rice, and a cabbage salad with no dressing (questionable). All of this comes out to a whopping $25, so it’s going to take some overtime pay to really feel good about the experience.
Address: 1740 Artesia Blvd., Gardena, 90248
Hours: Monday-Sunday 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Phone: (310) 701-7516
5. Matsui:
If the craving for the day is for chicken katsu different from the traditional style, Matsui is the right spot. Matsui plates up an eccentric rice dish topped with chicken katsu-egg and onion glazed in their secret special sauce. At just $14.25, there’s a lot of bang for the buck, and who doesn’t want that? Instead of water, they’ll pour a refreshing glass of iced tea at no additional cost to create a fine dining experience for the whole table.
Address: 21605 S Western Ave., #G, Torrance, 90501
Hours: Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Phone: (310) 320-2089
