Tenku Bakudanyaki – Small venue, big balls
Tenku Bakudanyaki brings to Richmond a very innovative offering from Japan. Super sized takoyaki. Or literally translated from the name, grilled bombs.
Served hot off of the back of a mobile kitchen, these tennis ball sized spheres contain almost a dozen different ingredients (squid, cabbage, shrimp, mochi, shrimp, …), and are covered in okonomiyaki sauce, Japanese mayo, and a variety of toppings. We had a hard time finding their truck because we just didn’t expect it to be smack in the middle of a parking lot on the southeast corner of Elmbridge and Gilbert.
A few topping flavors are available on the menu, all for $5 each (same price you’d pay in Japan), along with a daily special. We went with the original and the special of the day, garlic mayo (dried garlic sprinkles)
There’s a good variety of flavors served in that small take out box. Because of the large number of ingredients, every bite is kept interesting. One’s not enough for a meal, but luckily Aberdeen is just minutes away.
P.S. The owner said he has plans to expand to several locations. I hope he meant outside of Richmond. They’re already on twitter @Bakudanyaki (and a lot less annoying than @Japadog).
P.P.S. There are a few bakudanyaki chains in Japan. If you’re wondering what they’re like, check out here, here, and here.
@HoYummy Also has a review on Tenku here
This looks interesting enough!! Thanks for the clear description of the location. I think I am going to go try it!! =)
Awesome.
I love street food. I will definitely be checking this out.
Thanks so much.
I tried this today. It was delicious.
Today’s special was the spinach gomae topping. The peanuty sauce went well with the balls.
I also picked up a seafood salad which balanced the texture of the ball nicely. However, I couldn’t really taste the mochi.
Also, you can get a frequent customer card and the 8th one is free.
I will be back.
Thanks holly. That’s some good deal. 8th one free = 12.5% off all your orders.
Is there meat inside these? Or just seafood?
Gonna try it this weekend.
I hope it’s DA BOMB!
*rimshot*
…
You’ll be blown away.
Looks like they’ll offer Japadog style menu items too. http://twitter.com/BAKUDANYAKI
Thanks for posting this…just tried the regular one today. It ’s more fufilling than the regular takoyaki as there’s more ingredients…. Definitely will be back to try the other ones.
Looks like I need to visit them. You guys and Ho Yummy both posted this around the same time. I can’t get stop staring at those yummy balls… I can’t believe I just said that…
Does anyone know how late this vendor is open until? I can’t find any info on their site or a contact.
I was thinking that Japadogs style items would be the perfect compliment to the balls.
Now I don’t have to make a special trip to downtown Vancouver for my hot dog fix
This is my idea of heaven!!!
Melissa: They’re open from 11:30AM to 9:30PM every day of the week. They also mention that they “close early when sold out”.
I checked them out for the 1st time yesterday. Ordered a Chilli Mayo and a Shoyu Ramen (special of the day). The Chilli Mayo was really, really good. The Shoyo Ramen was just okay.
My impressions:
-the location is REALLY odd! They really are in no-man’s land!
-I’m extremely impressed with their presentation. The portable kitchen is cute, the little takeout boxes are really nice and hip, and the two-person staff were really friendly (and Japanese btw). I especially liked how the takeout boxes have a nice little sticker identifying the flavor you ordered…and also the way they tuck your chopsticks onto the takeout box. Little details like these really make it feel special and cool imo.
-the balls themselves are nice, chewy, and gooey; lots of “stuff” inside them, but they aren’t particularly filling. $5 is a fair price I guess.
In conclusion, I’ll be back! I’m rooting for them! I hope they are successful, branch out, and open up a downtown location. Snackie streetfood rocks.
I tried the chili mayo and mustard mayo and it was delicious! Can’t wait to go back and try the other flavours!
I live in Richmond and had never spotted this place, but I made a quick run to give them a try as soon as I found this thread. Once I figured out how to get into the parking lot (I was eastbound on Elmbridge – not recommended), it was clear sailing. I had the wasabi mayo, and my friend had the honey garlic miso, which was the daily special. We were both very happy with our orders – the balls contained quite an assortment of yummy fillings (egg, shrimp, squid, mochi, cabbage and more), and the toppings were tasty. We look forward to trying some more varieties the next time we’re in the mood for a filling snack or small meal.