Dongtan sake izakaya for a date: 30 sakes and ankimo futomaki at Yume

My husband and I went out on a date today, and we found an izakaya (Japanese pub) called Yume between 1 Dongtan Central Park and the North Plaza! I'd never noticed it before, so I was like, wait, there's an izakaya here..? and we rushed over. And a little spoiler.. Yume is a really great pick for a second round of drinks..! We ate and drank a ton, so check out the menu and go enjoy it~!

Yume's hours, parking and house rules

Yume is open Monday to Friday 17:00–24:00 and Saturday 17:00–22:00, and closed on Sundays. There are 5 parking spots outside in front of the shop.

Besides the 5 outdoor parking spots, inside it's a small izakaya with bar counter seats and a few tables.

Yume has house rules, and the most important one! One drink per person is required, and there's a 2 hour 30 minute time limit.

Yume's menu and sake lineup

The menu at Yume has all kinds of dishes to go with drinks, from seasonal fish sashimi to pasta, bongchobap (stick-shaped sushi) and solbap (rice cooked in a stone pot).

There are small bites too, like natto, maki and sarada (potato salad).

But Yume's biggest strength is the sake! With 30 kinds, you can order to suit your taste. The sake by the glass is different every time, but if you ask for something sweet or dry, they'll prepare one to match.

Yume's sashimi for two: which fish came out

At Yume we first ordered sashimi for two and two glasses of sake.

The sarada comes as a complimentary side! It's potato salad topped with fried bacon, and refills are an extra order.

The sashimi was horse mackerel, yellowtail, yellowtail belly, Spanish mackerel, salmon and shrimp. The horse mackerel came in 8 pieces, and the little dab of shiso pesto on top nailed that signature horse mackerel flavor, so it tasted even better.

But my favorite was this shrimp.. the rich, creamy flavor from the body and the nutty shrimp meat were really, really good. (My husband's top pick was the horse mackerel..!)

And the Spanish mackerel sprinkled with loads of sesame seeds!

First glass: Hankaisan Tokubetsu Junmai

The sake by the glass we got was Hankaisan Tokubetsu Junmai. It's calm and clean, so it's a taste almost anyone can enjoy! It isn't flashy, but it went well with all kinds of food.

What is Yume's ankimo futomaki?

The ankimo futomaki (thick sushi roll with monkfish liver) we ordered as a second-round dish is packed with sashimi, with fried shrimp and a generous heap of ankimo on top.

It normally comes with pickled radish, but my husband can't eat it, so we got it on the side!! The roll is so big that it's impossible to eat in one bite 😢

If you order the ankimo futomaki when you order sashimi, you can eat them together like this too.

Second glass: Senkin Modern Hineire

The second glass! Since we'd had a dry one first, we went with a sweet one this time~ Senkin Modern Hineire had a sweet fruity taste like white wine with a little fizz. I liked the Hankaisan better, so I had one more glass of it.

Charcoal-grilled mackerel bongchobap and namerou

Midway through we watched them make mackerel bongchobap over the Yume bar, and they brought out charcoal to grill it!!

After we wolfed down the dishes yum yum, we ordered namerou (minced fish with miso), which has blue-backed fish and white fish in barley miso. Finely chopped shiso is in there too, so it has a nice accent flavor!

We cleaned everything up and wrapped up our drinking night.

Why I recommend Yume for a second round in 1 Dongtan

Yume has as many as 30 kinds of sake, and on its Instagram you can sometimes see special sakes too, so if you're into Japanese drinks, I recommend visiting Yume and trying a variety~!

Yume, the Japanese izakaya between Central Park and the North Plaza, was so good for a second round that I think I'll be visiting often. Yume is perfect for a date! If you live in Dongtan, save it and definitely go sometime~!