You may be used to heading to Shakariki 432 for some drinking food at the tail end of a heavy night, but this offshoot of the late-night izakaya offers a whole lot more than its sister branches.

You’ll be greeted by the prerequisite group of energetic staff—a few of whom are Japanese—who’ll guide you past cozy wooden cube tables, which fill out as the night draws on with an equal spread of both Thai and Japanese punters. The welcoming atmosphere is supported by warm lighting, which softens the clean and formal Japanese-inflected decor.

The food selection is pretty huge, placing focus on premium, seasonal ingredients from Japan (Hokkaido oysters, salmon from Nagano and Kagoshima-breed wagyu) and service is fast, whether you go for sashimi, steak, or even a Western pasta dish.

Their signature grilled nodoguro shioyaki (blackthroat seaperch from Tokushima, B880) sees a crispy brown salted skin give way to delicate flesh—so soft, it slides off the bone with a light pull of the chopsticks. The sea urchin rolled with a thin slice of wagyu beef (B380) offers a deliciously rich taste with perfectly contrasting creamy and chewy textures.

The kaisen don set (B680) comes with steamed egg custard, miso soup and a big bowl of sweet-tasting, soy-marinated sashimi rice, topped with fresh cubes of tuna and salmon; although we found the tamako yaki (fried-egg) to be overly sweet, all-in-all, this set was pretty satisfying.

If you’re after some comforting bites, try the salt-crusted roasted beef (B780), which offers thinly-sliced, soft and mellow meat served with a tangy ponzu sauce and a salty kick; alternatively, go for the deep-fried oyster (B180) with its crisp crust and soft interior.

As for dessert, the smooth and creamy matcha rare cheesecake (B180) exudes a green tea fragrance and makes a great follow up to all those heavy savory dishes.

Sure, the decor is not as busy as your regular Shakariki 432 branch and the atmosphere’s not as hectic, but still this is not exactly fine dining. The very reasonable prices reflect this, too. This is somewhere to load up on solid Japanese grub with a few drinks before hitting the clubs of Thonglor.