Tabelog ratingShaotsai Iedie (小菜一碟) is a small Sichuan restaurant run by an owner-chef who spent ten years with the Shisen Hanten group, followed by a year at a mapo tofu shop in Singapore. He imports his own spices from Sichuan, and it shows in his sansho-forward cooking. At dinner the à la carte menu changes monthly and plays with unexpected pairings. Examples include giant prawns in mango mayonnaise, qingjiao rousi made with beef tongue, and a white seafood mapo tofu finished with hot oil poured at the counter. Everything is cooked in an open kitchen. Tabelog named it to its Chinese EAST Tabelog 100 in 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2026.
The mapo tofu dominates the reviews. Diners praise its strong sansho numbness, its depth of flavour and the free rice refills. The soupless shirunashi tantanmen, topped with fresh herbs and cashews, has devoted fans. Small touches come up again and again: the tomato-egg soup, the side dish and a silky annin-dofu (almond jelly). At dinner, regulars single out the mango-mayo prawns, prawns in green Sichuan-pepper broth, seasonal spring rolls and yuzu-kosho squid.
Criticism centres on the lunch tantanmen with soup, which several reviewers found ordinary, thin and light on sesame. Opinion on the mapo's intensity is split. Some found the numbing almost overwhelming, while a few wanted more chilli heat. Two reviews from 2022 mentioned rushed service, but the complaint does not recur in recent reviews.
Lunch typically costs ¥1,000–1,999 and dinner ¥8,000–9,999. In 2026, reviewers paid around ¥1,200 for the mapo tofu lunch set, up from ¥880 in 2021. The tantanmen lunch was also about ¥1,200, with almond jelly an extra ¥300 and a shirako (cod milt) topping ¥600. At dinner in 2025–2026, reviewers paid ¥1,320–1,430 for the mango-mayo prawns, ¥1,210 for yodare-dori (poached chicken in chilli sauce), ¥1,650 for beef-cheek mapo and ¥2,310 for beef-tongue qingjiao rousi. One group of four spent about ¥6,720 each.
Reviewers consistently call it good value. Lunch is top-chef cooking at an everyday price, and dinner is high-end Chinese food at bistro prices.
- Getting there: 1 minute's walk from the Hiratacho stop on the Nagoya city bus (Kanmei 1 route). Takaoka Station is 825 m away, a 10–15 minute walk.
- Booking: Lunch is mostly walk-in and needs no booking, but queues form 15–30 minutes before the 11:30 opening. Dinner must be booked, typically months and sometimes a year ahead, via the official Instagram account (phone 050-5456-2930). Seats after 20:00 or on the second seating are occasionally released through Instagram stories.
- Payment: Cash or PayPay only. Credit cards and electronic money are not accepted.
- Seating: 15 seats, with 11 at the counter and two tables for two. There are no private rooms, but the restaurant can be hired for groups of up to 20.
- Children: Welcome.
- Smoking: Entirely non-smoking.
- Parking: Partner coin parking at Dia Parking Hagicho.
- Spice: The heat level can be adjusted. The side dish contains coriander.
