a full service japanese restaurant. waraku has a virtue most foodies and/or bloggers in atlanta aren't appreciative of, the idea that a full blown traditional japanese dinner could be constructed from this menu. thisplacehas an 8 page menu, and it's not a collection of decatur and cobb county rolls. instead, every major cooking technique in shizuo tsuji's masterpiece "japanese cooking, a simple art" is represented. grilled foods, pan fried foods, steamed foods, simmered foods, salads, noodle dishes, pickles are all here. perhaps the only missing major component is nabemono, and nabemono requires such specialized staff to do right that very few restaurants try to do it anymore.
the trendy folk hang out at the midtown sushi houses and the occasional ramen-ya, and try and convince themselves they're seeing it all and know it all when it comes to japanese food. meanwhile, real japanese, and a somewhat more modest population will find this place, recognize waraku for the value it represents, and realize this is an inexpensive gem of an eatery on the edge of town.