Let's be honest. "Hey dude, let's go to Denny's" is not a phrase you hear very often. It's usually a choice made for you, and even if you head there under your own power, you are looking for some eggs, bacon, pancakes, and hearty breakfast food to either absorb your shame or kill off a craving.

Denny's in Japan doesn't provide that filling--outside of the familiar yellow and red sign, the menu is devoid of most American diner foods and is instead a family-restaurant with a fusion of Japanese and Western dishes, that even come with caloric information displays that would probably horrify people if implemented back home. The new Denny's recently oepened up in Japan's Tochigi prefecture, however, is sporting a heavy Japanese-style menu and looks to be worth checking out for novelty alone!

Minced tuna rice bowl, tempura, and udon

The first thing you'll notice is the retro-Japanese sign. Denny's in Japan has the same sign as the States, but the Tochigi branch has Denny's written in katakana (デニーズ), and is advertised below as a tempura and soba restaurant.

While this Denny's carries "Japanized" Western foods that have become popular in Japan (much like other Japanese Denny's), it appears to be primarily geared towards serving traditional Japanese foods, or washoku (和食).

So let's take a look at some of the dishes they serve--some of which would be totally unheard of at the U.S. counterpart!

Tempura rice bowl with soba noodles

Angus beef sirloin steak rice bowl

Chicken-vegetable stir-fry in black vinegar sauce

Demi-glace sauce hamburg steak with fried oysters

Biken bento (Beauty and health lunch box)

Beef stew omelette rice

Spaghetti Napolitan (a popular ketchup based pasta in Japan)

So how about dessert?

Uji matcha parfait and Uji matcha cream anmitsu (fruit and red bean paste with a black sugar syrup)

This is probably not the type of French Toast you had in mind, but hey, still looks good!

Chocolate and chocolate French toast

Vanilla and maple French toast

The Tochigi branch opened up on December 1st in Sano city, Toshigi prefecture. While it may not be the breakfast diner comfort food many ex-pats crave in Japan, it's definitely a unique twist on the Denny's experience, and a fresh way to start of your morning!