Monthly Archives: September 2011

Dining in NINJA style…

by Bianca

I always have fun whenever I come to this theme restaurant and I love bringing guests here. Young or old, they always enjoy themselves. It’s a place where food and entertainment are packaged in style. Ninja Style.

Upon entering it’s somewhat dark and cryptic entrance, you will be greeted by the host and your own Ninja master who will appear seemingly out of nowhere and will guide you on your ninja training path. You have to complete this course before even thinking about feasting on any food. I will spare the details as to not take the surprise out of the experience.

The dining area looks like an old, dark, Japanese village with fake torches hanging on its walls. Once in a while you might be able to see a ninja perched on one of the rocks. You’ll then be guided through their cobbled streets into one of their “houses” which will be your private dining area for the evening. The menu comes in a ninja scroll that will be skillfully opened by your ninja waiter and you have a choice of some pre-set menus or a la carte meals. I suggest to try one of the courses for your first visit as it contains some fun food full of surprises, hence the name “surprise” course. Dining with ninjas of course does not come cheap and some reviews have complained about how expensive the food is. You can check their menu at http://www.ninjakasaka.com. There is a translation including their prices. I find the shabu-shabu course here to be extremely delicious. Dinner might take a while though so you will need to set aside a minimum of 2 hours of your time. A ninja magician will enter your domain before desert and put on a little magic show that I always find amusing.

If you only have a few days in Tokyo and are looking to sample the best of Japanese food then this might not be the place for you. If money is not an issue, if you have kids or if you are simply looking for a little fun, ninja style, then this place is definitely worth a visit.

NINJA AKASAKA. 2-14-3 Nagatacho, Chiyoda-ku. Phone: 03-5157-3936

MIKAWA KEYAKIZAKA DORI TEMPURA

by Bianca

I have difficulty when trying to differentiate one tempura restaurant from the rest. My taste buds are probably not sophisticated enough to characterize the quality of the tempura batter or the freshness of the seafood. They taste the same to me except for Shimizu at the Ritz Carlton Tokyo which I still find the most outstanding. That is probably because of the different kinds of salt that they provide for you

The Mikawa at Keyakizaka dori is a michelin one star establishment that has a very interesting facade. As you can see in the picture above, a flock of birds are flying on a gold wall. I find this very aesthetically pleasing.

The restaurant itself is yet again aesthetically pleasing ,small, with a tempura bar that seats 9 and a small private tatami room. I love the artwork on their walls and was told that it was actually a constellation of old restaurant entry curtain designs.

There is only one choice of omakase (chef’s recommendation) menu for dinner and it will set you back about 10,500 yen. It consists of mainly seafood (the usual shrimp, fish, squid and anago) and mushrooms with a little vegetable at the end. My favorite as in other tempura restaurants are the fried shrimp heads. The squid did taste very soft and melted in your mouth.

At the end of the tempura serving you have a choice of Tendon (which is a bowl of rice, a cluster of fried seafood in batter served on top with some sweet sauce) or Tencha (which is the same thing only served in rice porridge). I would suggest the Tendon.

For dessert comes a small bowl of sweet red bean jelly which is just enough to end everything on a sweet note.

Even though this tempura restaurant did receive a Michelin star, it honestly did not blow my mind. Yet I also have to say that it was good, and I would probably come back often given the easy location.

MIKAWA KEYAKIZAKA DORI : Roppongi Hills Residence B,3F, 6-12-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku. Phone 03-3423-8100.

A night full of surprises at UKAI TEI GINZA

by Bianca

Ukai tei ginza courtesy of Ukai tei website

I’ve had Teppanyaki many times before and in many different restaurants. Some mediocre, some good, some extremely delicious. I’ve even had teppanyaki at the charming Ukai-tei branch in Omotesando. Teppanyaki was good, no surprise considering their name, but I honestly had to say I’d had better. So on a rather hot September evening, when my other half and I attended a dinner invitation at the Ukai-tei in Ginza, we were just looking forward to some good Teppanyaki. However, we were in for a very pleasant surprise.

Our gracious hosts, had prepared a very special menu for us. First we were served some chilled pumpkin soup and some slices of sushi. Then, Chef Lee, who speaks excellent english and is very charming, proudly presented to us some lovely huge abalones that were so fresh they were still moving. I am not a big fan of abalones, but somehow the way chef Lee cooked the abalone aroused my curiosity. He seasoned them, placed them nicely in between some leaves and covered them in a mountain of salt.

While we waited for the abalone to slowly roast, plates of roasted eels were placed before us. Now here comes the surprise. Chef Lee came around and sliced some fresh truffle on top of it. Now grilled eel with truffle is something I have never tried before. And in September!!!. Truffle season is not even here yet. Chef Lee explained that the truffle comes from Australia. I have to tell you that it was one of the best dishes I’ve ever tried and I’m not just saying this because I am a truffle fan. Something about the grilled eel and the truffle blends deliciously in your mouth. At this point, I so regretted that I didn’t bring my camera. I wish I could have taken a picture of this.

Then it was time for the abalone. Chef Lee retrieved the abalone from under the salt mountain and started slicing it on to our plates. Here comes the second surprise. More truffles!!!!. At this point I was ecstatic. Abalone with truffle was another first. And it was also the first time I really enjoyed abalone.The mixture of abalone and truffle was absolutely delightful. I finished it so fast I was sure my hosts were thinking I had starved myself for weeks.

Then came the beef, which was delicious yet became pale in comparison to its predecessors. The beef came with some very sweet onion and you had a choice of wasabi or soy sauce. What I liked was the portion which was very reasonable. Only 5 pieces. Just enough to fill my tummy.

The last dish was the garlic fried rice which chef Lee made with extra care. As little fat as possible was used. No eggs. Just garlic and rice. My favorite.

For desert, yogurt sorbet. Reminded me of pinkberry yogurt in the states. I loved it and finished the whole plate which I don’t normally do for desert.

This was the end of one of the best meals I’ve had in a while. A meal full of wonderful ‘firsts’ and pleasant surprises. I’ve always been one who likes surprises.