Housed inside a French style mansion in the middle of Ebisu with Swarovski crystals neatly adorning its white walls, Joel Robuchon is one upscale french restaurant in Tokyo that never fails. Everything from the moment you enter its French doors greeted by their waiters in crisp black suits until you sit down at their black tables and gulp down their exquisite food, is perfection. It doesn’t matter what season the menu is celebrating, whether its truffle, summer, autumn, winter or spring, sitting in their dining room on the 2nd floor and relishing their impeccably prepared meals is always a treat.
A few days ago we celebrated my husbands birthday and sampled their wonderfully assembled summer menu, here is what we had :
Amuse-Bouche Le Mais : Fresh corn chilled veloute with sea urchin
Le Crabe : Crab meat and caviar with an advocado fondant
La Langoustine : Dublin Bay Prawn with a lemongrass emulsion and stewed leeks
La Foie Gras de Canard : Sauteed Duck Liver with caramelized pineapple, vanilla, rum and coconut meringue
Le Turbot de Breatgne : Gratinated Brittany Halibut with seaweed crust accompanied with tarragon scented broad beans
L’Epaule d’Agneau : Braised Lamb shoulder with buttered turnip and tomato basil juice
Dessert was La Tarte au Chocolat : Chocolate Tart filled with raspberry served with coffee and milk ice cream
And of course my most favorite part of the whole meal :
The dessert tray
Needless to say, every single bite was pure perfection.
Another reason I love this restaurant is that even though it is a 3 michelin star French restaurant, the atmosphere is far from stuffy. The waiters are friendly and cheerful and unlike a lot of Japanese restaurants who frown when you take out your camera or simply forbid you to take pictures, they actually look proud if you frantically take pictures of their food.
Also note that Joel Robuchon has three establishments in Tokyo. Two are housed in Ebisu which is this restaurant and La Table de Joel Robuchon which is sort of the third line, cheaper version of Joel Robuchon and housed on the first floor. Their second line is the L’atelier de Joel Robuchon in Roppongi Hills.
Of course this impeccable feast comes at a steep price, but it is definitely worth a visit especially if you have something majestic to celebrate.
I’ve been around, tried many French restaurants around the world and I have to admit that a touch of Japanese makes this the best French restaurant in the world.
Price : $$$
JOEL ROBOUCHON : 1-13-1 Mita, Meguro-ku, Tokyo. Phone : 03-5424-1347
