Monthly Archives: November 2012

FUKUZUSHI Roppongi, friendly sushi

by Bianca

At first I was somewhat skeptical of this sushi restaurant hidden in a small alley in Roppongi. The website was very english friendly and a lot of tourists wrote reviews about this restaurant that I was slightly afraid it would be a tourist trap. Luckily this was not the case.

Fukuzushi entrance

Fukuzushi terrace

Although not exactly traditional, Fukuzushi’s design is rather unique with lots of Japanese ornaments greeting you at the terrace before you enter into their dining space with a sushi bar and a few tables.

Fukuzushi interior

There are a few lunch sets to choose from. A standard Nigiri (10 pieces of sushi set), chirashi (assorted sashimi with rice in a box) and anagojyu (grilled sea eels and chopped omelet with rice in a box) costs around 2625 yen. A tekkadon (tuna sashimi with rice in a box) costs 3675 yen and A premium nigiri or chirashi costs 4725 yen.

I decided to try the premium nigiri sushi set while my friends decided to go a la carte.

The appetizers

The sushi set

The accompanying miso soup

 

The aburitoro (burned tuna sushi) and toro sushi ala carte

I have to say that the quality of sushi was way up there. It was extremely fresh and delightful. Everything on my plate was savory especially the toro,uni and anago.

If you ordered a set menu then you are escorted into the next room for some coffee and dessert which was a small almond pudding with caramel sauce.

The dessert

I’m really glad I decided to visit this restaurant. Here not only do we get exquisite sushi, the service is friendly. There are no old sushi masters glaring down grudgingly at you as you swallow your sushi, here the sushi chef actually speaks English and is genuinely happy to converse with you. Its really nice to be in an environment where everybody understands you for a change. So, if you are in town and looking for some moderately priced good sushi, this would be the perfect place.

Price : SS

Fukuzuhi Roppongi. Address 5-7-8 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo. Telephone : 03 3402 4116

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanksgiving dinner at THE OAK DOOR

by Bianca

It is not easy finding a restaurant serving Thanksgiving dinner in Tokyo. Not that many do. I love turkey and I love turkey stuffing but I was a little too late at trying to get a reservation. I was first aiming for Thanksgiving dinner at the Ekki Bar and Grill at the Four Seasons Marunouchi but they were fully booked. My other option was the Oak Door at the Grand Hyatt Roppongi, a much bigger restaurant with dark interiors on the 6th floor and a cosy bar that seems like a cool place to hangout. They had availability.

Dinner is a set menu that is quite pricey, about 9500 yen++. The starter was a smoked trout salad with apple, candied pecans, pomegranate seeds and cider vinaigrette.

The smoked trout salad

I found the salad to be particularly fresh and delicious. The mixture of all the ingredients created the perfect concoction.

The next course was a pumpkin and barley soup which was the perfect comfort soup.

Pumpkin and Barley soup

The roasted turkey with chestnut stuffing main course came immediately after.

Roasted turkey with chestnut stuffing

I found the turkey main course to be just so-so. The stuffing though delicious was a little dry and the gravy poured over the turkey was minimal. It definitely wasn’t the comfort food turkey meal that I expected to warm my tummy, but then again, Oak door is a hotel restaurant. Maybe my expectations were too high.

The pecan pie dessert however cheered me up.

 

My verdict, the dinner wasn’t really worth the price but judging from the delicious salad and soup I do believe the Oak Door has some potential and I might come back to try other courses in the future.

Price : $$

The Oak Door. 6th Floor, Grand Hyatt, 6-10-3 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo. Tel : +81 3 4333 8784

 

 

 

 

 

NODAIWA Unagi

by Bianca

Unagi (freshwater eel) is one Japanese cuisine I haven’t really explored during my culinary expeditions around Tokyo. I’ve never been a big fan of Unagi dishes but for the sake of variety for this blog I decided to give Nodaiwa a try. After all, it is a one michelin star restaurant.

The tiny traditional Japanese building that houses Nodaiwa is squished between higher more modern buildings in the HigashiAzabu area. I later learned that it is a timber mountain farmhouse transplanted smack into the middle of Tokyo. I loved the facade, so cute.

Graceful ladies dressed in lovely kimonos greeted us as we entered. The interior is exactly as I envisioned it. Lots of dark wood with vintage Japanese touches all over. There is a restaurant downstairs with about 6 tables but we were escorted to the tatami room on the second floor. If you can’t stand sitting on the floor for over an hour then it is probably a good idea to ask for a table downstairs. I decided to endure the tatami room.

Nodaiwa is known for serving only eels caught in the wild and they had a few options of lunch menus starting from about 4500 yen all the way to 15,750 yen. I did not feel like eating too much for lunch and opted for the lightest menu. This is what I had :

As appetizer, some unagi jelly :

Followed by some Shirayaki which seems to be the house speciality. Shirayaki is eel that is lightly steamed and grilled. It is eaten either with salt, wasabi or a little shoyu. Even without any extra seasoning the flavor was unbeatable. I also liked it with the wasabi.

The Shirayaki

As a main course we were served with some unaju which is eel fillet broiled until golden brown and served over rice.

The Unaju

The unaju is served with some radish, pickles and a soup with eel liver in side.

Dessert was one of my most favorite fruit…kaki or persimmon.

Kaki dessert

Even if I claimed myself not to be a unagi cuisine fan, I have to say I had a very good lunch and will definitely recommend this restaurant to others.

Price : $$-$$$

NODAIWA. • 1-5-4 Higashi-Azabu, Minato-ku, +81 3 3583 7852, nodaiwa.com,

 

 

 

 

Noukanodaidokoro

by Bianca

The name of this organic restaurant in Ebisu might be a little hard to remember, but in English it simply means “Farmer’s Kitchen”. I ended up in this cute, rustic little restaurant with a very interesting decor while looking for a vegan-friendly restaurant for my friend. It turns out, this restaurant is not necessarily vegetarian but more of an organic restaurant with Japanese organic farmers supplying food directly to them.

We arrived for lunch and were directed to a lovely table at what looks like an enclosed terrace area. A chandelier hung from the “ceiling” and we were surrounded by pots of tropical plants. The menu came in Japanese and the waiter did his best to explain our 3 choices of lunch dishes. I was surprised that there was not a vegetarian menu on the list. The choices were an omelette over rice with meat sauce, some meat loaf and a potato gratin with meat. I had to ask the waiter if the chef could make a vegetarian dish for my friend, which luckily he agreed to or else we would have had to move to another restaurant.

The salad that came as a starter was amazingly fresh with a simple and delicious sesame dressing.

I chose the omelette over rice with a touch of meat sauce. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t one of my best lunches either.

However, the sautéed potato and mushroom dish the chef cooked up for my friend was actually really good.

Dessert was a tiny bowl of chocolate mousse which wasn’t that bad either.

Well, turns out this restaurant wasn’t the vegetarian restaurant I expected it to be but my lunch wasn’t bad and at least everything I had was organically healthy !!!

Price : $

1-7-8 Ebisu South Building, Tokyo,
1st Floor
+81 3 3719 4831

 

Azzure 45

by Bianca

This is not the first time I’ve dined at Azzure 45, the cosy French fine-dining restaurant at the Ritz Carlton Midtown, but it is my first lunch there. Lets just call it a post birthday lunch with my husband. I’ve always loved the food there and yesterday it was bright enough for me to take nice pictures. The view is always spectacular from the 45th floor and this restaurants has a perfect view of the Tokyo tower.

Mid-day bubblies

Azzure 45 has a 10.000 yen 7 course tasting menu lunch or you have choices of 3,4 and 5 course menus starting at 4.ooo yen. My husband chose the 5 course menu, I chose the 3 course menu and here is what we had :

Burdock soup. Crispy Burdock, autumn truffles and chestnuts

Zuwai crab. Crustacean essence, turnip mile-feuille

 

Fresh foie gras. Pan fried, autumn fruits, citrus marmalade

Japanese beef fillet. sautéed, mushroom puree, root vegetables with three wine sauce.

Lamb. Roasted, Butter squash puree, hazelnut butter, coffee flavored Lamb Jus

And for dessert :

A lovely chocolate mousse

A petite strawberry miele-feuille

With a lovely cup of coffee to end things.

It was a wonderful lunch. Being a truffle fan, I particularly loved the burdock soup. Everything else was delicious as well but the portions were kind of small, so if you’re hungry, opt for the larger courses.

Price : $$$

Azzure 45
Tokyo Midtown, 9-7-1 Akasaka, Minato-ku
03-3423-8000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kaiseki KADAN

by Bianca

If you ever find yourself in the quaint little town of Hakone (about 2 hours drive from Tokyo), having lunch or dinner at the famous boutique hotel Gora Kadan is a must. Upon entering the charming old building that used to be the house of a member of the Japanese Imperial family, you immediately travel back in time. Everything from the furniture, the carpets, the paintings, up to the lovely little vintage place mats under the vases seem to have been frozen in time and left exactly as it was 8o years ago.

We were taken to a lovely little private room on the second floor with soothing views of the neighbourhood hills and trees. Gora Kadan is well-known for their elaborate and expensive kaiseki dinners and it is advised to book way in advance. For lunch it is much more relaxed and a lunch set ranges from 3850 to 11000 yen. We chose the beef set lunch which was about 6600 yen. Even for lunch, our kaiseki set came which such intricate and adoring details presenting the fall season theme.

Our assortment of fresh and seasonal appetizers came on a raft-like base of little branches. Not only did it taste delicious but it was presented in such an adorable way, I almost felt sorry when I had to move them into my mouth. Next, came a variety of fresh sashimi which was exactly that, fresh.

Followed by a steamed dish.

And last but not least, the beef.

Dessert was a plate of fresh fruit which I must have gobbled down in such haste I actually forgot to take a picture.

It truly was a wonderful lunch. Everything was exquisitely presented and tasted delicious. It wasn’t only a feast for the stomach but definitely also a feast for the eyes and the soul.

Price : $$$

KAISEKI KADAN. 1300 Gora. Hakone. Tel : 81 (0) 46082331

 

 

 

Monsoon lunch

by Bianca

Decided to try this interesting looking restaurant in Daikanyama for lunch today. I loved their relaxed, eclectic interior and they had a decent Asian lunch menu.

For 850 yen, I had a choice of green curry with rice, pho, Thai style chicken basil with rice, pad thai or pan-fried noodles. For an extra 350 yen you could get a lunch set with a salad buffet, some appetizers and dessert. Since it was a bit chilly outside I chose the pho lunch set and here is what I got :

The salad with sesame dressing

The appetizer plate

The pho

I have to say the food was really delicious and the prices wonderfully reasonable. I will definitely be coming back to sample some other dishes in the future.

Price : $

MONSOON CAFE DAIKANYAMA // 15-4 Hachiyama-cho, Shibuya-ku // Phone : 03-5489-3789