About food in Japan

LA TABLE de Joel Robuchon - French (Michelin Guide 2010 **)

Among several restaurants in Japan by the great master of French cuisine, Chateau Restaurant Joel Robuchon in Ebisu, Tokyo is the best place to enjoy luxurious atmosphere as well as the best French dishes. The Chateau stands on the commercial and cultural site, Ebisu Garden Place. Inside of the Chateau the French cuisine master provides gourmet entertainment in different style by floor by floors, from the basement for "La Boutique" to 3rd floor as a private dining "Salon."

LA TABLE de Joel Robuchon is where we are able to taste his modern French plates at reasonable cost in casual style (relatively...). One day I had special course for a party with several friends.

The menu are not same with what you will find on the list at the restaurant. Still show you the excellence and imagination of the plates.

Starter - Scallop marinee with vegetables

The yellow in the sauce is curry oil which stimulate our appetite at the beginning.

 

 

Perch grilled in spumed sauce of Iberia ham.

Can't imagine to make such a flavored cappuccino style cream as sauce for fish...

 

 

 

Roasted pork with girolle mushrooms

The rich taste is unforgettable...

 

 

 

We would never be disappointed by the dessert plates....

 

 

 

With the wall in purple color, luminous chandeliers and attentive staff, even the casual version is surely enough enjoyable as a Michelin star restaurant.

 

 

Restaurant name: LA TABLE de Joel Robuchon

Address: Ebisu Garden Place, 1-13-1 Mita, Meguro-ku, Tokyo

Website: http://www.robuchon.jp/

 

 

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Shanghai Asaichi (上海朝市) - Chinese

Shanghai Asaichi (Shanghai Morning market in Japanese) is a Chinese restaurant located in Jimbocho (神保町). It is named from the restaurant's atmosphere which is vital and casual like morning markets in Asia. Additionally, the restaurant is known to be by same operator with other two luxury Chinese restaurants in the area. The fact implies for us that food quality of Shanghai Asaichi must be good as a casual Chinese restaurant.

That is why I chose it for quick inexpensive meal one day. On the ground floor, dinners can see a part of its kitchen through a large glass wall where a chef could prepare noodles or dim-sum. The scenes is as if we were in Shanghai, not Tokyo.

My plate, fried noodle Shanghai style is quite simple but the taste, flavor of the sauce is still impressive for me. In Tokyo, there are a lot of Chinese restaurants, but I cannot find so often such a good and something maybe close to ones provided in China.

I would like to come back here to have more plates of real Chinese food with more friends.

Otherwise I would try its lunch buffet to try its different specialties at a tiny cost.

Restaurant name: Shanghai Asaichi (上海朝市)

Address: 2-3-10 Kanda-Jimbocho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Website: http://www.asa-ichi.com/

     

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FIAT cafe - Italian cafe in Aoyama, Tokyo

The Italian automobile maker offers a cozy cafe in the central Tokyo,

Aoyama known as a stylish town.

Mid-August weekend, in the central Tokyo business districts it is calm and has few people. I like to stay in Tokyo during such time, as the cosmopolitan city becomes more relaxed and less crowded.

The upper floor of FIAT show room, FIAT cafe provides not only fine Italian cafe menu but also cozy sofas by top funiture designers.

Especially its lunch sets are reasonable, for example, with a pasta plate, salad buffet and a cup of cofee + dessert. Each of lunch set has named from FIAT cars such as Fiat 500, Fiat Grand Punto...

Even for those who are not interested in automobile, it is an oasis in central Tokyo to take a rest or to have reading with nice espresso. 

Cafe name: FIAT cafe

Address: 1-4-5 Kita Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo

Nearest subway station: Aoyama 1chome, Gaien-mae

Website: http://fiatcaffe.jp

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ISSUI - Sweets in bowl

It is extremely hot in Japan and the temperature exceeds 30C degree every day in Tokyo and other major cities. We need every ways to make cool ourselves like this sweets.

Sweets in bowl (Kashiwan 菓子椀) is not common in modern Japan but it was a way of welcoming guests in Muromachi-era, hundreds years ago. A major traditional sweets producer Nakamuraya (中村屋) newly developed a series packs for sweets bowls and the series are sold as the brand "ISSUI" at Isetan department store in Shinjuku, Tokyo.

The packages are unique already.  3 packs in all different colors, such as anko (sweet beans paste), fruits sauce, syrup, jelly, kinako (soy beans powder), are in a rectangle clear box as ingredients for a bowl of sweets. Nakamuraya, known for Yokan (traditional sweet beans cake), proudly uses high quality beans and sugar for ISSUI series. 

For example, what I got are...

It does not provide how to make it manual in details but anyway let's put and mix them in a bowl...

Mizu Yokan (みずようかん) with berry sauce and anko(sweets beans paste)

 

Warabi mochi (わらび餅, sticky cake made from plants) with soy beans powder and black syrup

An-mitsu (あんみつ), Kanten jelly (made from seaweed) with sweets beans paste and citrus sauce

 

In very hot summer, the cold jelly soup like sweets surely ease heated air and body.

Personally I felt that the amount of some sauce or syrup is too much for a good balance in a bowl with other two. In that case, it can be put in another bowl of ice cream or yogurt as you like!

The package can be stored at normal temperature for a few weeks depending on the pack.

This must be a good souvenir gift from Tokyo with a small surprise and joy to make the sweet by own.

Shop name: ISSUI

Address: B1 floor, Isetan department store, 3-14-1 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Website address (Japanese only): http://www.nakamuraya.co.jp/products/issui.html

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