About food in Japan

Brasserie by Grand Chef at National Art Center Tokyo

If you are interested in French cuisine, maybe you know the name of Paul Bocuse, the French "Grand chef" based in Lyon. In Japan, he produces 2 upscale restaurants (in Tokyo and in Kanazawa) and several brasserie style casual restaurants.

Among the brasseries across Japan, the one in Roppongi has unique location as it is named Brasserie Paul Bocuse "Le Musee" ("the museum" in French). The casual French restaurant is accommodated in a modern wave-shape building or The National Art Center Tokyo opened in 2007. The museum often hold special art exhibitions of Western or modern art, for example Impressionism theme. After watching works by great masters of arts, at the same place, you can enjoy another type of art called "cooking" by the French grand master. Great isn't it?

 
The restaurant is on the 3rd floor, while on the ground (1st in Japanese) floor it has exhibition rooms, information center and casual cafe like other museums.

 The restaurant floor is "half-floating" on the top of a conical shape stage in the museum's  3-floor height welcome space surrounded by waving glass wall. 

 

Some people might feel it expensive as meal provided at a national museum, while the offer especially on evening time is very reasonable as French course dinner at Paul Bocuse brand restaurant. In addition for dinner time, if you have a ticket for the museum's exhibition, you will get 10% discount from your check (even if it is already used of course) . So we rather recommend visit the restaurant for dinner than for lunch time when it is busy by many visitors.

For dinner course, it has choices for main dish, fish or meat, and 3 choices for desserts. Depending on exhibitions taken place at the time, it also offers special course inspired from the art exhibition. Not plenty of choices are available like ordinary restaurants but of course the quality and finess of meals are assured by Paul Bocuse brand. 

   
For example, the dinner course I had

Starter - mousse of green pea

Main dish - quenelle (fish dumpling, specialty of Lyon) and gambas shrimp

Dessert - Gateau chocolate and sherbet  

Wine is also provided at reasonable prices from Yen 500 for a glass It's very kind to provide wine by smaller than a full bottle (1/3 and 2/3 carafe) sizes on the list. So we don't have to be drank in the museum...

The restaurant's last order time is later than the museum's exhibition close. So enjoy an exhibition fully until the closing time then move to the restaurant on the upper floor.

It was also interesting to be at the museum after it was closed and visitors left. At the exit of the museum, we were seen off by the museum guard who also showed us the way to Roppongi station. That reminds me the film "Night Museum". This last moment along with the dinner may be also an experience rarely encountered. 

 

 

At the end, just remind you that the restaurant is accessible without the museum's entrance ticket. It is a good dining choice at reasonable price in Roppongi even for those who are not interested in visiting the museum.

 

Related post, about another Brasserie Paul Bocuse unit: 

French - Brasserie Paul Bocuse Daimaru Tokyo (大丸東京)

 

Restaurant name: Brasserie Paul Bocuse Le Musee

Address: 7-22-2 3rd floor National Art Center Tokyo, Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo

The restaurant's official site (English) http://www.paulbocuse.jp/eng/musee/

The National Art Center Tokyo official site   http://www.nact.jp  

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Cafe MUJI - simple but good quality like its products

You may know Japanese varaiery store "MUJI". The shops offers huge range of selections from funiture, stationary, fashion items to grocary foods etc, almost everything you need for your daily life. We believe that the store concept "simple" attract people across borders and regardless culture, language or gender. That is same in Japan, the origin country. MUJI might be a part of life for many people.

In addition to the retail outlets, in Japan, MUJI runs cafe in some places and a few of them are located in central Tokyo, such as Shinjuku, Aoyama or Yurakucho.

Cafe MUJI, which we introduce here, is in Hibiya or close to the Imperial Palace. The cafe is not attached to the brand's retail store but is accommodated in a hotel called "remm Hibiya". We can say it is on a prime location location surrounded by the Imperial Hotel, Hibiya Park and JR Yurakucho station. But the cafe on the secound floor is quite peaceful with wooden chairs and tables, and sunlight from large windows.

Well about the food offered at Cafe MUJI.

 As same with MUJI products, food & drink at Cafe MUJI are never be gorgeous but are sought for the quality and rustic. For example, on the website, it introduces ingredients carefully selected by them and how they are good in term of quality and nutrition; rice of rich-mineral, 100% cane sugar, preservative-free lemons etc. 

The cafe offers the food in delicatessen style. You can select main and side dishes from the counter showcase. Many include more than a few kinds of fresh seasonal vegetables and they are appetizing colorful It is really hard to select just a few plates for a meal.

The lunch set includes "rice with 10 grains" (十穀米) that helps you with taking mineral, fiber and vitamin. You cannot be unhealthy at this cafe.

 

After meal or during tea time, it provides interesting selections of soft drinks from fair trade coffee, Rainforest Alliance Certified orange juice, to fresh ginger ale.

 

It looks gorgeous with a chandelier

No no, can you recognize that it is made with simple glass bottles  

Cafe name: Cafe MUJI

Address: 2nd floor, 1-2-1 Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Official site (Japanese): http://www.muji.net/shop/cafemeal.html   

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Vegetable dishes for everyone - Marche de VinShu (Nihombashi, Tokyo)

What kind of food do you image for "vegetable dishes"? something for vegans? 

Marche de VinShu could change your impression on "vegetable dishes". The unique restaurant features vegetable cuisines that are not only for vegetarians but for everyone. It means the restaurant offers various dishes for which vegetables are used as main ingredients and which give pleasure to non-vegetarian diners. Their ingredients are not necessarily vegetable only. For most dishes, it places stress on good taste of vegetables.

One of the most significant examples is "daikon steak with miso paste" (大根の味噌焼きステーキ). Daikon is Japanese radish which is often used for Japanese traditional home cuisines like Oden. When it is cooked with low heat for long time, daikon appears with sweetness and very soft texture. Grill with miso paste could be the best way to enjoy the radish.

Sweet, tender and browned edge gives savory flavour

Usually we don't take such big portion of daikon at a time.

But this way of cooking makes us enjoy the dish and finish it.

Surely it can be a main dish as alternative to meat or fish.

 

For non-Japanese people, Marche de VinShu also gives a chance to try Japanese unique vegetable speices; daikon (大根) as above, yamaimo (山芋, yam potato), okura (オクラ, gombo), kyo-yasai (京野菜, vegetables from Kyoto).

At the same time, the restaurant provides plates that must be familiar for you. That might be another reason to visit the restaurant when you would like to take a break between times to discover Japanese cuisine.

For example...

     
Ratatouille and German potato,

both are good match with wine and other alcohol drinks.

The German potato is the restaurant's own style.

Well cooked potato brings sweet flavor. 

 

Some of French speaker may notice the name includes "vin" (=wine in French language). Wine is the restaurant's second feature after vegetable dishes. In same way with food menu, Marche de VinShu put worldwide selections for wine from France, Italy to South Americas. Particularly we suggest that you try Japanese wine from different regions. The restaurant has selected good quality of Japanese wine based on their visit of wineries and tasting by own. 

 

Marche de VinShu is located in Nishimbashi (Nihonbashi, 日本橋) and is very close to Mitsukoshi Department flagship store and Mandarin Oriental Hotel. It also less than 10 minutes drive from JR Tokyo station.

 

Restaurant name: Mache de VinShu

Address: B1 (underground) floor, 3-4-4 Nihonbashimuromachi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo

Official site (Japanese) : http://sake-dining.com/marche

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Ootoya - real Japanese home-style dishes

Sushi, Sukiyaki, Kaiseki...these are surely Japanese food and also they are more for special occasions such as celebration, gathering party etc.

What kind of dishes Japanese people have in their home?

You can find a part of the answer at a casual Japanese chain restaurant Ootoya (大戸屋).

Ootoya started its history from a small Japanese restaurant focusing on "Teishoku" (定食, set meal) in Ikebukuro Tokyo in 1950's. The restaurant chain aims to provides "heartful homemade dishes", like what Japanese local people have at home everyday, which can never tire diners. So they may be  different from what you know as Japanese food, Sushi, Kaiseki, Shabu-shabu etc. The plates at Ootoya are instead similar to meals hand-made by mothers at home.

Set meal at Ootoya normally include rice, miso soup and a small side dish, in addition to a main dish. The style is very likely at daily dinner at home. What is good for Ootoya, unlike real home dinner, you can choose your main dishes from its wide selections (sorry for our mum...); as its grand menu from hamburg steak, grilled chicken, fried chicken, pork sour souce, Japanese cutlet, grilled dry fish, tuna with rice bowl to seasonal ones. These main dishes can be rather close to Western style meal than typical Japanese ones well known outside of Japan. The set menu price is around Yen 1000.

 

The casual Japanese restaurant chains, Ootoya, runs over 200 units across Japan and almost 50 in other countries such as Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia or Hong Kong. On April 2012, it opened a new unit in New York. 

Let's try real Japanese homemade style meal at Ootoya.

 

Restaurant name: Ootoya

Official homepage: http://www.ootoya.com

 

Units in major area of Tokyo

*Shinjuku East Exit Chuo-street

Address: 3-34-11 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

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*Shibuya Bunkamura street

Address: B1 floor, 2-25-12 Dogenzaka, Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

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*Marunouchi Shin-Tokyo building (between JR Tokyo and Yurakucho stations)

Address: B1 floor, Shin-Tokyo building, 3-3-1 Marunouchi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo

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*Roppongi

Address: 7-14-7 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo

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*Akasaka Mitsuke

 Address: 2nd floor, 3-9-3 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo

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Unit in New York

Address: 8 West 18th Street, New York, New York 10011

 

******************  Find accommodation in Japan  ***************

OSAKA / NARA / SAPPORO / TAKAYAMA / TOKYO/YUFUIN 

YAKUSHIMA / NOZAWA ONSEN / NISEKO / NIKKO /

HIROSHIMA / MATSUMOTO / KYOTO / KANAZAWA / ISHIGAKI ISLAND /

HAKUBA / FURANO / BEPPU /

 

Lineup for Michelin Guide Hokkaido 2012

Michelin Guide Hokkaido 2012 will be published on 20th April 2012, as special edition. The guide is availale only in Japanese version unfortunately though. Here we briefly introduce the Michelin Guide inspectors' evaluation for the nothern land of rich in nature and agricultural products.

 Total 475 restaurants, 133 hotels and 91 Ryokans are on the guide.

Among the almost 500 restaurans, 50 restaurants obtained Michelin 1 star(*), 12 did Michelin 2 stars(**) and 4 restaurants are awared as the highest rank Michelin 3 stars(***).

 It has 121 restaurants with "Bib Gourmand" mark which is considered as restaurants of high cost performance.

Other 288 restaurants even without star or Bib Gourmand are also recommended by the inspectors. The cusines category stretches across wider area from local specialities of Hokkaido region, ramen noodles and lamb hot pot (named after Mongolia emperor  Genghis Khan) to Spanish and pizza restaurants.

 

As introduced on our previous posts, Hokkaido region provides fresh high quality agricultural products in variety from the vast land with rich nature. 

It might be hard to choose only several restaurants to visit during your journey because of so many attractive choices beef, pork, chicken, lamb, seafood, salmon etc... 

 

Here we also place web links for the 4 newest Michelin 3-star restaurants. The first 3 are in Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido region, while the last one is in Toya where G8 Summit was taken place in 2008.

Sushi Tanabe /鮨　田なべ     http://sushi-tanabe.com/  

The authentic Sushi restaurant, situated at Susukino night entertainment district, provides services by English speaking staff.      

 

Nukumi / 温味    http://r.gnavi.co.jp/h203501/lang/en/ 

The Japanese restaurant has only 16 seats fully-cared by the Sapporo-born master. The chef's recommendation course is in Kaiseki style with fresh seasonal ingredients of Hokkaido.

 

Moliere / モリエール http://www.sapporo-moliere.com/

French restaurant, looking over green scenery of Maruyama Park in Sapporo, makes its best effort to bring the best of local ingredients of Hokkaido at the best timing.

 

Michel Bras TOYA Japon     

http://www.windsor-hotels.co.jp/cms/en/restaurant/list/michel-bras

Needless to say about Michel Bras in Laguiole, France maybe? The only one unit in Japan is in a luxury hotel, The Windsor Hotel TOYA and headed by the French chef Cedric Bourassin with a plenty of experiences at Michelin star awarded restaurants in France.

 

The months of May to September are the best season to visit the northernmost region of Japan.  It's a pity the guide is only in Japanese version

 

Related links to our previous posts:

Michelin Guide Hokkaido will be issued in Spring 2012!

Yuuyoo cafe Hokkaido organic - organic food from Hokkaido (北海道)

 

Hideaway Izakaya, Nakame no teppen (なかめのてっぺん) near the popular cherry blossom spot

 

 

As many of you know already, around the end of March to beginning of April is the best season to appreciate Sakura (桜) or cherry blossom in Tokyo and other parts of Japan.

In Tokyo, Meguro river side becomes more popular among locals as a cherry blossom viewing spot year by year. 

Many restaurants standing along Meguro river side between Gotanda to Nakameguro area are fully booked during the season. 

 

 

Today we recommend alternative course to enjoy a real Izakaya near the cherry blossom spot in Nakameguro, maybe before night stroll along the river.

Izakaya "Nakame no teppen"  (なかめのてっぺん) is off from Yamate-dori, the busy main street of Nakameguro. It is a five-minute-walk from Nakameguro station on subway and Tokyu Toyoko lines. Arriving the multiple-tenant building, many will be confused with another izakaya facing onto the street and being the second unit by same owner.

Th entrance of Nakame no teppen is "hidden" inside of the building and is "too small to find" for many.  Don't worry you will see what that means and the Izakaya staff will find you soon.

Seen inside of the restaurant, it is exactly a typical izakaya that many imagine; wooden tables and a counter in center where the chef prepare yakitori (skewered chicken), hand-writing seasonal menu on walls and lively atmosphere.

 

 

We ordered some of Spring season icons before going out to the river side for cherry blossom.  

Firefly squid (ホタルイカ), sour miso suace

        

Grilled bamboo shoots (焼き筍)

 

    
Sashimi plate is one of "must" iteam for Izakaya dinner.

 

My favorite is tofu with crispy tiny whitebait (豆腐と揚げじゃこ)

 

 It also has fine selctions of Japanese alcohol, sake, shochu (distilled sake) served by a nice Japanese earth cup and Highball(left picture, whiskey soda).

 

 

Nakameguro is residential area just one or two stops from both Ebisu and Shibuya on Yamanote line. In Nakameguro, there are many interesting non-chain-affiliated restaurants. The town is always busy with local diners. Sidewalk way along the Meguro river is five minutes walk from Nakame no teppen. Just go strainght toward the river, crossing Yamate street. 

 

Restaurant: Nakame no teppen (なかめのてっぺん)

Address: 3-9-5 Kami-Meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo

Restaurant Information in English: http://r.gnavi.co.jp/b284900/lang/en/

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Zagat Tokyo & Kyoto special "Japan Travel Aid" Edition published

Zagat restaurant guide has had a great collaboration with Japanese public sectors, Japan Tourism Agency, JNTO (Japan National Tourist Organization) and other local organizations, all of which are eager to promote Japan as gastronomic destionation globaly.

"Zagat Tokyo & Kyoto Restaurants 2012 Japan Travel Aid Edition" includes selected restaurant reviews for these two cities as well as introduction of Japan's food culture and destination information.

The special edition restaurant guide is also named "Thank You Edition" because the collaborative work by private-public parties is expression of Japan's gratitude to the warmest support of many people around the world for the natural disaster in Japan last year. Its 50,000 copies will be distributed at free of charge through JNTO tourist informaiton center, JNTO offshore offices (New York, Los Angels, Toront, Singapore, Sydney, London, Hong Kong), Japan Embassy etc. 

It's only 50,000 copies around the world. If you have a chance, don't miss to get a copy

Link to the publisher's site (Japanese): http://zagat.jugem.jp/?eid=95

Link to information by Japan Tourism Agency: 

http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/news08_000109.html

          

Instant Ryokan-like experience at Yagenbori Akasaka (やげんぼり 赤坂)

You do not have time to travel to a Ryokan (Japanese traditional inn) in country side? For those people, lunch at Yagenbori Akasaka will be a good alternative experience in central Tokyo. You will feel as if you were in a typical traditional Ryokan for a moment, while the cost is less than one-tenth of it.

 

Yagenbori is situated on a narrow path between two busy streets in central Akasaka district where many restaurants and bars are scattered. Finding the restaurant's gate nicely decorated in Japanese traditional style with a lantern-like sign, stones and green plants, you will be in the ancient Japanese atomosphere. Here you must be requested to remove your shoes off at the entrance by the restaurant's smiling staff in kimono. 

 

For dinner time, Yagenbori, a traditional Japanese restaurant originally based in Kyoto, provides Kaiseki style courses at around Yen 10000 per person, while its lunch sets are quite reasonable. 

Our recommendation for lunch is "Kamogawa" (鴨川, named after the river runing through central Kyoto) set with "tororo" (とろろ) rice.　Grazed Japanese yam potato or "tororo" is served with rice and pickles as Japanese traditional set meal. Some delicacies such as Ikura (salmon roe), tuna and seaweed paste are in the bowl of tororo. That is the original style of serving grazed "tororo", while usually no topping food is provided for tororo with rice. 

 

Tororo bowl

 

Mix up all ingredient in the tororo bowl.

Then it was put on top of rice.

This is the traditional "tororo gohan " or Yam with rice.

 

The way of providing rice is also unique at the Japanese restaurant. It brings rice in "Ohitsu" (おひつ, special wooden box to keep cooked rice warm on guest table) which is rarely found in modern days even even in this country. Take Japanese rice on your rice-bowl with "shamoji" (しゃもじ, big spoon specialized for rice) from Ohitsu. That must become a good souvernir experience of traditional Japanese dining scene.

 

 

Enjoying traditional Japanese meal surrounded by Japanese folk ojects and interior decoration, we, even Japanese, almost forget that we are in the heart of the busy metropolitan city.

 

Restaurant name: Yagenbori Akasaka

Address: 3-19-5 Akasaka Minato-ku Tokyo 

Website: http://www.yagenbori.co.jp/english/tenpo/akasaka/index.html

大きな地図で見る

****** Our recommendable accommodation around this restaurant *******

ANA InterContinental Hotel

Hotel New Otani Tokyo

The Capitol Hotel Tokyu

the b Akasaka

*************************************************************************

 

 

 

 

"Eat, and Energize the East" at Fujimizaka Italian restaurant

Last December, the Italian restaurant Fujimizaka opened in an academic area between Jimbocho and Ochanomizu stations in central Tokyo. At a grance, it looks just one of many casual Western food restaurants being popular among Japanese young locals.

The round wooden plate hung on the entrance shows the restaurant's link with the organization "Eat, and Energize the East" (Higashi no shoku no kai / 東の食の会 in Japanese). Under the initiative by several key players in the food related industries, the  organization was founded last year in order to promote and support food producing business in East Japan where producers got the most serious damage by the Great Earthquake, tsunami and radioactive pollution followed. 

 

Fujimizaka, the Italian restaurant opens for both lunch and dinner time, providing Italian dishes with some ingredients harvested in East Japan, such as fresh vegetable and chicken from Fukushima and fish, seafood from Iwate prefectures. They are purchased from suppliers referred by the supporting organization "Eat, and Energize the East".

 

In lunch time, it offers wide selections of pasta at unique price system for different sizes. It means ... you can choose size of pasta plate from the smallest S (150-gram) to the largest LL (350-gram) and when you select the smaller size, you will get one or two side dishe(s) or drink to make up for less volume of noodle, while you order the largest plate no any food or drink included at free of charge. It's simple isn't it? And the large volume plate at reasonable price must satisfy the big appetite of young students in the area. 

 

 Its pasta plates are cooked from fresh noodle,

which is thicker than spaghetti and soft like "udon" Japanese traditional noodle.

My order was "Tori miso soboro" (鶏味噌そぼろ,

minched chicken and miso cream sauce).

Miso paste is well matched with fresh cream and thick noodle. 

 

In addition to typical Italian pasta menu such as peperoncino, Bologna meat sauce, shrimp in tomato sauce, the restaurant offers Italian noodle with Japanese flavours like "Mentaiko" (spicy cod roe), tuna and daikon radish, nameko mushroom and Japanese wild vegetable, natto (fermented soy beans) and meat suace. 

For dinner time, Fujimizaka sets up again unique price for wine mainly from Italy and South America. With the price of less than Yen 2000 per person, wine is served in all you can drink style. But please also do not forget beer list. It offers the local beer of East Japan exclusively. No Kirin, no Asahi here. Regardless you choose wine or Japanese local beer, it must go well with its Italian food offered, raw ham, beef carpaccio, potato basil sauce, pizza Margherita, grilled chicken and some arranged in Japanese style. 

 "Eat, and Energize the East" puts the importance on food safety issues, of course, that have to be overcome in order to promote products from East Japan. The association has invited a former IAEA team memeber or the specialist of radiation safety as advisor. With the cooperation of affiliate member companies, the group also has studied check-up system for radioactive level on food to be distributed.  

"Eat, and Energize the East" 東の食の会

Official site (in Japanese): https://www.higashi-no-shoku-no-kai.jp/

 

Restaurant name: Fujimizaka

Address: 3-20-4 Kanda Ogawa-machi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Official facebook page (in Japanese): http://ja-jp.facebook.com/FUJIMIZAKA

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Amanoya, a good-old-day cafe next to Kanda Myojin Shrine

In Japan, a school year almost ends and we see students holding graduation ceremonies at any kind of schools from elementary to universities. Some of these students must have visited the Kanda Shrine, which has 1300 years history as the guardian of Edo or Tokyo, one or a few months before taking entrance examination, wishing their success in the challenges. Winter season including New Year is the busiest time for Shrines, when they need warmly to welcome prayers with each strong wish.

So the small cafe, being proud of 160 years history along with the shrine, does. Amanoya under the 6th generation shop manager owns a food store and Japanese style cafe located just nest to the red gate of Kanda Myojin. The food store is known for Amazake (甘酒, sweet hot rice wine) and its food products made of soy beans, such as Natto (納豆, fermented beans with very strong odor) and Miso (味噌, as well fermented beans paste, used for miso-soup in many cases). Amazake is a good item for a short break after visiting the shrine.

If you can take longer relaxing time than just a cup of Amazake, open the small door with wooden frame, just next to the small food store maybe packed with even a few visitors. Both the food store and old cafe are operated by same owner and have same name "Amanoya" (天野屋). 

Enter and look at inside. The world is completely different from what we can see in Akihabara noisy electric shopping town, still a kilometer away from there. 

 

Could not imagine such peaceful space with small courtyard.

Objects, sign boards, clocks and everything can be seen at the cafe

represent "good old days" of Japan

that we have almost forgotten in our modern digital life. 

 

Wow I felt as if I came to grand-parents' old house. It is a kind of time-trip.

 

As for the food, Amanoya offers many traditional dessert and food plates that would never tarnished the good-old-day atmosphere. 

 

As a few examples...

Warabi mochi (わらび餅, traditional cake made from starch)

It is enough soft to be escaped from thrust by a folk.

 

 

Konjaku potato cake with sweet miso paste.

It must be good match with sake or beer rather than Japanese green tea.

 

Other plates by Amanoya include Mochi (rice cakes) or Anmitsu (Japanese style parfait) and shredded ice with syrup in Summer.

 

Kanda Myojin Shrine and Amanoya are situated between two JR stations Ochanomizu and Akihabara. It takes less than 10 minutes walk from the well-known electric shopping town Akihabara. It is a good idea to stroll up a hill to the Shrine before or after shopping around modern Japanese products. Then you will see the opposite side of Japanese culture as well.

 

Cafe name: Amanoya (天野屋)

Address: 2-18-5 Soto-Kanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Website in Japanese: http://www.amanoya.jp/

Website of Kanda Myojin Shrine in Japanese: http://www.kandamyoujin.or.jp/

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