About food in Japan

RESTAURANT SANT PAU - Spanish

The Michelin-two-star restaurant is located in Nishonbashi, Tokyo. In spite of the real central location with hundreds of history and traditions, known as financial district at the same time, during weekend, it is rather quite area.

Restaurant Sant Pau is situated in a shopping complex Coredo-Annex. The dinning room is on the second floor after going up from the spacious bar lounge with a wine storage room and through a staircase with leather handrail. Leather and wood furniture and original paintings arts on the wall create warm and cozy atmosphere in the luxury restaurant, even during this chilly Winter in Tokyo. 

 

Restaurant Sant Pau, leads by the chef Ms. Carme Ruscalleda, has its flagship restaurant in Barcelona, Spain and keeps Michelin star since 1990, serving mixture of local food in Catalonia and modern cuisine. The restaurant in Tokyo inherits the concept and cooking style from the orginal one. 

Dinners are welcomed with its iconic "Micro menu", 4 kinds of very small starters. 

Every plate entertains its guests not only by taste but also by visual presentation.

The combination of ingredients is unique and sometime big surprise for us.

Pluma Iberica pork served with mandarin confit & pistachio mousse

We could not stop ordering its cheese set called "contrasts". Five different types of cheese from different countries are offered with suggestions of food paired with pieces of cheese.

A small card telling the contrasts pairs through illustration by the chef Ms. Carme Ruscalleda.

This is definitely a good souvenir of the excellent dining experience.

 

The-beyond-expectation experiences did not stop till the end of the lunch time.

The last plate was this colorful and joyful one with coffee.

 

Surely it is worth spending some amount of money and time for the Michelin 2-star Spanish restaurant.

Restaurant name: Restaurant Sant Pau

Address: Coredo-Nihonbashi Annex, 1-6-1 Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku, Toky

Website: http://www.santpau.jp

SAKURA (さくら) from STARBUCKS COFFEE

In Tokyo, for last several days, we felt Spring just around the corner.

It becomes warmer day by day, little by little... Cherry blossom (さくら, sakura) season is still a month away but at Starbucks coffee shops in Japan, we can feel SAKURA already.

 SAKURA steamer is steamed hot milk with "SAKURA" flavour. It is a pitty that we cannot see milk in subtle pink color in the cup though...

The scent of sakura surely comes from the pink powder on the top.

Other seasonal products, SAKURA cream flappuccino, cakes and special design tumblers are also available at STARBUCKS COFFEE in Japan until mid-March 2010.

Official site: http://www.starbucks.co.jp/sakura/index.html

Hello Kitty bottle water

One day I found...mineral water bottle SHAPED IN "HELLO KITTY" WOW....cute

I bought just one bottle, because it is expensive...Yen368/265ml bottle.

The water source is soft water from Kagoshima prefecture, in Kyushu.

This is the first attempt for Sanrio to produce Kitty shaped bottle. 

I found a sign at the shop to tell us "this product is likely to be run out quickly and we recommend your purchase whenever it is available."

Yes, it must be popular...so sorry if you are not able to find it in Japan.

Maybe it is sold here, Hello Kitty store in Shibuya:

http://shibuya.hellokittystore.sanrio.jp/blog/b/10014194.html

Otherwise on online stores in Japan,

Sanrio official Online shop (Japanese version only...): http://shop.sanrio.jp/cm/cmc-425842/

Otherwise another online store link,

キティ型ボトルウォーター 300ml*24本
その他ミネラルウォーター全部はこちら

Kaiten sushi (回転ずし, sushi-go-round - Itamae Sushi 板前寿司 Hong Kong 香港)

Where is the popular restaurant by "Sushi King" located?

The answer is ... Hong Kong, not anywhere in Japan, to be surprising.

The restaurant owner Ricky Cheng, born in China and has working in restaurant business for years in Hong Kong, is known even in Japan as a person who has made the top bid for the highest quality Maguro (ton) at Tsukiji fish market several times. His company runs 15 sushi restaurants in Hong Kong, 1 in Macau and now 2 in Tokyo. This time I had a chance to visit one of them in Causeway bay, Hong Kong. A night during weekend, people had been waiting for their turn in front of the restaurant. After waiting for 15 minutes, we got our seats at the counter. 

To be very honest, this is the FIRST time for me to have sushi at "sushi-go-round"(回転ずし) restaurant... 

***Normally in Japan I only have sushi as dinner at upscale restaurants or order for home-delivery service. Personally for me, sushi is not an option for quick lunch or inexpensive experience. Just because of that, I have NEVER tried sushi-go-round in Japan. ***

What a existing experience to see sushi plates going round in front of me. I felt as if I were in Japan while looking at the plates, chef, tea cups. Ton, salmon, other fresh fish... typical menu do not look different from what we have in Japan. Taste as well. I found and liked some arranged version sushi with cheese, mayonnaise.

 

 

 

What I liked the most in the menu I had was actually very unique one that can never be found in Japan.

It is "smoked duck"!! and "raw pork ham" sushi.

Aren't they sushi? ...uh be relaxed and flexible!!

As for the price, it is less expensive than same quality sushi in Japan.

Next time I am sure that I try Itamae Sushi in Tokyo.

Restaurant name: Itamae Sushi 板前寿司 in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Website: http://itamae.com.hk

Ochazuke (お茶漬け) - En (えん)

Ochazuke (お茶漬け) is very casual meal or snack traditionally prepared in Japanese home.

Typical recipe is a bowl of rice with some topping such as a few pieces of salmon, pickles, sour plum or seaweed and added tea as soup. It is often served as light and last food after a long lasting day.

The stereo-type of Ochazuke scene is one for a dad who has been back to home after a tiring big party with lots of alcohol drinks. He finishes his long day with the homey cozy food. The cooked rice does not have to be warm, as hot tea makes it warm in the bowl. His wife only needs to add ingredients as well as boiled water or tea to a rice bowl. That is an instant light meal. Instead it had been rare that we have Ochazuke out of home until we see this casual, "fast food" restaurant.

Dashi-chazuke "En" (だし茶漬け　えん) is specialized Ochazuke menu but provides several selections of seasonal fresh ingredients to  be added to your Ochazuke bowl. Whether it is seafood, vegetables or others, they are fresh and high quality ones. Another point making thier Ochazuke different from what we have at home is "だし"(dashi, Japanese traditional soup stock) prepared professionally by the master chef and poured into the bowl. Here Ochazuke is upgraded from homely light meal to something more than fast food. It is a healthy and right choice for lunch or breakfast maybe.

"En" runs its unit at Narita International Airport. Here I had special Ochazuke exclusively available at this Airport branch - Ochazuke with Eel ...the fish is normally available at upscale restaurant.

 

Let's try a bowl just before leaving from Japan.

Restaurant name: Dashi-Chazuke En (だし茶漬け　えん)

Location: Terminal 1 Central Building 4th floor, Narita International Airport (close to Departure area)

Website: http://www.dashichazuke-en.com/

 

 

Lunch at Ginza - French, Le 6eme sens

Meal cost at Ginza is considered expensive. I found an exception here. The cafe lunch shows high cost performance.

The Michelin star restaurant Le 6eme sens by an experienced French chef Dominique Corby offers a reasonable alternative for lunch time at Ginza. The restaurant is located in the west part of Ginza, on a gourmet street called コリドー街(korido gai) along with Yamanote line railway and Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway(首都高速). The cafe-bar space with large glass window can be easily found from the street.

Weekend lunch price starts from Yen1500 for starter, main dish and dessert.

It costs only Yen2000, even with a glass of wine. The menu changes day by day maybe and provides no selection list for each plate. But still it is quite reasonable considering the quality of food come from the Michelin awarded kitchen.

Here the menu I had,

Starter - salty cake with vegetable, Main - chicken breast, Dessert - caramel nuts cake with vanilla ice cream along with a cup of coffee.

 

 

La cabane - cheese bar

The place is one of my most favorites, even though it is not so much related to Japan food

The bar is located in quite area of Kagurazaka, 10minutes away from Iidabashi station.

As long as I know, it is only "cheese bar" in Tokyo, apart from another unit with same name by same owner in Ebisu. Yes you can find over 30 kinds of fresh, traditional cheese mainly (or all?) from Europe with selections of glass or bottle wine that must be fantastic "mariage" with cheese.

We always order several selections of cheese on a big plate. Each small piece of fine quality cheese will be served by a piece for a person, with leaf vegetable, pieces of French baguette and/or dried fruits. The bar staff knows what is the best match with the cheese served and is happy to give you suggestions to taste the specialties in the best way. Enjoy "travel around the world or in the Europe" by having local traditional cheese from several regions. Not so many Japanese people could appreciate such very unique local food like blue or fermented cheese. For those who know the goodness of it, it is the place they must visit.

Samples of cheese plates:

   

 

The bar is in dark and it is always not easy to take a nice picture of fantastic cheese on plates...

They looks like "takuan" Japanese pickles uhhn... they smell too coinsidently.

Only one problem of the bar is to be closed at early evening , 23h00. We have to finish dinner quickly before going to the bar or we taste the cheese plate as a starter.

Bar name: La Cabane

Address: Morita Mansion 1st floor, 26 Fukuro-machi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Macrobi cafe

Japanese have great parties with tons of traditional food plates, box during new year holiday. Days after the joyful moment, ladies start thinking a change and loosing their weight as soon as possible...

Macrobiotic cafe might be a choice to help such ladies being back to a good shape.

"Macrobi cafe" in Shinjuku offers small portions of food, called "Suhi cake", made by genmai (brown rice 玄米) but look like a piece of cake. Plenty of choices such as mix of vegetables, pork cutlet, traditional Japanese ingredients are given for topping on genmai cake. Wether it is lunch time or tea time, the small piece in colors with sweet taste will give you delight of eating and of filling stomach. 

Restaurant name: Macrobi cafe

Address: 3rd floor In the Room Shinjuku, 3-1-26 Shinjuku-ku, Shinjuku, Tokyo

*It is announced that the interior shopping complex "In the Room"(the cafe location) will be close at the end of February 2010. I am not sure how the cafe will go or not. At least I am sure that similar type of cafe will appear in somewhere Tokyo again soon.

 

焼鳥 (yakitori, chicken sate) - 鶏繁 (Torishige)

Only a month from my last visit of another yakitori restaurant, AKira, I had a chance to enjoy yakitori at a typical restaurant specialized in the menu. 鶏繁 Torishige is located in Shimbashi, the town known for "holy land" of サラリーマン (salarymen, Japanese businessmen). Yes, Yakitori restaurant is one of the most favorite dining experience for that sort of people. After a full day of hard working, they gather, have grilled chicken with beer and chat with their colleagues or friends for stress release. The price is modest so they can often have the opportunities.

Torishige is one of well-known restaurants in the area. We knocked the door of the restaurant just around its opening time 17:00. We know otherwise we could not get a table. It was Friday evening on December, party season. Around 19:00, all seats were occupied and these seats did not become empty until late 21:00 or later. The interior, seating style are very typical Izakaya restaurants.

Here we can try different parts of chicken. The yakitori chicken are made char-grilled by master chef. They have to be eaten as soon as arrived on the table. The best way to enjoy fresh and hot skewers there.

 

 

What we cannot miss here is a bowl at the end of the dinner.

Minced chicken seasoned with soy sauce filled a bowl on top of rice.

We can have same menu at mum's home or at some restaurant. But here the taste is unforgettably great!!

 

Restaurant name: Torishige Sohonten (flagship)

Address: 2-9-17 Shimbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo

Website: http://www.torishige.com

Related story -鶏（とり、chicken) - 焼鶏　あきら　(grilled chicken Akira)

http://aboutfoodinjapan.weblogs.jp/blog/2009/11/%E9%B6%8F%E3%81%A8%E3%82%8Achicken-%E7%84%BC%E9%B6%8F-%E3%81%82%E3%81%8D%E3%82%89-grilled-chicken-akira.html

Rusk "Gouter de Roi" - Gateau Festa Harada

We always see a long queue seeking for very famous rusk "Gouter de Roi" at the stand of "Gateau Festa Harada" in Matsuya Ginza department. Finally I could get the pack.

It is made from French baguette by a confectionery in Gumma prefecture. In Tokyo, it is available only at a few department stores. The crunchy sugar-coated pieces of breads attract a lot of people across Japan, although it is quite simple snack and is nothing new. One of the most popular gift. It is so popular that the shop are not able to respond to coming orders during Christmas season.

Related story: GOUTER de ROI White chocolate - GATEAU FESTA HARADA

http://aboutfoodinjapan.weblogs.jp/blog/2010/10/gouter-de-roi-white-chocolate-gateau-festa-harada.html

Shop name: Gateau Festa Harada

Address: B1 floor Matsuya Ginza Department store　3-6-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo

Website: http://www.gateaufesta-harada.co