If you can’t handle some self-satisfaction in a post, now’s a good time to stop reading. Today’s lunch, both format and destination, is so amusing that there’s sure to be smugness in the offing. After last Friday’s disastrous lunch in Iidabashi followed by a tantalizing walk in Kagurazaka, my longstanding regret at not being an […]
French
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Antwerp Port, Akasaka
I’ve ruminated at length before on chain shops in Japan; in summary, if it’s a chain, but it’s a small chain, and it’s consistently good, is there a problem? Only mental, I think, because we feel disappointed that there’s no discovery element, and certainly no chef ‘cooking just for me’. The Antwerp chain has 6 […]
Merveille, Nihonbashi
I left the office for lunch in a light and positive mood today. The weather has cooled by at least a few degrees, my June farewell lunch with Volleyball turned out to be only penultimate when found a few minutes in his busy schedule today…and since he was in Nihonbashi it occurred to me that I should […]
Dobro, Kyobashi
First off, Dad, don’t get all excited. This has nothing to do with resonator guitars, except in the most glancing way. You’ll remember, I’m sure, that the Dopyera brothers were from Slovakia? And ‘dobro’ means ‘good’ in their quaint native tongue, or else it’s just a contraction of ‘DOpyera BROthers’? Well, this is a Croatian […]
Bistro La Poupee, Ningyocho
How did I end up at this place? I’ll be up front about it – I looked at the map and picked an area I’d never been to. This dense area north of Nihonbashi (broadly Ningyocho, but well outside the more interesting area) has a lot of small offices with a few restaurants sprinkled through […]
Coulis, Shintomi
The photo gallery on the web site shows a range of semi-artful but fully fresh-looking dishes. Vegetables are everywhere. So are construction pictures, and the last of the series is a couple with a young child, backs to the camera, looking at the completed kitchen. No doubt, Coulis is a labor of love. With quality […]
Cul de Sac, Kanda
I set out for Kanda with the express intention of going to Cul de Sac. I didn’t know that was the name at the time, but since it opened a few months ago I’ve been meaning to go. Paris would be better, but maybe not this time of year, and it’s far away. As the […]
Wine and Grill Kazusa, Azabu Juban
Do you like that whole ‘private dining’ thing? Kazusa is practically unlabeled, with only a high second-story sign saying the name in stylized, half-unreadable script to let you know that the nondescript building on the quiet stretch of road south of Telebi Asahi is the right one. The door doesn’t open unless you know just […]
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Strasbourg, Yokohama
Let’s say life hands you lemons. What do you do? I know, bitch about it! But in this case the lemons were relatively sweet (not like ‘just chewed a miracle fruit’ sweet, but not so bad) because they were just a trip to Yokohama. I dialed up my good friend Tabelog to see where we […]
Grape Gumbo, Ginza
Remember last year when I went to Mardi Gras? Always meant to go back, but the pressures of needing to try new places have thus far kept me from their door. Grape Gumbo is the father-restaurant of Mardi Gras, with a similar menu and style, so I feel like I’ve been back now – new […]