Today I was thinking of Italian, but Zoner said ‘Fish’, and this popped into mind after I had seen it just yesterday. I may be re-calculating my remarks about the relative sadness of this 2nd-floor area of Tokyo Station, because the shops seems to be OK (if a little sad. Ooops, there I go again!) […]
mid-price
- bar
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La Cabane, Ebisu (ラキャバヌ)
Ebisu is always on my mind. It calls to me. Gently, so softly that I sometimes forget it’s there, cooing its sweet song as it reclines like a pampered pet across my frontal lobe. The tiny alleys twist and turn back on themselves, concealing hidden delights and Oriental delicacies. A gentle fragrance barely disturbs the […]
Kita no Maru, Otemachi (北の丸、新大手町ビル)
There’s a weird ‘network’ concept going on in Marunouchi. All of the buildings above a certain size seem to belong to a sort of neighborhood association for mutual benefit. Nothing sinister, of course – here in Japan even the mafia aren’t sinister. But they cross-promote each other through magazines, video screens and takeaway pamphlets in […]
- Kanda
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Ramen Y’s, Kanda (わいず)
For the whole of this month, I’ve been thinking about ramen. It’s a lousy idea – now that temperatures are over 90, we’ll walk around outside in the sun before settling into a narrow, cramped, galley-style restaurant where the stools are packed like pins in a cushion and the other customer are similarly big, male […]
- bar
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Lucky’s Bar, Roppongi
In high school I had a friend who had two cats, Lucky and Shamrock (I’m not making this up). They were both all black. Lucky was the one who was run over by a car. None of that has anything to do with Lucky’s Bar, which is pretty well hidden off an alley in Roppongi […]
- Other treats
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Okazuya Heikuboncho, Marunouchi (Oazo)
You’d be for given for thinking I’d sneezed in some spectacular way,what with the length and glottal spasming of that name. But no, that’s what they call it! The first part is something like ‘side-dish seller’, and that’s a pretty accurate capsule review here – great side dishes, lackluster mains. (I feel unusually compelled to […]
Koukaibou, Fukagawa (Monzennakacho)
Somehow I’ve been craving ramen recently but unable to make myself eat it for lunch – despite the abundant options in the area of the office, especially in Kanda. So here it is Saturday, it’s great to be alive and not at work, and I’ve invited some noodles to help me celebrate with a bowl […]
- French
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Bistro Bonnes Mares, Kanda
How do people decide they’ve had enough – learned enough, pushed enough, grown enough – and it’s time to settle in?Moreover, is it wrong to do this? Especially if you’re doing your thing better than most people could?And is it indicative of a deeper pathology that I read restaurant reviews while eating lunch? (This has […]
Panino Giusto, Otemachi (Oazo)
Mucho Gusto! Wait, what does that mean? Panino Giusto is a little confusing too – an indoor/outdoor Italian restaurant specializing in hams? As with many of these things, the reality is a bit less interesting than the first paragraph.The big Oazo building has always felt a little under-baked to me. It’s big, but strangely empty […]
Kame, Monzen Nakacho (亀)
It takes all kinds – and the kind on display here is ‘stew and wine’ or ‘frypan bar’, depending on which sign you read. Funny thing is, this place is worthwhile!’Two guys and some pans’ could be another good tag line, or maybe ‘Japan’s cheapest wine bar’. This is very respectable – the wine list […]