High-end restaurants in Japan do funny things. [When I say ‘high-end’, I only mean at the plebian end of the high market, the part I can access. There’s presumably a whole world over that level that I gots no idea about.] One I’ve noticed recently is opening a larger branch store in a more glamorous […]
upper-mid-price
Ten Shan Fei Wei, Nihonbashi (天香回味)
Before you ask, no, this is not the normal Nihonbashi shop. They opened another one right behind Coredo, on the little block to the left of Saint Pau where the Italian place is. And now that I’ve got that gratuitous “Gosh I’m so well informed and knowledgeable” posturing out of the way, on to the […]
Vin de Reve, Ginza 1-Chome (東)
Vin de Reve gets high marks in some quarters, and I’ve been itching to try it for some time. A casual Tuesday night proved too much to resist, so I cruised down to The Wine of Dreams for a quiet glass and some nourishment. When I say ‘cruised’, of course I mean ‘rode my pearl-white […]
- Italian
- ...
Carta Bianca, Nishi Shinjuku
Shinjuku is a difficult area for me. It’s huge, it’s complex, I get confused, and it’s tough to find restaurants worth going to. Clue me in if you have good ideas; I struggle a lot. Recently I needed a destination for a holiday lunch with Nanban (南蛮) and others, and happened across this charming-looking place […]
Provinage, Roppongi
While Provinage is a repeat visit for EOITwJ, I’d like to reassure any worried readers that we have not abandoned our borderline-pathological focus on eating somewhere new at every opportunity. It’s just that Provinage is so pleasant, as is the opportunity to have a special event like the first ‘Eating Out In Tokyo’ dinner. I […]
- French
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Rabelais, Ebisu
I have a feeling people go to Rabelais for one pretty good reason – you can take your dog. The excitable fellow on the left was next to me all night and kept nipping at my heels. He wasn’t noisy, but he was quite agitated, especially when faced with a camera! The whole restaurant is […]
Karaya, Shinbashi (甘楽屋、内幸町)
Ohhhh, when will I learn kanji my friends? Only last night I was still making the beginner’s mistake of confusing ‘spicy’ for ‘happy’. Quel embarassment, as they say in France when they’re tourists and also can’t spell. One could hopefully be forgiven for not correctly guessing the correct pronunciation of either the name or the […]
- Otemachi
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Komatsuan, Otemachi (小松庵、オアゾ５階)
I’ll tell ya, it’s been a long time since I enjoyed soba this much. Usually I want to like it, because I like the handmade soba ethic, and the whole ‘pure mountain grain and water’ sort of thing that goes along with it. But the noodles often come out…how can I put this…boring? Yep. The […]
Shodoten, Otemachi (小洞天)
These small chains are funny. There’s one around the Monzen Nakacho Metro area called ‘Fuu’ (虎) that I saw so many times I convinced myself it was a big chain, but it’s just that the four shops are all concentrated within a couple blocks. There are some more around Otemachi, evidently including this Shodoten place, […]
- beer
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Delirium Cafe Reserve, Akasaka
My friends, do you like beer? 4 out of 5 dentists agree that men like beer, in a strictly clichéd and stereotypic way. But I like beer, and my good friend McNoonan also likes beer, and we were having a little reunion last night involving the usual lunch cast-of-characters plus McN, and we went to […]