[Jan 2011: Long gone; I think this space is an udon now, but it’s on its second iteration at least since Ruri left.] I like to think that I’m a good judge of restaurants from the outside – the style, the menu, and signboard are all indicators of the care and concern of the owners […]
washoku
- Other treats
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Kyutoku, Roppongi
There’s a whole raft of restaurants in Roppongi Hills that I haven’t been to recently and thus haven’t written about. Now that I’ve been to it recently, here’s one of ’em. Kyutoku is commonly known as ‘the three-bowls’ place, because the normal lunch is three varieties of udon (or donburi) chosen from 10 or 12, […]
Uotei, Monzennakacho
I’m a little unsure what Uotei is supposed to be – izakaya? Sushi? Just a fish specialist? [As the first of many asides that I assume I’ll write soon, I’ve spent most of the last 4 years thinking it was called Sakana Tei, and only just learned from the web page that it’s actually Uotei. […]
Hyakumi, Monzennakacho
Well, sometimes you just have to lash out and try a new place. This little odenya is in the category of things I’ve walked by a number of times in Monnaka’s dining alleys south of Eitai Dori without seriously considering going in. For some reason last night was it! Basically a counter, I think with […]
- Other treats
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Teppanyaki Aoyama, Roppongi
Newish-contender in the give-me-your-lunch-dollar stakes, offering a very refined and expensive-looking environment in which to enjoy teppan lunch sets that are, I kid you not, good value for Y1400 or Y2000. In a nice building (strange narrow concrete front, tucked away down Imoraizaka, large running water feature and spiral starecase in the dark, cool lobby. […]
Kawakami (川かみ), Takayama (Gifu ken)
Hey, how do you like to eat your high-class local beef? Dipped in squid guts and seared within an inch of its life on a piece of hot rock recently extracted from the gates of hell? What a coincidence! Me too! This is the place for you! Kawakami is a little out of the way […]
- izakaya
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Sakana (肴), Takayama (Gifu ken)
Beginning a special 4-part sequence of ‘places I ate last weekend’ is Sakana, the reasonably-unassuming izakaya in Takayama that I have said before is at least tied for first in my list of favorite-restaurants-in-Japan. Extravagant praise, but I really like it. Really really. I really like izakaya, for a start. I love the way the […]
Fukahama, Monzennakacho (Fukagawa)
Right up on the list of ‘best surprises that month’ (maybe sometime around mid-late-05?) was this kaiseki-styled place that I wandered in to by myself after work. It’s really out-of-the-way – first because it’s in Monzennakacho, second because it’s actually almost 10 minutes from the station (going north, the boring direction), third because it’s down […]
Genpin Fugu, Ryogoku (and other locations)
What do you do when you’ve had fugu only once before, but your companion says “I really love fugu. Let’s eat fugu.”? That’s right men, you find a fugu place. Even if you think it’s boring and less than tasty. Even if you know you’ll be criticized as having ‘foreign’ tastes that aren’t ‘subtle’ enough […]
- Ginza
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Shichirinya , Ginza
Everyone’s got their own thing. Recently my friend has been bugging me to stop going to so many French places and go to some equally-high-quality yakiniku. So I did. And here it is. Shichirinya has 4 shops around the Ginza area, three all the way over on the Yurakucho / Shinbashi side and a fourth […]