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, for Y1200 (Y1000 with your Roppongi Hillz card). The udon is inaniwa style, so very thin and white – or as the outside wall decorations put it, ‘sensitively spun as white thread’. I think it’s a little bland, but perhaps that’s my Western preference for strong flavors and inability to understand the delicacy and sensitivity of the noodle… I’m reminded of Fil Lewitt, who has recently written about this dilemma (in addition, of course to his other works including Hi Hai High: Zen and the Art of Backpacking). But I digress. Frequently.

The menu has changed since last time – at least I know the kamoseiro is gone. Now there’s a tom yum and a kakiage don in addition to the plain (hot and cold), kalamiso (hot and cold), mushroom, yamaimo, clam, maguro zuke don, shirasu don and others to choose for your 3. It all comes with some pickles, another small dish (today, cold tempura yamaimo; is this nanban-zuke?) and a tiny dessert. It’s strangely filling, but I think mostly because you’ll end up drinking the soup that floats all the noodles.

Sensitively spinning…
03 5772 9109