• Hanare, basement haven in Ebisu

    With its fine balance between contemporary and traditional home-style Japanese cuisine, Hanare, a cosy yet refined izakaya in Ebisu, was an ideal venue for a small, casual dinner on a chilly autumn night. While rooted in traditional concepts, this low-key establishment echoes the quality of its more creative and western-oriented big sister, Au Gamin de Tokio, which is two flights up on the second floor of the building they share. Trattoria Mode, a casual Italian eatery in the same Au Gamin… Read more »

  • Tenoshima – Contemporary Japanese Cuisine in a Relaxed Atmosphere

    The casual, stylish atmosphere and friendliness of the staff mask a seriousness and dedication to a mission of modernizing Japanese haute cuisine that is at the core of Tenoshima, a promising, newish kaiseki-style restaurant in Aoyama. On meeting the affable chef and co-proprietor, Ryohei Hayashi, it is hard to imagine that such a seemingly easy-going person could have spent many years training at one of Japan’s most prominent kaiseki restaurants under the grueling tutelage of proprietor chef Yoshihiro Murata.  In… Read more »

  • Farewell Aoyama Maru, Hello Maru Bengara

    It’s sad when an outstanding restaurant closes its doors. Such is the case of  Aoyama Maru, one of our favorite Tokyo eateries for relaxed yet high quality dining that combines contemporary twists with traditional kaiseki or haute cuisine concepts, at remarkably reasonable prices. After 15 years in its warm, stylish basement premises off Aoyama Dori, Maru is closing due to building renovation. Owner and executive chef, Keiji Mori says he plans to reopen next year in a new location. But… Read more »

  • Konpeki No Umi – Fresh Seafood in the Heart of Roppongi

    If you happen to be in Roppongi at lunch time, looking for a high-quality yet reasonably priced lunch in comfortable surroundings, try Konpeki No Umi in the Piramide Building just behind the Roppongi subway station. Loosely translated as “deep blue sea,” Konpeki No Umi is a Japanese restaurant that highlights seafood and serves both traditional and contemporary dishes in a minimalist setting of light wood and white walls decorated with ceramic art work. Although the restaurant’s promotional brochure says it is… Read more »

  • Kayanoya – an Umami Wonderland

    Japanese are their own best food critics, rewarding quality establishments with outstanding success while leaving shoddy places to languish. But some quality restaurants and food businesses have been propelled to even greater heights by the influx of foreign visitors to Japan in recent years. Such is the case of Kayanoya, a Kyushu-based soy sauce brewery specializing in shoyu (soy sauce), dashi (soup stock) and other traditional seasonings. Over nearly 130 years, Kayanoya has built up a devoted following among Japanese…. Read more »

  • Mamianazaka Honoka – Traditional Cuisine Meets Contemporary Cool in Azabu

    Tokyo has no shortage of high-end restaurants but sometimes a simple meal of sophisticated but unpretentious dishes served in stylish yet comfortable surroundings is preferable to an elaborate multi-course kaiseki meal, meticulously prepared and painstakingly presented. So, it was a great joy to discover Mamianazaka Honoka, a Japanese restaurant tucked away in a residential neighborhood in Higashi-Azabu. In a reminder of what the area used to be like, the unwieldy name literally translates as badger hole. Honoka is hidden from street… Read more »

  • R.N.S.Q. – Refined French Cuisine in Relaxed Surroundings

    An eatery with a name like R.N.S.Q. (pronounced “erunesque” in Japanese) which claims to be neither a bistro nor a restaurant but a “bistaurant,” might sound too puzzling for the average diner to want to check out. Does it serve French cuisine or some unfathomable new style of  fare? And what kind of atmosphere could you expect in a place that is, presumably, more formal than a bistro yet more casual than a restaurant? But don’t let such minor matters… Read more »

  • Tantansai – Delicious Fare in Beautiful Wares

    Japan can elevate the simple form of counter dining to lofty levels or turn it into part of the entertainment. Whether a rowdy izakaya bistro, rarefied sushi bar or a top-end kaiseki restaurant serving traditional haute cuisine, the counter (if available) usually affords a ring-side view of chefs plying their trade. It is a place where diners can interact and chat with the chefs, watching them slice, grill or assemble ingredients into the dishes of the day. At Tantansai (full… Read more »

  • Jean Georges’ Asian-Inspired French Cuisine

    I was thrilled when invited to the “soft opening” of the newly revamped JG, the Tokyo outpost of New York’s celebrated Jean-Georges restaurant. I’d been a fan of French-born chef Jean Georges Vongerichten and his Alsatian-inspired cooking for perhaps  25 years and gladly accepted the summons I received from new General Manager (and old associate) Takenori Nakazato. I reminded myself that a “soft opening” is when the restaurant isn’t officially open and friends and family are invited to dine so… Read more »

  • MAMMA MIA! WHAT A MEAL AT MAMMA LUISA’S TABLE

    When my Tuscan friend Gabriella feels enthusiastic about something she rolls her eyes toward the heavens and exclaims, “Mamma mia!” No, she’s not an Abba impersonator.  In this particular case it was an apt reaction to finding Mamma Luisa’s Table, a tiny Tuscan gem of a restaurant tucked away in the backstreets that fringe Tokyo’s vibrant Shibuya shopping district. It was just cooling down on a late summer evening and definitely time for a chilled glass of wine as we… Read more »

  • Narukami – A Franco-Japanese Blend

    It cannot be easy running your own restaurant as a solo venture. Many chefs do it, of course, and I’m always amazed at their ability to prepare multi-course meals for groups of diners, each eating at their own pace, ordering different drinks and often asking endless questions about the dishes served. Such were my thoughts when I visited Narukami, a chic Japanese restaurant serving innovative cuisine in a minimalist setting. Housed in a concrete complex in the heart of Tokyo’s… Read more »

  • Vegan Cafe : simple, healthy fare for eclectic tastes

    The name, with its connotations of strict rules against dairy and meat products, may not thrill carnivores. But the newest addition to Hiroo’s diverse array of eateries and shops may  pleasantly surprise even the meat eaters. Vegan Cafe is perched up several stairs just two minutes walk from Hiroo station, on the right-hand side of the road leading from Hiroo crossing to Arisugawa Park. Inside you find a light, airy room, with wooden furniture and potted plants. At lunchtimes, the… Read more »