Yoshicho (03) 5793-5050; Takahashi (03) 5436-9677

Stellar yakitori down in Gotanda

The Japan Times, February 19, 2010

The idea of gourmet yakitori is nothing new. There are plenty of restaurants around town where the humble art of skewering and grilling chicken has been elevated to a degree of sophistication. But you don't expect to find it in the back streets of Gotanda, just north of Shinagawa.


More seedy than downright sleazy, the block immediately to the east of the Yamanote Line tracks is lined with cheap drinking dens and massage parlors. But there are also clear signs of gentrification — and none more so than the presence of Yoshicho.

You'd never stumble on it by chance. Hidden from view on the second floor of a newish building just off Sakurada-Dori, there is little inside or out to suggest that this unpretentious restaurant, with its open kitchen, glass-enclosed grill, counter seats and three small tables, is anything out of the ordinary. It's the food and not the setting that makes it worth searching out.


Unlike many yakitori chefs whose skills are solely limited to grilling, owner-chef Kenji Yoshimoto is trained in the spectrum of traditional Japanese cuisine. He has a deftness of touch that is obvious from the outset, even in the otoshi(starter) that arrives with your first drink — perhaps a small serving of nanonhana greens with an aemonodressing lightly spiced with mustard.


Subtlety and finesse are not words usually used in describing yakitori, but this chicken is prepared and presented with the kind of artisan care it deserves. At the same time, Yoshicho has a warm, friendly feel. No doubt this is due to the fact that the young assistant is Yoshimoto's brother and the waitress serving your sake is likely to be his mother.


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Is Yoshicho the finest yakitori joint in the neighborhood? That's a very hard call, because over on the other side of Gotanda Station you will find Takahashi, another yakitoriya of rare quality.It, too, is a small place tucked away inconspicuously on the second floor of a modern building. And it also has that personal touch that comes from a hands-on owner-chef dedicated to detail. However, the style and approach are considerably different.


For more than two decades, Yuji Takahashi had his own upscale French restaurant, La Primeur, in Setagaya Ward. But it was always his dream to run a boutique-scale yakitori counter. When he realized that ambition three years ago with the opening of the eponymous Takahashi, he carried over with him both his expertise in French cuisine and his love of wine.


One corner of the small dining room — a stripped-back space, just an L-shaped counter seating 10 around an open kitchen, plus a small table with high bar stools for six more — is occupied by a large wine refrigerator and an impressive array of stemware. The wine list is compact but well selected to match the cuisine...
read more here...
Yoshicho
Il Viare Gotanda 2F, 1-12-9 Higashi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku; (03) 5793-5050; www.yoshichou.info/
Open: 5-10:30 p.m. (last order); closed Sunday and holidays
Smoking: No restrictions
Price per head: figure around ¥3,500 plus drinks
Drinks: Beer ¥600; umeshu from ¥650; sake from ¥700; shochu from ¥650
Cards: Major cards accepted
Language: Japanese/English menu; little English spoken
map here


Takahashi
Pragma G-Tower 2F, 1-7-1 Nishi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku; (03) 5436-9677
Open: 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.; 5-8 p.m. & 8:15-10:30; closed Sunday and 1st & 3rd Monday
Smoking: No restrictions
Price per head: figure around ¥3,500 plus drinks
Drinks: Beer ¥800; wine from ¥1,000/glass, from ¥5,500/bottle; sake ¥700; shochu ¥700; spirits from ¥800
Credit cards: Not accepted (cash only)
Language: Japanese menu; little English spoken
map here

Kamikozawa-tei (03) 3445-6700

Shabu-shabu in modernist mode

The Japan Times: Friday, Feb. 5, 2010

There's no finer way to eat on a chilly winter evening than sitting around a bubbling nabe hot pot. No matter what the ingredients — meat, fish, tofu or vegetables — just cooking and eating from the same communal casserole is nourishment for both body and soul.

Correction: It's even better if you're sharing that hot-pot with a select group of close friends, and especially so if the setting is more than a little bit special. That was certainly the case the other night when we dined at Kamikozawa-tei.

You don't have to be an architecture buff to appreciate that this low-slung freestanding single-story house in a residential area just down from Shirokanedai is a classic of its kind. With its clean, spare lines, monochrome facade of glass and unclad concrete and uncluttered compound, it is a modest masterpiece of Japanese modernist understatement.

Commissioned and built in the early 1960s by a university professor, a German specialist, it remained his private home for half a century. Recently, he became unable to maintain it, so his relatives decided the best way to preserve this architectural gem was to convert it into an exclusive boutique restaurant. Named simply after the family name, Kamikozawa, and managed by the owner's nephew, it opened discreetly late last year to minimal fanfare.

The menu is as simple and uncluttered as the building itself. The specialty of the house is shabu-shabu, prepared with beef from premium Omi wagyu cattle. This serves as the focal point of dinner at Kamikozawa-tei. As we soon found out, though, the same beef features prominently throughout the meal, no matter which of the set-course dinners (¥6,090, ¥8,000 or ¥10,000; by advance reservation only) you have.

In such a minimalist setting — walls of unclad concrete with little or no decoration (sadly the original period fixtures and fittings have been stored away) — we felt no need for an elaborate banquet. The simplest of the three menus, comprising five courses, proved to be more than adequate.

As appetizers, we were served steak tartare, smoothly ground and arranged on delicate slices of baguette. With these came a small bowl of sashimi-style liver, the cubes of raw meat lightly dressed with sesame, giving the dish a Korean accent.

The mixed salad that followed provided a welcome vegetable counterpoint. It didn't matter that the greens were too generously slathered with dressing: This merely reinforced the sense that we were more private guests in the Kamikozawa home than customers in a sleek, professional operation.

The third course was one of the highlights of our dinner: a platter oftataki-style beef slices. The meat, a choice cut of rump, was outstanding. Lightly seared on the outside, deep- red-rare in the center, it had a wonderful texture with such a deep, lingering flavor it barely needed the roasted sesame dip that accompanied it.

With a serving staff of just two, the pace of the meal was by necessity unhurried. The leisurely intervals between courses afforded us plenty of time for conversation over our wine (be warned, it's the briefest of wine lists: Champagne; a sparkling wine; two whites; and a single red, the more than adequate Los Vascos Cabernet Sauvignon) as our shabu-shabu nabe was readied.

full article here...

map here...

Kamikozawa-teiwww.kamikozawatei.comLocation: 1-12-7 Kami-Osaki, Shinagawa-ku
(03) 3445-6700
Open: 5 p.m.-midnight (last order 10:30 p.m.) closed Mon.
Nearest station: Shirokanedai (Namboku Line)
How to get there: From Shirokanedai Station (Exit 1) turn left along Meguro-dori (toward Meguro). Just before the Tokyu Store, turn left down a small side street and follow it down the slope. At the first crossroads, turn left and continue downhill. Turn right at the second side street and you will see Kamikozawa-tei on your right after about 50 meters.
What works: The exquisitely simple yet exclusive setting
What doesn't: Service is well-intentioned but still not up to speed.
Number of seats: 26
BGM: Jazz vocal
Smoking: Permitted
Price per head: Courses at ¥6,090, ¥8,000 and ¥10,000 (special opening menu at ¥5,000 until Feb. 21).
Drinks: Beer from ¥700; cocktails ¥800; shochu from ¥600; umeshu ¥700; wine from ¥900/glass, ¥4,800/bottle
Credit cards: Major cards accepted
Language: Japanese menu; a little English spoken
Reservations: Essential

E*A*T (03) 6459-2432

Fast food worth lingering over

The Japan TImes, Friday, Jan. 22, 2010

The bright yellow sign calls down over the busy, narrow sidewalk like a grandmama from the old country exhorting her brood to come to table. "EAT EAT," it shouts. Do as you're told: Go in and sit down. We did. And we ate. We ate very well indeed.

Apart from the neon up above, there's little to indicate this blink-and-you-miss -it hole-in-the-wall diner is anything special. But, as we've learned so many times in this city, you don't judge a restaurant by the width of its shop front or the length of its history.

Eat — for that is its punchy, no-nonsense name — only opened last summer, but it didn't take long for the word to reach the street: Tokyo's got a hot new "premium burger" joint. We found out it's got a lot more to offer besides.

There are three tiny wooden tables where you can perch by the window, but the seven leopard-skin-print bar stools at the counter are cozier and more comfortable. We shoehorned ourselves in by the narrow open kitchen and settled back. Certainly we were there for the burgers. But what was the hurry? Why not start with a couple of snacks?

First up, a plate of chips and dips to go with that initial bottle of Lowenbrau (there's also Yebisu on draft, or Corona for the truly homesick). Instead of standard-issue corn chips out of the package, we were given a plate of crisp tortilla chips cooked in-house with a couple of tasty dips — a piquant homemade salsa with fine-diced tomato, pimento and onion; and a smooth, creamy guacamole. We were impressed from the get-go.

We were also intrigued to find a menu of weekly specials that was far from the norm for a fast-food restaurant. It wasn't the weather for chilled carrot and ginger soup, but we certainly felt like trying the seafood gumbo. It didn't disappoint. Dark, rich and nicely spiced with both chili and black pepper, it includes clams, fine-cut squid, carrot, mushrooms, and even the crumbs of broken-up chips for extra texture.

We weren't going to risk spoiling our appetite for burgers by ordering the sirloin steak (from wagyu — Japanese black Angus cattle) or the beef stew. But we just had to try the confit of duck; first because it seems so unlikely to find this standard of French cuisine in a fast-food joint, and second because it's one of our all-time favorite dishes.

The flavorful leg meat was neither too dry nor too salty (two common faults), and had plenty of good crisp skin. It looked appetizing too, served with a tart cassis jam that was drizzled artistically in concentric circles over the plate. Clearly, this had to be the work not of some hired grill-hand but a proper trained cook.

And so it turned out: Eat's cheerful chef, Michi Takahashi, ran a highly regarded restaurant in Los Angeles until 2008. Now back in Tokyo, he may have started up in modest premises, but he's not scaling back on quality.

Read more here...

E*A*T
2-12-27 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-kutel: (03) 6459-24324
Open: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5:30-10:30 p.m. (Sunday 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m.).
Nearest station: Gaienmae (Ginza Line)

Map here...

Best burgers in the borough

Tokyo's burger joints have never been better

The Japan TImes, Friday, Jan. 22, 2010

It looks as though Tokyo has finally woken up to the idea that there's much more to a burger than the cheap, bland offerings of the fast-food chains. Premium burgers, made by hand with quality ingredients and cooked with care, are all over town these days and the best of the recent bunch is the strangely named Blacows in Ebisu.

All the patties are prepared in-house from 100 percent wagyu(Japanese black Angus cows — hence the name, an abbreviation of "black cow"). The buns are from the celebrated Maison Keyser bakery. And there's a tasty range of fillings, from spicy jalapeno to Italian-style mozzarella and prosciutto.

Servings aren't huge (you only get a smattering of fries with them) and you also have to order your salad separately, so the final bill can start to add up. But the restaurant is spacious and bright; the staff and customers are young and well dressed; and there's a fair selection of wine and beer (including Hoegaarden White in bottles). Best of all, sheets of brown paper are provided so you don't get your hands too messy as you eat.

For location, though, few burger joints in the city can beat the parkside setting of Arms, right across from the Sangubashi gate of Yoyogi Park. The furnishings are recycled and the dress code is casual. You can even bring your dog in (though you have to follow the rules).

Better yet, the burgers are superior. Our top pick here is the Popeye Burger, served with delectable fresh-cooked spinach greens. We are not the only ones to rate Arms, it seems. Recently it launched a separate take-out/delivery counter in the nearby Yoyogi-Hachiman shopping street.

Arms is just one of a number of good burger joints set up by alumni of the excellent Fire House in Bunkyo Ward. If you find yourself in the Korakuen neighborhood, it is certainly worth making the detour to find this diner, with its classic American-style ambience and roadhouse fare. The massive Mad Burger is only for the certifiably greedy.

Another of Tokyo's "classic" burger joints is funky Goro's Diner in Gaienmae. It's just around the corner from Eat, but the extra competition doesn't seem to be hurting business.

One more favorite: tucked away in a narrow alley off Cat Street in Harajuku, The Great Burger lives up to its name in terms of flavor if not floor area. Top pick: the oozy Gorgonzola Burger, along with a bottle of their own Amber Ale.

Blacows, 2-11-9 Ebisu-Nishi, Shibuya-ku; nearest station: Ebisu (JR and Hibiya lines); (03) 3477-2914; open daily 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; burgers from ¥1,300; lunch from ¥1,000 www.kuroge-wagyu.com/bc/ map

Arms, 5-64-7 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku; nearest stations: Yoyogi-Koen (Chiyoda Line), Yoyogi-Hachiman (Odakyu Line); (03) 3466-5970; take-out/delivery counter (03) 3466-5974; open 11 a.m.-11 p.m., closed Monday; burgers from ¥900 bit.ly/3cAxNH map

Fire House, 4-5-10 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku; nearest station: Hongo-Sanchome (Marunouchi and Oedo lines); (03) 3815-6044; open daily 11 a.m.-1 a.m. (Sat., Sun. and holidays 11 a.m.-11 p.m.); burgers from ¥950 www.firehouse.co.jp/ map

Goro's Diner, 3-41-2 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku; nearest station: Gaienmae (Ginza Line); (03) 3403-9033; open 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. (Sun. and holidays 12-6 p.m.); burgers from ¥650 www.gorosdiner.com map

The Great Burger , 6-12-7 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku; nearest station: Meiji-Jingumae (Chiyoda and Fukutoshin Lines); (03) 3406-1215; open daily 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.; burgers from ¥950 www.the-great-burger.com map

Matsubara-an (0467) 61-3838

Making soba a fresh tradition

The Japan Times, Friday Jan.8, 2010

From the very first sip of aromatic otoso sake and steaming-hot ozoni soup, we always love the time-honored ritual and ceremony of New Year's in Japan. But even more than that, we like it when the hallowed traditions are brought up to date and placed in a contemporary context. That's the way they do it at Matsubara-an.

The main dining room is beautifully restored with impeccable shoji screens, period lampshades, retro furnishings and views out onto the garden. But the tatami mats are covered with carpets, and instead of zabuton cushions you sit at stylish modern tables and chairs.

Too often this kind of hybrid look can feel stilted and forced, but at Matsubara-an the mood is comfortably casual. A buzz of conversation drowns out the bossa nova emitting from the sound system. The waitresses are polite but friendly, putting you immediately at ease.

The menu reflects a similar blend of simplicity and sophistication; Japanese and Western, traditional and modern. The specialty of the house is te-uchi soba, buckwheat noodles that are prepared fresh each day, rolled out and cut by hand and served with considerable refinement. However, there's plenty more to explore at Matsubara-an besides noodles.

Just take a look at the mixed hors d'oeuvres plate...

Read more here...
Matsubara-an
4-10-3 Yuigahama, Kamakura-shi, Kanagawa-ken
tel: (0467) 61-3838
Open: Daily 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m.
Nearest stations: Yuigahama (Enoshima Dentetsu Line); Kamakura (JR Yokosuka Line)
Map here...

Kamakura soba

Other soba houses to discover in Kamakura

The Japan Times, Friday Jan. 8, 2010

Kamakura has no shortage of good soba restaurants. Like Matsubara-an, many occupy freestanding traditional buildings. Here are three more worth tracking down on a visit to the ancient capital.

Issa-an

It's not hard to find Issa-an. Located close to the entrance to Kamakura's main shrine, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, this is a favorite lunch spot for visitors. And with good reason too: It's an attractive, old-style restaurant, recently refurbished but still boasting low tables, tatami floors and large windows giving views onto a narrow garden.

Besides the excellent noodles themselves, all freshly chopped, there is a small selection of side dishes, donburi rice bowls and desserts. In the peak tourist seasons (especially New Year's), it may be hard to get a look-in at meal times. But for a light afternoon snack, it's recommended.

If you don't want to leave Tokyo, Issa-an has a branch in the Marunouchi Building, in front of Tokyo JR Station.

Sobadokoro Goto

Because the noodles at Sobadokoro Goto aren't rolled and chopped by hand, hard-core soba aficionados tend to ignore it. All the better for the rest of us, as it boasts a classic traditional setting.

An ancient wooden gate and a narrow path lined with bamboo lead the way to a beautifully preserved old house set in a wooded compound well away from the street. You leave your shoes at the door and sit on tatami floors in the spacious dining room.

This architectural gem is hidden away a block north of the Kinokuniya store on the west side of Kamakura Station, off one of the backstreets leading up to Zeni-Arai Benten, the atmospheric "money-washing" shrine in the western hills.

Takenoya

Takenoya is a small family-run restaurant tucked away on the eastern fringe of the city. It's an area little visited by tourists, though there are some beautiful temples up in the hills. But this diminutive place is well on the map for committed soba enthusiasts.

There's just one table with chairs, plus a raised tatami area that gives a glimpse of a tidy little garden. If those places are taken, you sit on squat wooden stools around the large irori grill by the door.

The soba is righteous, hand-chopped by the master and served by his wife. There are usually three kinds to choose from: regular noodles; dark, coarse, country-style inaka-soba; and finer, lighter noodles with a seasonal flavoring, such as yuzu (citron) or powdered green tea. To sample each of these, ask for the sanshoku (three-colored) soba, which is served in three-level lacquered-wood trays.

Issa-an, 1-8-24 Yukinoshita, Kamakura-shi, Kanagawa-ken; (0467) 22-3556; open daily 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; soba from ¥985. 
www.issaan.net

Sobadokoro Goto,1-1-3 Ogigayatsu, Kamakura-shi, Kanagawa-ken; (0467) 24-4855; open 11 a.m.-7 p.m., closed Thurs., soba from ¥630
hw001.gate01.com/eric/goto.htm

Takenoya, 4-3-2 Omachi, Kamakura-shi, Kanagawa-ken; (0467) 25-3872; open 11 a.m.-6 p.m., closed Mon.; soba from ¥1,000
gourmet.yahoo.co.jp/0001456823/P001858

Map here...

Ryugin (03) 3423-8006

Refined flair in the dragon's lair

This is power decor for power dining, Ryugin-style

The Japan Times: Friday, Dec. 18, 2009

It's that season once again, when we pause, look back and savor some of the outstanding meals we have enjoyed over the past year. High on that list has to be going back to eat at Ryugin last month.

This brilliant, high-end Japanese restaurant on the outer fringe of Roppongi is no secret now. How could it be with three consecutive appearances in the mighty Michelin Guide? But when it first opened, back in December 2003, it quietly built up a loyal following and an almost cult reputation on the strength of the innovative approach of its young chef, Seiji Yamamoto.

Just 33 when he set up Ryugin, Yamamoto took inspiration from the new-wave culinary techniques being developed in Europe, especially Spain, adapting them to the Japanese tradition. However, although his cuisine was well worthy of its two-star status, there was one drawback — the setting just didn't look or feel as exciting as the food that was being served.

All that changed this year. In February, Ryugin underwent a major refurbishment, emerging transformed as if from a chrysalis. Out went the sleek but bland interior that could have been anywhere in the world; in its place is an ornate, elaborate dining room that's a one-of-a-kind.

Read more here…

Ryugin
7-17-24 Roppongi, Minato-ku; tel: (03) 3423-8006;
www.nihonryori-ryugin.com
Open: 6 p.m.-1 a.m. (last seating 10:30 p.m.)
Closed: Sun. and national holidays
Nearest stations: Roppongi (Hibiya and Oedo lines)
How to get there: From Roppongi Station Exit 2, walk along Roppongi-dori (in the direction of Shibuya), then turn right down the first side street. You will see the steps leading up to Ryugin on the right after about 100 meters.
What works: Outstanding contemporary take on kaiseki tradition.
What doesn't: It's too bad Ryugin no longer offers a la carte options.
Number of seats: 20 (plus a private room for 4)
No-smoking areas: All no-smoking
Price per head: Fixed menu at ¥23,100 per head (10 percent service charge added)
Drinks: Champagne from ¥1,800; beer ¥700; sake from ¥1,300; wine from ¥1,800/glass, from ¥8,000/bottle; digestifs from ¥1,500
Credit cards: Major cards accepted
Language: Japanese/English menu; English spoken
Reservations: Essential — check Web site for details.

map here...