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Whether it is a cheap restaurant or a fine and famous place, sushi in Tokyo will be better than in Europe most of the times. At least the fish will be fresher and more various. How the fish is cut is another issue. I don’t think that thick pieces of fish are typical only to cheap places, I heard that famous chefs do that too, but I hate when the slices of fish are so thick,you feel as if you a chewing a whole fish in your mouth!
Mamoru Sugiyama san showing some special sake...
During this trip to Tokyo i started with Sushi Mizutani, then Sushi Kanesaka and ended up at Sushiko Honten (6-3-8 Ginza, tel. 03 3571 1968 ) . Ironically, my favorite of all the three was the latter, the sushi place that has only one Michelin star, the least from all the three.
What made me love this place? First- the warm welcoming, the chef Mamoru Sugiyama san is genuinely trying to make the time at his restaurant (again, only 11 places) as pleasant as possible. Eating out at fine sushi places doesn't need to be like going to a temple, isn't it?
I loved sukiyaki at Michelin starred Yoshihasi (1-5-25 Moto-Akasaka, tel. 03-3401-3129) not only because the wagyu beef was mouth watering, but also because the place was so beautiful and serene. Yoshihashi is a traditional minimalstic restaurant with zen garden behind a window. When you come to the place you have to take away your shoes off and all the waiters are exclusively women in kimonos.
Since Japan has opened up for foreigners in the end of the 19th century, beef has become a very popular product in Japanese cusine. In fact, Japanese are so obsessed about the quality of their beef that when you go to a good teppanyaki or sukiyaki restaurant, they would put small notes with numbers and origins of the meat.Like in the image of gold medal winner Miyaazaki beef , at Miyachuku,a teppanyaki restaurant in Ginza.
Continue reading "The joys of yakiniku, shabu-shabu and sukiyaki " »
Kaizen ("continuos improvement") concept is deeply tied not only to manufacturing and business(where it originally comes from) but to Japanese culture in general. Anything Japanese do, they will try to do their best. Whether its service in a hotel, asking directions in a metro station or simply growing vegetables and fruit.
Dinner at 7 chome Kyoboshi ( 2* - my guilty pleasure to mention the Michelin stars ;). Well, afterall, the book has been helpful. Having said that, i first heard of 7 chome Kyoboshi from Japanese friends.) has only assured my thoughts about the quality of the Japanese products. So simple yet so good.
It was probably the most expensive tempura i have ever had in my life. If you can call that tempura, as the tempura i have eaten up till now has nothing in common with the creations of Shigeya Sakakibara san.
Before going to Sushi Kanesaka, I was preparing to spend my evening in a formal environment with an austere sushi master leading the show. Instead,I found myself in a friendly and vibrant place where the chef Shinji Kanesaka san was chatting with his guests and obviously enjoying doing so. Shinji Kanesaka san is a young man ( he used to work at Kyubei) practicing a hundreds year old craft, so strict rules of traditional sushi making are applied but at the same time, he brings in some youth and modernity in the ambiance. Everybody working at Sushi Kanesaka were young and joyful, different from what i expected.
I am in my favorite city in the world and my first dinner here was at Ukai-tei Ginza , teppanyaki restaurant in Ginza. Needless to say the "super top quality" beef steak was a reminder that Japanese have the best beef in the world...
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