Moony-Eyed at La Lune

It is rare indeed, Gentle Reader, that your Humble Correspondent feels perplexed. Or confused. But I was both when I visited La Lune. Hadn't I been here before? No ... but ... yes. I quickly e-mailed my good friend Richard Cohen at Village Cellars, who reminded me that we had visited these premises when it was called Oishi (大石) back in 2000(?). Dilemma resolved! [Update: Actually, Chef Nagata was the chef at Oishi back then. To my mind, he's got a lot better!]

La Lune is a small yet comfortable suburban restaurant, with no pretensions to anything more than serving good-to-great food to grateful customers. Of which NHK-7 and I are now 2. We settled on Menu Option B (2 entrees, 1 main, and dessert) and aside from a brief mention of how fond we were of meat, we left the rest up to Chef.

Our 2006 Sancerre la Croix du Roy (L. Crochet) arrived with appropriate speed at a reasonable price. My companion was presented with an uni and pumpkin sherbet in a consomme jelly to match my zuwai-gani salad. Both were excellent, and stood us in good stead for the next course. For her, this was a seasonal mushroom salad with duck "ham". I settled into a well-prepared Fois Gras terrine. By now we were convinced that we had happened onto a little "discovery" in our own backyard, and were eager to push on to the main course.

Oh dear! Suckling boar with a raspberry vinegar sauce for your Humble Correspondent, and roast partridge for NHK-7. We matched this with a 2003 Gevrey-Chambertin Champs-Chenys, again reasonably priced and good to the last drop. The food was delightful - simple, yet elegant and well-plated to satisfy the eye as well as the mouth.

Desserts are a high point at La Lune, and my Apple Creme Brulee with burnt caramel ice-cream was the star although well tussled with by Melanie's cheesecake souffle.

Visit La Lune with friends and lovers, for a relaxing and sophisticated meal at an excellent suburban restaurant. Which gives me pause to wonder if there's room for a guide book on these little gems. Suggestions?

La Lune: 2-26-16 Higashi Azabu, Minato Ward. t: 03-3589-2005
Rating: Food: 7; Wine: 7; Service: 7; Ambiance: 7; Price: 7 ($$). Total 35/50