Le Chatain - "A warm hideaway"

 

Hidden away in Takanawa near Isarago, Gentle Reader, is the Sento Karigosho, or the Temporary Emeritus Imperial Palace. This is where the Emeritus Emperor Akihito and his wife Empress Emerita Michiko are living while their digs in Akasaka are being renovated to meet the needs of the elderly couple. It also features beautiful rose gardens immediately outside on the Nihonenoki-dori street that runs from Isarago to Shinagawa. Even more notably, it is close to Your Humble Correspondent's hovel in Mita 4-Chome. 

And opposite the Gosho is a pretty little French restaurant called Le Chatain. Which means auburn blonde or chestnut, for reasons that are utterly opaque except that it is the most common hair color in France.

Le Chatain is one of literally hundreds of suburban French restaurants scattered around Tokyo, but stands out in that category. This brasserie is not pretentious or self-opinionated like many of its peers, and offers a bistrot local in the otherwise entirely boring Isarago area. Which in turn means that Your Humble Correspondent has come to frequent it on a reasonably regular but arrhythmic fashion.

Opened in December 2019, it is located in the rather twee Takanawa residential area. Despite that, Gentle Reader, one can enjoy well prepared and reasonably priced French cuisine in a very relaxed setting. Which might just be the very definition of comfort food. 

It even boasts single counter seats for the relationship-challenged, as well as two private rooms for those not so afflicted.

The point here is the produce, carefully selected with an emphasis on quality and sustainable producers. That makes for endless variety in the daily menu, as well as a playful sense of adventure and exploration.

Your Humble Correspondent most often opts for the Steak Frites on the lunch menu. Well-priced, well prepared, and sufficient volume for even this little fat boy. For dinner, you can expect only one "Course" but it is in the standard 5-dish (Amuse, Potage, Fish, Meat, Dessert) format offering even the most demanding customer a range of flavors. A la carte is also available.

Le Chatain has a prodigious wine list - in fact, selection is often a fraught process where one is often caught in the this-or-that conundrum. Your Humble Correspondent has found the most pleasant option from a self-care perspective is to have both.

Visit Le Chatain with friends and lovers. Alternatively, a sympathetic colleague.

And should you see the Emeritus Emperor at the counter seats, remember your manners!

Pip Pip!

Le Chatain: 2-2-25 Takanawa, Minato-ku t: 03-6450-3448

Le portefeuille: »Y8,500 (with wine)
Rating: Food: 7/10; Gosho-ness: 7/10; Service: 7/10; Ambiance: 7/10; Price-Performance: 7/10
Total: 35/50 (3 Forks)

Mari e Monti - Bright as ever!

There was a time, Gentle Reader, when Your Humble Correspondent would have never darkened these doors. Then Cosimo and Luca left La Bisboccia and made their proprietorial debut here, and things changed forever. 

There is an effervescent joy about this place,  both contagious and encouraging. Even in these dark days of a global pandemic, Cosimo and Luca are truly focused on the warmest possible entertaining experience for their guests. It is, if you like, a philtre for troubled times and a profitable investment in well-being.

The food is good, of course. Puglia features strongly in a regional sense, which is a relief now that Antichi Sapori seems to have closed. Obviously, your favorite Italian dishes are on the menu as well. There are daily offerings depending on what the providors have been able to source. In fact, Gentle Reader, the problem is more the temptation to order too much - which foible Your Humble Correspondent admits to being a frequent occurrence - rather than scouring a bland page of the "standard" dishes one finds too often in Italian restaurants in Tokyo.

There is plenty of very good wine available as well, although sometimes in smaller quantities. The most exciting part of the beverage service at Mari e Monti is the generous - possibly copious - limoncello service at the end of your repast. The team whip this up in the kitchen, very likely in 20 liter containers.

The point about Mari e Monti is the sheer brightness and warmth of the people that run it. Visiting this establishment is honestly the high point of any day. During these dour times, try to get a prescription from your physician for the benefits that Cosimo and Luca provide for your mental health.

Visit Mari e Monti with friends rather than colleagues. The energy is probably not suited to detailed business discussions. Neither is the limoncello.

And please be forgiving if a little fat boy joins you for the limoncello. Frankly, I'm addicted.

Pip Pip!

Mari e Monti: Comforia Nishi-Azabu 2F, 14-1-10 Nishi-Azabu, Minato-ku t: 03-6418-7072

Portafoglio: »Y9,000 (with wine)
Rating: Food: 8/10; Puglia-ness: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance: 7/10; Price-Performance: 7/10
Total: 38/50 (3 Forks)

Chez Soma - Nostalgia in Nakane

There is a certain style of restaurant in Japan, Gentle Reader, that delights the heart - and often the wallet. Where a chef focuses on technique and deep culinary knowledge, with the result often being better than most establishments in the "home" country of a particular cuisine. Where repetition is a virtue, and where the flavors are delicate and long. Chez Soma in Nakane in Meguro Ward is one of those places.

Your Humble Correspondent, as ever in your service, recently ventured into the wilds of Nakane, near Toritsu Daigaku subway station, to visit Chez Soma. While the area has a quaint suburban feel, diners are magically transported to Parisian bistro once they enter. In these COVIDesque days, things are perhaps a little diminished by the Perspex screens and masked floor staff but despite the difficulties the atmosphere is warm and welcoming.

But the food, Gentle Reader, the food is delightful. It is wonderfully wrought, superbly balanced, and exquisitely presented. The menu is simple - 3 options including an o-makase - and includes an a la Carte section which is so sadly vanishing from so many other establishments. There are daily variations in the ingredients, and Chef shows enviable creativity for a venue (previously in Jiyugaoka) that has been open for some twenty years. Each of these "courses" includes a dessert sampler which is, similarly, excellent.

There is a certain nostalgia, Gentle Reader, in the dishes on offer. This is Cuisine Classique but without heavy saucing or contemporary flashiness. It is almost as if, God forfend, that the restaurant focuses on the guest experience rather than the Chef experience. No pretense, no foamy-foamies, no trace of ego.

Your Humble Correspondent is frantically looking forward to being able to graze the Wine List once these wretched lockdowns become a thing of the past. It promises a well-crafted and diverse selection, with the typical Parisian aperitifs available to the discerning drinker.

Chez Soma is best enjoyed with friends rather than colleagues, and a reservation is strongly recommended. 

Pip Pip!

Chez Soma: 1-7-20 Nakane, Meguro Ward t: 03-6421-3034

Bowgett: »Y8,000 (with wine) * a 'bowgett' (or budget) is a leathern pouch or wallet to carry one's cash

Rating: Food: 8/10; Nostalgia: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance: 7/10; Price-Performance: 8/10

Total: 39/50 (3 Forks)

Coronavirus - A Pooh Story

* Borrowed and enhanced from a Facebook post ...

"Where are we going Piglet?" asked Pooh.

"We need to get supplies," said Piglet. "For the Coronavirus".

"Ahh," said Pooh, nodding in understanding. "Things like gloves, water, toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and medicated shampoos even though we don't have hair?"

Piglet did a little grunty sort of laugh, and a happy leap and bit of a cough. 

"No," said Piglet. "No, those aren't the supplies we need at all!"

"What we need are huge bags of pretzels, cashews, jellies, and chocolates; a freezer full of fry-ables and microwave pizzas, and all the Champagne that we can possibly carry".

"We need lightly salted crackers and cheeses like Brie and Comte as well as something smelly. Salami, Parma Ham, Spanish Jamon, and fresh olives."

"You of course, Pooh, will be in charge of baguette, honey, Trappist butter ... slightly salted of course ... and kilos of corned beef. Sparkling mineral water, and some limes please".

"We shall have them deliver gallons of white wine, magnums of Burgundy, vodka in 5 liter plastic bottles for sterilization, and those salty rice crackers things in the very largest containers."
"Then, when we get quarantined we won't mind it even one bit. THOSE are supplies."

All of a sudden, Pooh thought that the idea of coronavirus didn't seem quite so bad, and actually, getting quarantined with Piglet and their supplies really didn't sound such a terrible thing after all. 

"Oh Piglet," said Pooh. "I really do think you are a very wise animal."

Table Motoh - Post-modern!

There are those who accuse me, Gentle Reader, of being a food snob. God forfend! Your Humble Correspondent is particular, certainly, and demands quality over quantity. Beets are out, as are anchovies and coriander. But snobby? Never!

Which is surely a virtue at Table Motoh. Chef Motoh Kikuchi (a great loss to Tableau) aims to create an "at-home" environment, a place where guests can relax and enjoy his extraordinary cooking. The venue only seats 12, which would make it perfect for a gathering of Your Humble Correspondent's friends ... with 7 seats to spare. 

Decorated in Spartan Modern, and highly functional. Chef aims to create an "ordinary" environment where foodie guests can relax - entirely suitable for YHC! It first feels a little cramped, but discomfort vanishes as it fills with customers and cheerful banter ensues. They will try hard to speak English for you, which makes everything a little more "at-home". "At-home" enough to reach for the pajamas.

At the recommendation of Eatpia, we recently gathered as a foursome for dinner to test out just how ordinary it might be. Table Motoh has been operating for six months by two lovely men who work together seamlessly. The menu features traditional French favorites as well as mouth-some seasonal produce exquisitely crafted to showcase both the ingredients as well as the skill of Chef. One notices the flair first, the quality second, and lastly a firm sense of balance. Do try the pate en croute, as well as the carpaccio.

There is clearly some special sort of prestidigitation at work in the wine selection. It boasts more than 50 different labels, which feels impossible in such narrow quarters. We enjoyed Alsace Rieslings, a Crozes-Hermitage white, a beautiful near-desiccated Gruner Veltliner, and a pretty little Provence rose. Pours are generous and pricing fearless, with many fine wines affordable even to Your Impoverished Correspondent.

The thing that stands out here is "care". Care in the ingredients, in the magical light touch on the food, and the handsome plating. Care in selecting the right glassware for the right wine. And care in the interaction with guests that never borders on the "hello-my-name-is-Jordan" type of transactional service becoming uncomfortably common.

Go to Table Motoh with friends. Good friends. Don't go for a romantic dinner. It is not ordinary, but close to special. A friendly sort of special...

And if you see a goblin peering eerily out from behind a curtain, ignore me...

Pip Pip!

Table Motoh: 7-3-15 Roppongi, Minato Ward  t: 03-6384-5885

Pera: »Y8,000 (with wine)

Rating: Food: 7/10; At Home-ness: 8/10; Service: 7/10; Ambiance: 7/10; Price-Performance: 8/10

Total: 37/50 (3 Forks)

Reglisse - Around the back

Apparently, Gentle Reader, Reglisse means licorice. Your Humble Correspondent is equally as confused as you. The thought is that just like licorice is enjoyed by both children and adults (in France), everyone will be delighted by the range of tastes presented. How fitting! This is a beautiful petite 24 seat French restaurant which describes itself as a Premium Bistro. While these seems somewhat overwrought, it works.

Chef Takeshi Hatano describes his food as traditional french ennobled by his particular flair - the cuisine is unique, stunningly creative, and a boon to endacious sojourners like Your Humble Correspondent. He presents you with menus that resonate and gently echo in the contemporary space, where guests wait for the poetic and tantalizing descriptions provided by the floor team led by Kentaro Toda and Sommelier Kaori Hatano.

Yet this is not a foppishly formal or stiff restaurant. It is a place where you want to spend time with someone important to you. A destination for deliberate dining. A haven in which to be pampered. It just seems to flow, with quiet bonhomie and sleek professionalism. One imagines it might be perfect for a Spring or Autumn assignation, or a stylish and romantic dinner for two.

Happily, the course menus seem to focus on five dishes at both luncheon and dinner. These show both imagination and genius, with exquisite harmony. Even the most ardent trencherman (like, say, Your Humble Correspondent) is asked questions without answers. There are pique moments and comfort moments.

As a bit of an imbiber, YHC was flabbergasted by the wine list. Discombobulated. Confounded. Undone. One rarely finds a list so well balanced in terms of both wallet and weight. Not neon-fancy-festooned with grand labels, but carefully considered and curated. New, Old, rare, and fascinating all combine somehow into a singular whole.

A word about the service - impeccable. One imagines things are made smoother by being able to speak and read Japanese, but faint heart ne'er won fair lady. Sally forth!

Located on the Keyakizaka side of Roppongi Hills on the 3rd floor, it can be difficult to find. Toddle onto the elevator next to the Mini showroom and go to the 3rd Floor. Still lost? Find La Brianza and look for the terrace at the back to your right, past Saryo Miyazaka and just before Sushi Sukibayashi Jiro. You deserve a medal ...

Reglisse is a place to visit with close friends and lovers, in small numbers. And that wisp in the wine cellar? Pass by quickly without comment - I'm working.

Pip Pip!

Reglisse: 3F, 6-12-2 Roppongi, Minato Ward  t: 03-6804-3306

Pera: Y5,000 ~ (your call on the wine)

Rating: Food: 8/10; Terrace-ness: 7/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance: 8/10; Price-Performance: 8/10

Total: 39/50 (3 Forks)

Rinkaso - A haven amid the havoc

If, like Your Humble Correspondent, you wake on Saturday mornings paralyzed with indecision about where you should go for lunch, be anxious no more. Nothing else is as soul-destroying and cause for consternation as to be void of a sensible choice of restaurant. One fears that the question at the Pearly Gates will be about restaurant recommendations.

The Once and Future Blonde and YHC often hanker for a Chinese lunch on weekends. So we were delighted to learn contemporary Shanghai has come to Tokyo (via Yokohama Chinatown) with drums beating and banners flying in the shape of Rinkaso courtesy of the Jogen Group.

Jogenro is one of the oldest Shanghai restaurants in Japan. It has been managed by three generations of Fong and Jin women from the day it opened in 1955 and embodies the spirit of the 1920's 'Old Shanghai' reflecting the French Concession aesthetic - extravagant, flamboyant, exciting. It is also, more importantly, frightfully delicious. So who, Gentle Reader, would be better to take a dull and tired Chinese restaurant (New Hokkai-En) halfway between Roppongi and the Tokyo American Club and turn it into a venue worthy of your attention?

The dilemma with most outlets in the Roppongi - TAC axis is that they mostly produce pap. Pale imitations of good ideas. Wouldn't know a flavor beyond "stale oil" even if it charged across the pavement and bit them on the bum. Exceptions exist, for sure. But these are rare or gut-grippingly expensive. Unfortunately, many customers loitering in Roppongi look for price-performance (i.e. cheap) or stomach fillers (i.e. soaking up the drinks).

Not so Rinkaso. This is a castle built on flavor. An edifice to spices. One that very likely bows to Japanese tastes but seems to host many ethnic Chinese as well. They use the whimsical title "Urban Chinese", as if this helped differentiate from other Chinese cuisines. But it feels authentic, original, and creative ... at least to this gweilo (鬼佬).

Dancing solo one warm Saturday morning, Rinkaso somehow emerged from the mist while one suffered through a confused mental conversation about TAC, Va Tout, or Hobgoblin. It was, Gentle Reader, an epiphany, a "mission from God", an Avalon moment.

The food was sharp, clean, focused ... a counterpoint and pleasure compared to most neighborhood chukas. The course menu of 6 items was a journey rather than a trek. While it may not reach the level of a Michelin star, the stark contrast to other options in the area is in itself worthy of a visit. Go en famille, or solo.

Pip Pip!

Rinkaso: 5-18-2 Roppongi, Minato Ward  t: 03-6277-8353

Rating: Food: 8/10; Urbanity: 7/10; Service: 7/10; Ambiance: 8/10; Price-Performance: 7/10

Total: 37/50 (3 Forks)

Epic Epi

How is it, Gentle Reader, that a classic little cozy French bistro - self-described as petit restaurant - can hide its pretty face in Ebisu for more than ten years without Your Humble Correspondent darkening its doors? Is this some form of évitement? Has one's reputation sunk so far as to be excluded from culinary exploration with other kuishimbo? Oh, the shame! While YHC's emotional recovery may take some time, a recent visit with  Dear James was both enjoyable and instructive. 

The petit comes from a certain absence of desire for scale - there are only six small tables that seat twenty covers, and one feels somewhat too intimate with other diners. For those of us from larger countries, congeniality is a virtue honored better by respect and a humble wave of the hand rather than physical proximity. Epi is therefore somewhat challenging to those of us with figures that resemble more an orange than a carrot.

Epi features time-honored bistro dishes from different regions of France - can you say "comfort food" Gentle Reader? - with generous servings and classic gusto. Chef seems to have quite a thing for mussels both moules and Japonaise. with seven different variations on the menu. What-ho! Cracking stuff with sufficient baguette to mop and sop that brings warmth to both the heart and the belly.

Think bouillabaisse, ratatouille, escargot, pate de campagne, confit ... redolent more of a tabac than a restaurant but with stick-to-the-ribs charm and poise. The menu is only in French and Japanese. This postage stamp of a restaurant is almost subversively, possibly aggressively, the illustration one sees when you look up "bistro" in any reputable dictionary. The cooking is good to excellent, although there is a feeling more of a traiteur than an atelier in the finish and presentation. The Family and YHC enjoyed a very similar meal many years ago in Saumur, before grandchildren. 

The wine list at Epi is almost exclusively French, organized by appellation and with good breadth of price points. There is certainly value to be had: and there is a sense of adventure and novelty difficult to find more at celebrated destinations. At the same time, the numerous empty bottles of famous labels set a tone and an expectation that cannot be met by Your Humble Correspondent's wizened wallet, although one can always look lovingly in the direction of these formidable soldiers while sipping something less eminent.

One feels a certain sense of detachment, though, in the service at Epi. There is a fawning weight of expectancy of detailed knowledge focused toward the clientele - which may be appropriate towards regular joren but not for newbies like YHC. One prefers to be teased, drawn in, titillated rather than quizzed. Perhaps one of those slightly bombastic, sniffy and mustachioed French types with the black folded-over apron might suit.

Do toddle along and try Epi dear Reader. Look for friends and lovers that might accompany you. Set yourself a mission to become a regular. It's worth it. And if you open an expensive bottle, save a glass for me. I'm disguised as a gargoyle on the outside deck.

Pip Pip!

Epi: 2-10-6 Nishi-Ebisu, Shibuya Ward t: 03-3780-8687

Rating: Food: 7/10; Epi-cness: 7/10; Service: 6/10; Ambiance: 8/10; Price-Performance: 7/10

Total: 35/50 (3 Forks)

Alternative - The Real Deal

Imagine, if you will Gentle Reader, a quiet and elegant space in Roppongi. One set above the race and reel of the street. Sweetly far from the madding crowd.

Imagine a sophisticated table, set with beautiful tableware and visually stunning glasses. Add a certain air of playfulness balanced with exquisite technique and wonderfully engaged service.

No doubt you're thinking of Alternative.

Your Humble Correspondent ventured there recently with The Professor, who was late. Unfashionably late. Temporally-challenged late. A military background coupled with a crippling sense of self-importance makes one rather intolerant of tardiness. Quite right too, don't you think?

Which is apropos of nothing except to say that it provides one with the time to get to know the staff and to chatter unhelpfully about how the venue can sometimes be difficult to find. Perhaps, but we were certainly glad to have done so and were set to test Chef's technique and imagination. Silly, silly boys ...

Alternative is that rare combination of temple and laboratory, a place that revels luxuriously in the concept of seasonality where the seasons are a week long. It strives to offer a certain air of freedom and pivots to originality wherever possible. The goal is to be topical and interesting, while delivering on expectations above and beyond the burger level.

We opted for the Dinner Course (\10,000) and wine pairing (\5,000). In the end, that was remarkably cheap for what we received. It felt almost unfair ...

This is cooking of the highest quality. It is matched with intimate service from floor staff who actually know what they are talking about. The wine selection was possibly the best Your Humble Correspondent has experienced in 30 years of dining out in Tokyo. Each glass paired with its course in a pas-de-deux that twirls and whirls, each time offering a serious challenge to a wine lover (I think got 3 of 6 right).

Chef Saito first came to prominence at Provinage, and he has succeeded to the mantle here in the same location. Small specialist producers send him new ingredients which he turns into triumphs. The plating is high art. We enjoyed dishes arranged like a debutante's fascinator with subtle sauces and intriguing layers of textures. Can you say "rice sauce"? He brings a Kansai passion for real food, real textures, and real experiences.

Alternative is a place to enjoy with people one truly cares about. Think of it as a right more than a reward. You deserve Alternative, Gentle Reader, and it deserves you.

Pip Pip!

Rating: Food: 9/10; Alternative-ness: 9/10; Service: 9/10; Ambiance: 9/10; Price-Performance: 9/10 

Total: 45/50 (4 Forks)

Alternative: 2F 3-1-19 Nishiazabu, Minato-ku t: 03-5772-7272

Ata - don't mind the audience

One feels one’s age, Gentle Reader, when one stumbles into a hostelry full of people in their 30s. It is often loud, bustling, and self-possesed. While such a situation promises a certain economy, it also begs a disquieting sense of clatter and the fear of a tendency to trend rather than excellence. Your Humble Correspondent is therefore pleased to report that Ata in Sarugakucho demonstrates neither of these characteristics.

The restaurant is a touch tight to be sure, but makes up for this with fine service and familiar yet formidable cuisine coupled with a very good wine list. Ask for the secret menu and for “special” wines. YHC was presented with an Israeli Chardonnay which surprised, intrigued, and challenged simultaneously.

The occasion was a quiet dinner between two friends, and Ata provided a warm refuge on a chill winter’s evening. There is a heartfelt attention to detail on provenance although one has to sometimes coax it out of the floor team.

Humor me, and order the mussels in white wine: it comes with pleasantly toasted baguette and you will be encouraged to use the shells as weapons as you fight over any remaining broth. Hokkaido oysters from Akkeshi were plump, highlighting the bounty of the cold Kanryu currents and needed only a touch of lemon juice and fresh pepper to be nearly transcendent.

There is welcome variation on the menu for main courses to prompt indecision and a protean feeling of impending regret. Try the splendid duck or the delectable lamb. Desserts are more workmanlike, but help to round out an evening of casual indulgence.

Fear not, Gentle Reader, and sally forth with pennants flying. Order generously but with an eye to the waistline. Apparently, sharing is tolerated even though YHC allows no such indignity at his table.

Ata is a place to enjoy with friends; a place for genteel carousing and raucous laughter. A destination to revel in, and visit frequently. Give yourself a little longer than usual to linger, and warn the downstairs staff you may be home a little later than normal..

And ignore the gnome in the corner burbling into his Bouillabaisse: I shan’t take long and will be on my way soon enough!

Pip pip!

Rating: Food: 8/10; At-Homeness: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance: 7/10; Price-Performance: 8/10 

Total: 39/50 (3 Forks)

Ata: 2-5 Sarugakucho, Shibuya t: 03-6809-0965

L'inedit - Thank heavens for Patissiers

Drop everything you're doing, Gentle Reader, and pick up your telephone. Right now. Or have the help do it. Call L'inedit in Higashi-Azabu and make a reservation. You're welcome...

Your Humble Correspondent recently stumbled his way down Mamiana-zaka from the Tokyo American Club to this venue. Quite a challenge after 2 martinis really, and a tiring journey of some 81.7 meters.This herculean effort seemed to somewhat annoy the Apple Watch, which then proceeded to pepper the evening with diabolical commands like "Stand Up", "Breathe" and  - rather more ominously - "Close your rings!".

The occasion was a meal with The Once and Future Blonde and The Professor. The restaurant choice had fallen to Your Humble Correspondent (as it should), and after a gentle nudge from www.eatpia.com we had our Girl Friday duly make the reservations. Thank Heavens for Girls and Boys Friday...

The proprietors seem to have done away with such antediluvian notions as a menu, and instead present a meal in eight acts. You will be asked if you wish to indulge in the wine pairings - pray do this, for they know more than you do, padawan.

On our visit, the meal consisted of:

• an amuse with pate de campagne wrapped in a thrilling piece of pastry (be still my beating heart!), 
• a white bean soup that seemed to float from bowl to mouth, 
• a Hachis Parmentier (a rich man's version of Shepherds Pie),
• Long-tailed Red snapper with a carrot coulis (sigh),
• Soshuko chicken from the Chiba/Saitama border, and
• three desserts as befits a patissier couple. Including a callison from Provence.

The Professor is an ardent trencherman, but L'inedit stopped him in his tracks. The wines were each interesting and delicious, from smaller producers. The pairings were perfect. Your Humble Correspondent was at this point slightly tipsy and neglected to jot these down. Oh the shame ...

This is a restaurant you simply must try, only open for dinner because of the detailed prep that goes into each meal. No stars, no fuss, just passion.

Born of two patissiers with deep French experience who have also pleasured the sweet teeth of G20 diplomats at Lake Toya, it is small enough to be intimate and tastefully decorated enough to be almost immediately familiar. Service is warm and attentive.

Try too, Gentle Reader, the Sunday brunch. Pastries, breads, eggs done your way, and copious quantities of bubbles.

L'inedit is a restaurant to fall back on again and again. Invite only those close to your heart for fear of it becoming too popular. And that strange cooing you hear? Pray a benison for a fat fool!

Pip pip!

Rating: Food: 8/10; Foodie-Friendliness: 8/10; Service: 9/10; Ambiance:9/10; Price-Performance: 8/10 

Total: 42/50 (4 Forks)

L'inedit: 2-10-7 HigashiAzabu, Minato-ku t: 03-6426-5589

Quotidien - Experience Shun

It has been some time, Gentle Reader, since your Humble Correspondent had darkened the doors of Quotidien in Azabu-Juban. Likely much to the delight of the Proprietors. 

But subjected to the entreaties of The Tall Poppy, we succumbed and journeyed forth in high anticipation. As it turned out, he was late. Sigh ...

This is the sort of restaurant that has much in its favor. Small, quiet, attentive staff, and a sort of “familiar” sense of ease and comfort. A special little wine list, with most options within reach of a fiscally challenged rapscallion such as your Humble Correspondent. There's a sense of ceremony riding the piccolo elevator to the 2nd floor and making a suitably flamboyant entrance.

Likewise the menu, recently featured on Eatpia https://www.eatpia.com. There is a certain chasseur-ine appeal to wild boar sourced from (of all places) Wakayama. Carefully sourced vegetables, precarious but precious quantities of the bounty of the sea, exquisite desserts, and possibly the best bread in Tokyo. Changes are frequent, reflecting seasonality and availability.

A slight detour, Gentle Reader to explain the Japanese concept of seasonality - there are of course the boring four observed elsewhere, 24 sekki of about 2 weeks each that originated in China, and the far more romantic 72 micro-seasons or Ko. It is these 72 that interest both Chef and us as foodies, for each has its own fish, vegetable, fruit etc. that is at its peak in these five or so days. The word for this highly limited "peak" season is shun. Sadly, this sense of the exquisite is beginning to diminish among younger Japanese for whom refrigeration and slow ripening have become de rigueur.

Quotidien has featured in Michelin reviews, mostly Bib Gourmand: it deserves a better fate. One suspects a certain disregard from Chef Sudo, born of a passion for ingredients rather than replication. He’s remarkably talented, if perhaps occasionally gruff.

BQ brings sophistication to the notion of a “daily” bistro. It delivers elegance to even the most rustic of diners, and delights first-timers through simplicity. There are plenty of regulars or in en Le japonais "jouren". And yet the l’addition never shocks, and the service never fades.

Sally forth Gentle Reader! One would fain beg you not to invite the hoi polloi. Enjoy Quotidien with your closest friends and lovers. Leave out the noshers and the would-be’s.

And should you hear a faint but persistent scratching at the door, toss a crumb or well-chewed bone my way...

Pip pip!

Rating: Food: 8/10; Daily-ness: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance:8/10; Price-Performance: 8/10

Total: 40/50 (4 Forks)

Quotidien 2F Tamon Azabu, 3-9-2 Azabu Juban, Minato. t: 03-6435-3241

Milieu - A Greek Drama

A moment's indulgence, if you don't mind Gentle Reader, to ponder why a hitherto forgettable French tabac-style venue might suddenly morph via some strange topological transformation into a Greek Taverna. This is the story of Milieu, where Chef Manaka has returned to his roots by turning his cafe into a taverna in 2018. One wonders if his time as Chef to the Japanese mission in Athens created secret passions and desires in some glorious Elysian way. Or if he felt the pull of the Dionysian mysteries, calling him to Bacchanalia Extremus. The answers to these questions are mostly unfathomable, and worthy of Zeno. 

Greek food was an exotic indulgence for a generation of Australians including Your Humble Correspondent. You see, Australia was home to a swarm of Greek immigrants post-WW II and Melbourne at one time luxuriated in the title of the second-largest Greek city on the planet. A town was not worthy of incorporation if it did not boast a Cafe Parthenon or a fish-and-chip shop run by a Greek family. There were Hellenic soccer clubs when the rest of us played Rugby, and we all reveled in Zorba dancing on warm nights (apparently, this was possibly only Your Humble Servant ...).

Then, sadly, our mothers thought to take on the challenge of replicating Greek food in the home, emboldened no doubt by Margaret Fulton cookbooks and the relative simplicity of it all. Moussaka, Souvlaki, and the very occasional spanikopita. Feta spread its incendiary way in refrigerators all across the country, and "stuffed" olives popped up in salads with alarming frequency. Needless to say, our fathers were none too happy in a meat-and-three-veg huffy way (and most often, hungry).

Which is apropos of nothing really except that Your Humble Correspondent has a very occasional hankering for a Greek meal, and decided to visit Milieu in Higashi-Azabu with The Dandy on a recent warm Saturday evening. They had thoughtfully translated the menu into English for us, so that the Greek Salad had become Greek Salad and Moussaka had been rendered as, well, Moussaka.

The fare is actually very good, and the wine equally so. Greek grape varietals are experiencing somewhat of a boom, and are remarkably affordable. Affordable enough, in fact, to indulge in more than one bottle. Once we had established that we all - surprisingly - spoke Japanese, the service was warm and friendly. The decor is searingly dull, and could benefit from a touch of colour and the occasional plastic flower. Which takes nothing away from the exotic almost frivolous notion of Greek food in Tokyo, and the slight feeling of dalliance one experiences forking into a moist moussaka.

Visit Milieu with interesting and decorous friends, and in these warmer times sit outside on the balcony to sip your ouzo. And if you're up for it, a little Zorba ... 

Milieu: 2-23-12 Higashiazabu, Minato-ku, t: 03-3568-7850
Rating: Food: 7/10; Anetos-ness: 7/10; Service: 7/10; Ambiance:6/10; Price-Performance: 8/10
Total: 35/50 (3 Forks)
Reservations: On the website

Mari e Monte - Now we're talking!

There was a time, Gentle Reader, when Your Humble Correspondent would not darken the doors of this establishment. It was during the reign of the previous proprietor, after a ramen and pasta collaboration debacle. These sort of abominations are what caused the downfall of the Roman Empire, as they couldn't hear the footfall of the approaching barbarians over the screams and howls of disgruntled plebeians. A knock at the door, opened to a slothering Hun, and then rapacious slaughter.

Better times now, and a very pleasant trattoria graces inner Tokyo once again. So it was, then, that Your Humble Correspondent ventured there with The Once and Future Blonde (a known bevitrice) and two long-time fellow noshers: the dear gentleman had recently taken a position with an Italian brand and a celebration seemed entirely in order.

Mari e Monti offers dishes from all over Italy, despite its proprietors hailing from Puglia. Many crowd favorites for sure - all well-executed - and they exhibit a pleasant willingness to tweak. It almost feels like an Italian take on (delicious) comfort food. Ego is set aside, and there is a very pleasing focus on technique and presentation.

One hesitates to criticize, but some adventure and innovation - which will surely come - might be welcome. Service is fast and pleasant, and there are satisfyingly pleasant breaks between courses that encourage dialogue and copious consumption of bevande. 

The wine list here is resolutely Italian, with some brave selections and many famous DOC and DOCG represented. There are bottles priced for ostentatious consumption by the lords of the financial universe, and others more suited to the pockets of the impecunious. Such as Your Humble Correspondent ...

Limoncello has become a mandatory end to dinners in Tokyo, and Cossimo makes gallons of it out the back. And then brings it to the front. Over-indulgence, Gentle Reader, is a requirement.

Mari e Monti is a place to enjoy time with friends, and the conviviality of Cossimo and Luca as Mine Hosts. It is unfailingly cheerful and always entertaining. Make it your go-to Italian. And invite me ...

Mari e Monti: Nishi-Azabu 4-1-10, Conforia Bldg Nishi-Azabu, 2F t: 03-6418-707 [Closed Sundays]

Rating: Food: 8/10; Mario-less-ness: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance:7/10; Price-Performance: 8/10

Total: 39/50 (3 Forks)

Reservations: https://www.mariemonti.jp/reservation

Aile Blanche - Oow La la!

There are times, Gentle Reader, when one wonders whether the life of a roving vagabond is the best option one might adopt. Throwing caution to the winds, looking for serendipity rather than stability, and letting the Universe roll its dice with vibrant abandon. The best nostrum for these epigrammatic moments is a good French meal.

So it was that Your Humble Correspondent headed to Aile Blanche with The Once and Future Blonde and The Professor. The decor is rather stark, as if Mine Host was forcing one to focus only on the food. While the goal is to evoke a quiet room in the 16th Arrondissement with a view to the Eiffel Tower, it feels more like a passe gentile fin de siecle apartment where the disgraced Tante Eloise made her abode.

The food, on the other hand, is spectacular.

The specialty is foie gras, straight from the farm of Mr. Jean Daniel Castaing in Saint-Sever, Nouvelle Acquitaine. The legend of this 90-something year old company is that each duck is fed corn from the hand of the proprietor, one by one. M. Castaing must get very little sleep, and have palms of steel. But the foie gras is something very special indeed.

One chooses, Gentle Reader, from one of four set "courses" ranging from Y8,000 to Y20,000. Each of course includes the foie Gras. Your Humble Correspondent went low in this case, as is his wont. Conspicuous consumption is so tacky, isn't it? Better a light purse than light ambition, don't you think?

The entree of fish was delicately put together, despite the slightly charred skin on the underside, and swam in a fragrant butter sauce that showed mastery. The light chilled soup was magnificent, exhibiting a subtle balance of flavors that didn't suffer from a lower temperature and which exploded in the mouth. The dessert was less memorable, but that was likely an effect of wine rather than whine.

Chef Ogawa brings his pernickety and fastidious approach to the wine selection as well - the wine is kept a constant temperature during transport, and then stored at an agreeable temperature at a constant humidity of 70% scented and deodorized by bamboo charcoal. The selection is elegant and well considered, and a matching flight is available.

Service at Aile Blanche is attentive and cheerful, once they get over their fear of English. This venue is probably best enjoyed with choosier and generous friends, although it would also suit for a celebration of a romantic nature.

And don't mind the odd-looking garcon flittering about ... I actually bring most dishes to the table.

Pip Pip!

Aile Blanche: Patio Azabu Juban, 2-8-10 Azabu Juban, Minato; t: 03-5439-4338

Rating: Food: 8/10; 16th-ness: 7/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance:7/10; Price-Performance: 7/10

Total: 37/50 (3 Forks)

Reservations: www.tablecheck.com/ja/shops/aileblanche/reserve