L’Amphore

25 Nov 2006 (L'Amphore has moved since this post)

Sometimes you just have to trust the experts when you’re looking for a restaurant, so in this case I left the choice of a new venue within walking distance to the redoubtable Ms Motonaga. [Note to self: do this more often!] This place is a stunner and gets 4 Terry forks. Our visit was only for lunch, but I’m back there on the evening of 4 December with the advertising guy to give it the real once over.

I was there with the Research Guy and a LOHAS geek, for a gentle discussion about something that wasn’t headed in the right direction. We needed to soften up the Geek, and L’Amphore was exactly the right venue.We left the menu up to the chef (a young man who fellow foodies should follow!), and the kitchen knew they were in for a fight when I asked about the preparation details for the Boudin...which was perfect and surprisingly light. Each course that followed was delicate yet brilliantly turned out, and there was more than enough to satisy the two portly chaps as well as the Geek. Unfortunately, this was a lunch gig so we didn’t sample the wine list but it looks marvellously well balanced and I’m sure we’ll be giving it a hiding in the near future.

Choose L’Amphore (seats 16-20) for a sophisticated and elegant luncheon or dinner, but don’t tell your work buddies - this place is too good for them. Just keep it among us!

Rating: Food: 8/10; Wine (list): 7/10; Service: 8/10; Ambience: 8/10; Price: 7/10. Total 38/50 (4 Forks from Terry!).

More than a Glass @ Cheers!

13 Oct 2006

All of us have refuges (and some of us, refugees!) where we return every now and again for a break from the shivering masses that press in upon us every day. For me, Cheers! in Shibuya is one of those places [Map is here.]

Back in Tokyo after 3 weeks in the USA - where food is more often a pastime than a passion - I decided to take a company visitor here on my first night back in town. Struggling through the transport system or battling for a table in the warrens of inner Tokyo was not on my agenda!
The service at Cheers! (be careful - downstairs is a shot bar by the same name, where the menu is not quite the same) is cheerful and well-intentioned, and while the restaurant is small it never fails to delight me.

The Visitor and I were delighted with the Amuse, some home-cured bacon served with the rind and thick enough to need a knife. After my time in the US, where bacon more often resembles cardboard than flavour, this was a real treat. Succulent, full of flavor, and cured to perfection!

We went on to a Bavarois de poivron rouge (V) and a Pate de Campagne (T) for entrees. The Bavarois was brillinatly presented, sweet and superbly accented by the Crab Mousse that accompanied. For my part, the pate was a celebration of the chef’s art with just enough texture to remember the ingredients (lamb?). My impression was that this was handmade, rather than atomized through a food processor, and it did my little heart good to remember all those times in the kitchen struggling to make sense of the predilection of master chefs towards two-handed knife-wielding.

By this stage, the Visitor was under my spell and he joined me in a Cuisse de poulet roti parfume thym. The poor little chicken had travelled all the way from Brest to join us, so we decided to celebrate its arrival with a 2004 Chablis Premier Cru Jean-Claude Besson. After the abomination that presents as cheap Californian chardonnay (not to suggest that there aren’t some great American whites, which fact I am proud testimony to!), this delicate Chablis was the perfect companion to both the food and the conversation.The chicken was well presented and very good, although I can’t help thinking it would have been better as a Confit to take advantage of the delicate balance of flesh and fat.

We finished with some cheese (Mimoret and Chareuse) that was a perfect companion to what remained of the Chablis.

Cheers! also has a bar for a glass of wine and some nibbles pre-theatre, and take my advice by cultivating the sommelier’s excellent knowledge of European wine by sampling some great terroirs at reasonable prices. This little haven is best suited to a dinner for 2, transporting you out of the cacphony of Shibuya into a small yet elegant parlour in the suburbs of Paris. My mid-West friend and I spent less than Y20,000 of someone else’s money (for which we are obviously grateful!).

Ratings: Food: 7/10; Wine: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambience: 7/10; Price: 8/10. Total: 38/50 (3 Forks)
Wine Bar Cheers:Dogenzaka 1-7-9 Y-Place 2F ShibuyaTel: 03-3461-612317:30 - 3:00 except Sundays

A Epice of Pleasure

20 Sep 2006

My friend Arthur (may his name be praised for generations!) once did me the honor of inviting me to the delightful Epices Kaneko, tucked away in the back streets of Azabu. I was sufficiently impressed to schedule a return visit with a friend to check on my first impressions of this sweet little refuge of slow food with fast service.

You’ll find it a little difficult to get to the front door (MAP), but stick to the task and you’ll be well rewarded. Featuring produce from Yamaguchi Prefecture, Epices Kaneko is the sort of place for a quiet conversation or even a long, lingering one! It’s a little like visiting a friend’s house, knowing that there’s a series of treats available but harboring a feeling of guilt that you should be thinking about the friend not the food.

There are 3 menu options - a light version (don’t ask me what it’s like...couldn’t bear the thought!), a Starter+Main+Dessert choice @ Y4500, and the full course @ Y6000. My friend and I decided that discretion is the better part of valor and chose the middle ground.

The Foie Gras starter (that’s entree for all civilized people!) was delightful, touched with a light fruit sauce and presented well on the plate. The organic vegetables especially chosen from the cornucopia of Yamaguchi’s harvest matched the centrepiece well. Considering the price, this is a generous serve of decadence that matched the Chablis Premier Cru we chose to lubricate the conversation.

My Pumpkin Soup was a little better than what you’d expect, and I’m still wrestling with the chef for the recipe. It somehow floats across the palate, intriguing and stimulating as it melts even the most demanding gourmand.

We chose the Roast Duck for our main course - do yourself a favor and try this delicacy. The food is obviously prepared by a chef with a passion for food (may his name be praised for generations!), and the salt-rubbed duck delights from first taste to final...lingering...mouthful. A glass of a light Langue d’Oc pinot added liquid fire to the dish, as well as the conversation.

We decided not to have the dessert but opted for cheese (we chose Camembert and Mimoret).

Epices Kaneko (I can’t find a website) has a fistful of regular customers who keep this place a bit of a secret. You should become one of them! I’d also highly recommend Epices Kaneko for a small function or memorable dinner gathering for up to 30 people. The Dark Side Club will be visiting in October 2006.

Rating: Food: 8/10; Wine: 7/10; Service: 8/10; Ambience: 7/10; Price: 8/10. Total: 38/50 (4 Forks)
Epices de Kaneko レストラン　エピスカネコ3-23-14 Nichi Azabu 東京都港区西麻布3-23-14　03-3478-7276Closed on Mondays

Basque-ing in the Atmosphere

17 Sep 2006

In the mood for some Basque and/or French provincial food? With so many establishments focusing on “French” food - meaning Parisian - in Tokyo, there are times when you’d think this is a Mission Impossible. But fear not! Try La pitchouli de Lou lou.

I ventured out to this charming little spot with a friend (The Ad Guy) known for enjoying the finer things in life. The restaurant doesn’t open until 7:00 p.m., but I’d book if I were you as it enjoyed a brisk turnover of tables and eye candy. It was sometimes difficult to keep my companion’s attention on the food and the conversation. Being our first visit, we left the menu up to the “chef”.

We tried the Home-Made Country-Style Pate (自家製田舎風パテ), followed by a Green Salad featuring organic vegetables from Yamanashi Prefecture (山梨県有機野菜のグリーン・サラダ). At this point, a note on the wine: while the selection is small and the prices very reasonable, don’t go looking for famous chateau. The point of La pitchouli de Lou lou is to enjoy the food and the company! You can go for glasses or bottles (huh! Not me...)

The next dish was Loligo Frit (小ヤリイカのフリッツ), a provincial squid fritte dish delicious with salt and the Chablis. This was followed by the piece-de-resistance, Homemade Sausage (自家製ソーセージのロースト). There wasn’t enough of this for two known trenchermen, and I ended up threatening the Ad Guy with a fork to get the last piece.

But wait...the home-made Stewed Salted Pork Back Ribs served Crumby Baked (sic!) (自家製塩漬け豚バラ肉煮込みのパン粉焼き). This is heavenly if you like Iberico Pork like I do, served country style celebrating flavor rather than presentation! Again, a battle for the last piece and I was beginning to regret offering to share all the dishes. The red wine, served in appropriate quantities (2 bottles), seemed to compliment the pork delightfully.

In summary, a good place for a reasonable two or three hours of fine food, good wine, and better company. Take a friend rather than a lover, and ask for the sausage!

Rating: Food: 7/10; Wine: 6/10; Ambience: 7/10; Service: 8/10; Price: 8/10. Total: 36/50 (3 Forks)
La Pitchouli de Lou lou (Don’t blame me for the spelling!)
Ebisu 2-23-3. Open 7pm-3am. Closed Mondays. Tel: 3440-5858 Map Japanese Website

Especially Esperia

9 Aug 2006

Riddle me this - if you’re a Chevalier de Fromage, and just received your award, what would be the first thing you’d do? Right...you’d race back to your kitchen, hastily throw on an apron, and set to making a dreamy cheese sauce for a salad. Obviously.

This is the unlikely story behind the Kakumei Salad at Esperia in Nishi Azabu. Just how revolutionary the salad might be, I’ll leave to your imagination but this is a restaurant you really should try to visit if you’re interested in first class Northern Italian cooking...and cheese.

In the last few days, I’ve enjoyed the company of some sparkling dinner companions. That’s a joy, and part of why I enjoy this Tokyo life so much. But at Esperia, all we were talking about was the food. For the first time, I asked for the chef’s omakase cheese menu as did 3 of my companions. Wine was plentiful and pleasurable. But the food - for someone just back from Northern Italy, who was expecting to be just a little disappointed by Italian cuisine in Japan, was an immediate trip back to Tarvanelle and the delights of Tuscany.

Food: 8/10, Wine 7/10, Ambience: 7/10, Service: 8/10, Price 7/10Overall: 37/50 (3 Forks)
Esperia: 03-5485-1771. Nishi-Azabu 4-11-25.