Monthly Archive: June 2006 [41]
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June 30, 2006
Maison Cache-Cache(メゾン カシュカシュ)
３６００円のディナーコースにて。本日の前菜：鴨のパテ。
Today's appetizer: duck Pate.
アナゴのもち米とワイルドライス包み焼き、カレー風味のソース。
プラチナポークコンフィのロースト。
Sticky rice and wild rice wrapped in anago(eel), curry sauce.
(My choice)Roasted pork confit.
本日のデザート：パイナップルのクレームダンジュ。
キルシュアイスクリームのクレープ、温かい蜂蜜風味のアメリカンチェリー。
(My choice)Pineapple creme d'anjou.
Crepe with kirsch ice-cream and warm honeyed American cherry.
I was expecting a tiny bistro, but this place turned out to be quite spacious and comfortable, the atmosphere was lovely too. As my friend pointed out, most of the customers were girls. Dinner course is only 3600yen, so cheap!
Maison Cache-Cache
Comments(5) [ french food | 四ツ谷 ]
June 29, 2006
Toshi Yoroizuka
クロスレビューはやっこさんのブログへ。
Old entries are here, here, here and here.
Peach compote, with honey ice-cream and blueberry sauce. This is heaven(*o*). The peach was simmered in red wine, bottom layer was peach ice-cream with a mousse texture, even the cookie was delicious.
The chef went on a TV competition show and he made the luxurious version of this but he lost to the other guy...quite a surprise cos I thought this one was definitely higher standard. Anyway, due to his increasing publicity, his tiny dessert eat-in space always has a long waiting line which kinda puts me off. Luckily my friend, who is a BIG fan of this place, didn't mind going with me so we went there after lunch. Both of us were expecting a line and prepared to wait, but there was no one waiting!! So happy!! Happier than winning a lottery!! (^^;;) Even happier still, after we enjoyed our desserts rather speechlessly, the chef himself came out and gave us free cherries!! He even talked with us for a while and he told us that he was going on another TV program where he will have to make a jumbo-size souffle in a camp and he is going to pick the berries from a field himself(^^;;).
Toshi Mandel Krone. An almond cream pie to take away, so delicious as well!
toshi yoroizuka
Comments(8) [ cakes and sweets | 渋谷・恵比寿・代官山 ]
Cascina Canamilla(カシーナ・カナミッラ＠白金台)
クロスレビューはやっこさんのブログへ。
Peach Bellini. Appetizer: Kidney beans soup, cauliflower and beans(oily and sour), marinated rockfish(again oily and sour), fried hummus chip(quite good), ham, potato and cod paste with mayonnaise.
Two of us ordered two different pasta and the waitor himself suggested us to share and offered to divide for us. Of course we said yes and were grateful for the good service, though later we discovered they charged 10% service even during lunch time...so the pictures are both half portion. Pansoti with spinage, ricotta cheese and ham stuffing, walnut and butter sauce. The pasta skin is very nice, soft but sticky texture. Pappardelle with minced horse meat in red wine sauce. Tasted like beef to me(^^;;). With coffee included, about 3600yen per person...ouch. Well, I knew it was quite a poshy place. Even on a weekday afternoon, boiling hot temperature, it was packed with people, mostly girls, some even sat outside in the terrace...gosh. My friend overheard the two guys sitting next to us and one of them was a chef from a French restaurant...and my friend said they were listening to us when we talked about which restaurant is great which restaurant sucks...(^^;;)
Cascina Canamilla
Comments(9) [ italian food | 白金・三田 ]
June 28, 2006
レストラン モモ(Restaurant Momo)
A eat-with-chopstick Japanese-French fusion restaurant, where most of the customers are old ladies probably living nearby. We tried the 10 course dinner, 5500yen. Full written menu was not availbale and my memory is failing me so...just what I can still remember.
1: Fish(forgot what) with radish(I think).
2. Clockwise from top left: some fish rillette, marinated scallop, wasabi mousse, chicken liver, salmon, grilled butter turban shell.
3. Grilled scallop.
4. Cold white asparagus soup(I think...).
5. Petit foie gras rice bowl with brown rice. Was very happy when it came out but the foie gras was just so-so.
6. Onion flan. At first I thought: soup again? But it is like chawanmushi, nice but a bit salty and quite chinese-tasting. Wanted rice from here.
7. Sea bass, again quite salty, would be nice with rice.
8. Fruit tomato salad. Salad came out on the 8th course....the tomato was very sweet. Didn't want rice anymore.
9. Roasted duck, sauce tasted like soy sauce. The aubergine roll with ratatouille at the back was cute.
10. Pear tart, melon sorbet, creme brulee, so-so.
Restaurant Momo
Comments(4) [ french food | 本郷・根津・湯島・上野 ]
June 27, 2006
DADA CAFE
DADAのしっかりプリン、ごまのブランマンジェ、ライチと木苺のサイダー。
Caramel pudding and sesame seed blanc manger are alright, but lychee and raspberry cider is very good! The jelly on top is lychee and liqueur flavour, so yummy. An old-style Japanese house converted cafe. Can check out the interior here and here. The atmosphere is relaxing, and if you get to sit on the sofa you wouldn't want to get up for hours, but unfortunately when I went there was some noisy construction work going on right in front of the cafe...well I didn't have hours anyway. ^^;;
Comments(2) [ cakes and sweets | 代々木・新宿・新大久保 ]
でっかい餃子曽さんの店
焼き餃子、５５０円。
The skin is thick but very chewy and nice! Big and cheap too!
でっかい餃子曽さんの店
Buena Tokyo Pintxo Cafe & Dining
ピンチョスとタコスのランチセット、８００円。Pintxos and Tacos lunch. Usually I won't go to this kind of large capacity cafe dining, but my friend took me and the food turned out to be surprisingly good.
June 26, 2006
コモール タタ(Kommol tata)
ビキニ（チョコアイス、ワッフル、クッキークランチ、ナッツ、チョコソース）、４５０円。
Bikini - chocolate ice-cream, waffle, cookie crunch, nuts, chocolate sauce. A new coldstone ice-cream shop where they chop and mix the ingredients on a cold marble stone. It is not bad, but not sure the show of chopping and mixing does anything to the taste...
Comments(6) [ cakes and sweets | 池袋 ]
June 25, 2006
龍神
ねりごまつけめん（太麺）、７５０円。Ramen with spicy sesame seed soup. The noodles are very nice, thick, dark, wheaty and chewy, I like!
龍神
Comments(0) [ 大山・板橋 ]
June 22, 2006
Hommage(オマージュ)
ジャガイモと白身魚、トマトソース。
Cream made from potato and fish, with tomato sauce.
ホワイトアスパラの冷製スープ、ズッキーニのピュレ、松の実。
フォアグラと仔うさぎのテリーヌ、イチジクと杏、ビネガーであえた野生アスパラ。
Cold white asparagus soup, with zucchini puree and pine nuts.
Terrine of foie gras and hare, semi-dried fig and apricot on the bottom, asparagi selvatici(wild asparagus) with vinegar on top.
真鯛のポワレ、下にナスのピュレ、パルサミコとピスタチオのオイル、プチトマト。
仔羊のロースト、鶏の出汁にバターとアンチョビで仕上げたソース。
Pan-fried bream, with aubergine puree at the bottom, balsamico vinegar and pistachio oil, petit tomato.
Roasted lamb, sauce made from chicken stock, butter and anchovy.
ローストアーモンドのムース、グレープフルーツとアボカドのソルベ。
チャイのムース、ジンジャー風味のミルク。
Dessert: roasted almond mousse, grapefruit and avocado sorbet.
Petit fours: Chai mousse and Ginger milk, also fresh chocolate(not in pictures).
Everything is included in the lunch course, 3990yen. Other than the dessert which is a bit boring, every dish is delicious, especially the fish dish with its appetite-arousing sauce.
Hommage
Comments(5) [ my favourites | french food | 浅草 ]
亀十
どらやき（白あん、黒あん）、きんつば。The dorayaki are so good! Love the skin. I warmed it a little bit with microwave and the wonderfully sweet egg flavour was enhanced. Kintsuba is baked sweet bean paste with a coating of flour and water. I have never seen it before so I was all tourist-mode and taking pictures of the ojisan making it, but apparently it is just a common traditional sweet.
Comments(5) [ japanese sweets | 浅草 ]
June 21, 2006
一栄
三色そば（ダッタン、ゆず、田舎）、９５０円。
3 different kinds of soba, the brown one is quite bitter, supposed to be healthy but don't think I can eat one whole portion of that. The middle is yuzu orange, nice fruity fragrance. The purplish one is "country buckwheat", love its natural sweet taste.
一栄
Comments(5) [ 池袋 ]
June 20, 2006
大勝軒＠東池袋
中華そば、６３０円。I read scary stories about how this place is no.1 long-queue ramen shop in Japan, so even I have been curious but gosh no way I am going to wait for hours(literally) for a bowl of ramen. But I followed this person's advice and went just before the shop closed at 3pm(this place doesn't open for dinner) on a weekday, and we only waited for about 10 minutes. I had the basic ramen, my friend had the tsuke-men, where the soup and ramen are separated. Somehow the tsuke-men's soup is sweeter. Both are nice. While I never expected myself to understand the hype about this place, my curiosity is satisfied.
大勝軒
Comments(5) [ 池袋 ]
June 18, 2006
Alla Cucina Del Sole
サンダニエッレの生ハム 手切りで。ヤリイカとボタン海老のセモリナ粉揚げ。
Prosciutto. Calamari and prawn fritter.
温野菜のにんにくアンチョビソース。花ズッキーニの詰め物、山うど、ひげ付ヤングコーンのフリット。
Vegetables in garlic and anchovy sauce. Stuffed Zucchini blossoms( with mozzarella cheese), mountain udo(asparagus-like vegetable), and young corn fritter. Both are very good!
野菜のラグーとモツァレラあえタリオリーニ、バジリコ風味。ストロッツアプレティ、白胡麻と季節野菜、ゴルゴンゾーラのクリームソース。
Tagliolini with vegetable ragu and mozzarella. Strozzapretti with white sesame and vegetables in gorgonzola cream sauce. The hand-made strozzapretti has nice chewy texture which I like, but the white sesame is a bit too heavy, and not much of gorgonzola taste.
カボチャとリコッタを詰めたトルテローニ、生トマトとクリームのソース。穀物、豆、野菜たっぷりのリゾット。ふっこの塩焼き。Tortelloni stuffed with pumpkin and ricotta cheese, fresh tomato cream sauce. Legumi risotto. Grilled sea bass.
デザートの盛り合わせ、チョコレートティラミス、ミルクアイス、バナナパンナコッタなど。 Chocolate tiramisu, milk ice-cream, pudding, banana panna cotta(in a glass) etc. Shared between 5 people, including wine, about 8000yen each.
Alla Cucina Del Sole
Comments(2) [ italian food | 代々木・新宿・新大久保 ]
June 16, 2006
Lauburu (ローブリュー)
田舎風パテ（写真は半分）。
A country-style French restaurant specialised in pork. Reviews on the internet are always full of gasps on how huge how massive the portions are, so I was really looking forward to get totally stuffed. 2 of us decided to share just one appetizer and two main courses, and desserts later.
Appetizer: country-style pate. The picture is half portion. To be honest I was a bit shocked how thin it was...I needn't to have worried at all, I could easily finish one portion myself. Anyway, it was good, liver and meat and fat all in good balance. Unfortunately the baguette they served was unbelievably hard and dry and impossible to eat...hmm. The snack was fried pork skin, didn't dare eating too much even though it was good with wine(^^;).
岩手白金豚骨付きロースのグリエ。沖豚すね肉のコンフィ。
Pork rib roast was wonderful! Very juicy and tender. It was over 3400yen, definitely not cheap, and the portion was supposed to be large, so I was a bit disappointed when it came out "normal size". The pork knuckle confit was about 2800yen, and it was just as I pictured it, very huge! But then the center bone was big, and most of the edible part was all fats with very little meat, my friend didn't want to eat the fats part so basically I had to finish it...err...I was not that full and I do like fatty pork, but meatless plain fats always get me a little sick(^^;;).
ガトーバスク、クリームブリュレ。
Gateau basque, a bit old and stale...hmm. Creme brulee is very simple but very good! With a glass of wine each, it was 6000yen per person.
Comments(4) [ french food | 神宮前・青山・広尾 ]
June 15, 2006
札幌カリーYOSHIMI
Came here before and wasn't impressed at all. Second time round, the soup is still so thin and tasteless(maybe it is meant to be like that...), but at least they have a cheaper 1000yen lunch including a mini soft cream. The ingredients are prawn, squid, mizuna and other grilled vegetables like pumpkin, aubergine, potato etc, which are good though.
YOSHIMI
Comments(2) [ 池袋 ]
SPIGA
It is a chain pasta shop and I only went in because other restaurants were closing for lunch. Not expecting the quality to be good, I chose the cheapest Arrabbiata(left pic), 780yen. Surprisingly it was quite good, the pasta is fresh type so sidestepping the over-cooking problem, and the tomato sauce and the fresh chilli were both good. Also went to a different branch in Nezu, and had Tagliatelle with vegetables and tomato sauce(right pic), 940yen. Not so good though...
SPIGA
Comments(2) [ 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
June 14, 2006
割烹加賀
豚角煮定食、１１００円。The pork was quite tasteless...not simmered long enough, hmm.
Comments(2) [ 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
ふらり
沖縄そばとミニラフテー丼、７５０円。 Uploading some past lunches. Okinawa soba and mini pork rice bowl. Rather bad...and the place doesn't feel clean...
Comments(5) [ 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
June 13, 2006
Restaurant hAru(ハル)
プルーンのベーコン巻き。レンズ豆とインゲン豆のサラダ、トマトのアンショワード。
The cheapest "Today's lunch" is 2500yen, every dish is prefixed except the dessert, and that day's main fish was fish. Prune and bacon roll. Lentil and kidney bean salad with tomato in anchovy sauce.
セロリのスープ（？）。黒鯛のポワレ、ローリエの風味。
I heard the waitress said celery soup, but it tasted mushroom and cheese, so I probably heard wrong. ^^;; Pan-fried kurodai, with laurier(some kind of spice).
クレームダンジュ、スパイスのスープ。Creme d'anjou in spicy soup.
Everything tasted very good! 2500yen is quite cheap for a 5 course lunch.
Restaurant hAru
Comments(4) [ my favourites | french food | 神宮前・青山・広尾 ]
California Grocery Cafe
I came here before. So I got confused, "Elegante Vita Nacora" is the name for the whole building, while "California grocery cafe" is the 1st-floor cafe space I ate in....Pancake with cinnamon apple and vanilla ice-cream. Tasted alright.
California Grocery Cafe
Comments(4) [ cakes and sweets | 渋谷・恵比寿・代官山 ]
June 12, 2006
スパ吉＠吉祥寺
ミートソース、８５０円。The spaghetti is the fresh type not the dried type, quite nice! But the meat sauce is a bit too sweet and salty. The shop is like a trendy and clean version of ramen place, and all the staff are young and lively. Nice place to have a quick cheap meal.
スパ吉
Comments(4) [ other areas in tokyo ]
L'Epicurien（レピキュリアン＠吉祥寺）
フロマージュクリュ。エゴイスト。インカント。
Cream cheese cake, with pistachio mousse and blueberry sauce inside. Chocolate bavarois, pistachio bavarois, and pear poached in red wine. Passion fruit. pistachio and cream. Everything we picked had pistachio in it! ^^;; It was eat-in, 2 of us shared 3 cakes and had tea. The cakes tasted mild and traditional somehow, but I liked them. The waitress was so friendly.
L'Epicurien
Comments(6) [ cakes and sweets ]
Bistrot du Moulin(ビストロ・デュ・ムーラン＠吉祥寺)
ランチコースは１６００円。グリーンピースのスープ。高座豚のグリエ（＋２００円）。
Went with a hk friend to hang about in kichijoji where there are many cute shops and cafes, but since I am not a big fan of cafe food, we went to this cheap and casual bistro, which is not near the hip shopping area so rather empty even during lunch time on Sunday. Lunch set was 1600yen, with green peas soup and grilled pork. The pork is kinda branded so plus 200yen, though it tasted pretty normal to me.
ガドーショコラとスフレキャラメル、ガドーフロマンジュとクレームブリュレアメリ。
Gateau chocolate and souffle caramel. Gateau fromage and creme brulee. Not a bad place for a quiet lunch if you are in that area.
Bistrot du Moulin
June 11, 2006
南欧創作的料理 ふうが屋
２０００円コース。
Even though the course is only 2000yen per person, the food is just impossible....and to think I actually brought a friend who is visiting Tokyo there(-o-;;). To save space the pics have no thumbnails.Scallop and some meat terrine. Ham and banana canape(-o-;;).
Pizza with sausage(where? oh there). Salad.
Escargot. Beancurd and prawn and tororo(soy sauce not available).
Grilled scallops(scallops must be cheap that day). Fried chicken and octopus.
Pork with miso. Potato gratin(really just ovened mashed potato). Piraf, plain fried rice with soy sauce, with a few slices of very bitter bamboo shoot and some sesame on top.
ふうが屋
June 10, 2006
よし房凛
せいろ、７５０円。小天丼、５００円。Came here before and was determined to have that mini tempura rice bowl the ojisan customer ordered...it is very good!! So good!! Mainly vegetables, also prawns, all freshly fried and light. And after devouring the rice bowl, so happy that there was still the yummy soba waiting, which was sweet in a natural buckwheaty way. Even the small pickle dish and the soba-yu(the hot water used in boiling the soba, usually they give you a pot and you pour it into the leftover soy sauce which you dipped the soba with, and drink it like a soup.) were good.
よし房凛
June 09, 2006
紀の善
抹茶ババロア。Macha bavarois. Have had this before, good as ever.
Comments(2) [ japanese sweets | 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
Ristorante Stefano (リストランテ ステファノ)
野菜のロールパイ、ジャガイモのトリテッリ、トマトソース、チェリータルトといちごのアイス、ランチコースで１７００円。Vegetable pie, Potato tortelli in tomato sauce, cherry tart and strawberry ice-cream. The mashed potato is stuffed inside the tortelli, the tomato sauce is quite good. Have come here before. I think this place is more about the atmosphere than the quality of food, yet this time it was busy lunch hour and very crowded so not as comfortable as last time.
Ristorante Stefano
Comments(6) [ italian food | 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
June 08, 2006
もくち 青山店
前菜。岩がき。 Appetizer. Oyster.
お造り（４人前）。厚揚げ。Sashimi for 4. Fried tofu.
鳥の唐揚げ黒酢ソース。桜えびかき揚げ。
Fried chicken with black vinegar sauce, this is very good! Fried sakura shrimp.
黒はんぺん焼き。焼アボカド。いぐさ青汁鍋（１人前）。Fish pancake. Grilled avocado with dried tomato. Hotpot with pork, mizuna and tofu.
Overall the food is very basic izakaya food, not bad but a bit mediocre for the price. 4 people shared, each has 2-3 drinks, about 5000yen each.
もくち
Comments(3) [ japanese food | 神宮前・青山・広尾 ]
海鮮丼つきぢ神楽
お好みの３種：ウニ、マグロ、穴子、１２５０円。Uni, tuna and anago. Quite good. The uni is very sweet though only a little.
海鮮丼つきぢ神楽
Comments(3) [ 池袋 ]
June 07, 2006
丸亀製麺
ピリ辛ぶっかけうどん、３３０円。Udon with chilli. Very cheap!!
Comments(3) [ 池袋 ]
茶房はん亭
豚の竜田と温野菜の岩海苔ソース、１２００円。デザートに豆かんが付く。Fried pork and vegetables with seaweed sauce. Dessert came with the lunch set. The pork was good but...it tasted so chinese!! The name of the dish sounded so Japanese and this place is a casual spin-off of a super expensive Japanese restaurant so I totally expected traditional Japanese food.
茶房はん亭
June 06, 2006
餃子の店 おけい
餃子、タンメン、１１３４円。The gyoza here is supposed to be famous but the one I had was no good- the skin was too soggy. The noodles itself was good, but the soup too thin...hmm.
Comments(0) [ 飯田橋・神楽坂 ]
June 05, 2006
Olivier(オリヴィエ＠学芸大学)
鮪・林檎のタルタル仕立て ウズラの卵添え、空豆の冷製スープとともに。 Tuna and apple Tartare, with quail egg and cold horse bean soup.
築地よりの鮮魚 フレッシュトマトとアサリ、ニースオリーブとハーブのソース。グレープフルーツとヴェルヴェンヌのグラニテ。
Pan-fried fish with fresh tomato, clam, Nice olive and herb sauce. Grapefruit and Verveine granite.
フランス ヴァンデ産マグレ鴨のロースト、南仏赤ワインとイベリコ豚のチョリソーのソース。春のデザート。
Roasted duck, red wine and Iberico pork chorizo sauce. The dessert is some kind of gratin...ingredient unknown(^^;;) Overall was not bad, characteristically strong herb seasoning, I liked the fish but my friend thought it was a failed attempt of Fish in Acqua Pazza, I thought the duck was a bit hard but my friends said theirs were alright.
Olivier
June 04, 2006
Aux Delices de Hongo (オ・デリス・ド・本郷)
クロスレビューはやっこさんのブログへ。
Have come here before and had an amazing meal. This time is also arranged by the same friend who loves this place so much that I think he wants to live upstairs of the kitchen(^^;;).
Cold green pea soup, ham gougere. The 3 drops on top are mint oil.
The highlight of today's menu - tomato prepared in 4 different ways(confit, sorbet, jelly and simple small cut), with mascarpone cheese at the bottom and zuwai crab. This is absolutely delicious!! Each spoon is a whole different experience from the last when you try different combination! No wonder my friend had it 3 times!!
Pan-fried Alfonsino, in basil sauce. Top with sakura shrimp and zucchini blossoms fritter, bottom with ratatouille. The wonderful smell and the multi-flavours kept my senses so busy that I was unable to talk - actually conversation was dead for a few times during the meal because everyone was too concentrated on eating. ^^;;
Grilled chicken, paprika sauce. The natural sweetness of the sauce comes from vegetables, and the side vegetables are quite unique.
The pudding, my god, is a mind-blowing treat! Rich and smooth and creamy egg pudding, sided with liquer-flavoured whipped-cream, and fruits like lychee, cherry, pineapple, orange...
The champagne , the white and the red were all good that I was so dead-happy full and drunk that I collapsed to bed once I hit home and was unconscious for 14 hours straight...^^;;
Aux Delices de Hongo
Comments(7) [ my favourites | french food | 本郷・根津・湯島・上野 ]
June 03, 2006
Apres-midi grand-cru
Linguine with uni in cream sauce. Hmm, it is okay. Too late I realised I ordered the same Fondant chocolat before...damn. ^^;; Lunch was about 1600yen. Taste is just okay but a nice cafe space to relax...except that everyone was smoking...
アプレミディ・グラン・クリュ
VIRON
Summer vegetables(The most delicious sandwich on earth!). Ham, comte cheese and butter, simple but very good too.
Comments(8) [ bakeries ]
June 02, 2006
La Grappe(ラ・グラップ)
３９９０円のディナーコースで。アミューズ：ブータンノワールとグージェル。
Pork blood sausage and cheese puff, both are hot and very good.
人参のムースとコンソメジュレ うに添え。
うずら肉のグリエと筍のブレゼマディラワインソース。
Carrot mousse and consomme jelly and sea urchin. Have had similar thing in other restaurants but still can't resist ordering it. It is nice~.
Grilled quail and bamboo shoot in madeira wine sauce. The sauce was too salty... My friend ordered the fish and apparently it was fantastic....hmm, just unlucky?
自家製ケーキの盛り合わせ：パッションフルーツのムース、バニラアイス、バナナタルト。
Passion fruit mousse, banana tart and vanilla ice-cream. Not bad. Dinner course, with a glass of wine, about 5000yen.
La Grappe
Comments(6) [ french food | 麻布・六本木・赤坂 ]
よし房凛
田舎蕎麦、７５０円。 Good, good. Though the mini tempura rice bowl an ojisan was having looked much more tempting...am going back for that!
よし房凛
June 01, 2006
饂飩くろさわ
黒豚カレー南蛮。京風煮込みうどん。
Pork curry udon. Kyoto-style hotpot udon. Both are very very good!! Especially the curry udon, the soup is not too thick, not too heavy, and has nice spice flavour. The pork is soft. The kyoto-style is milder but the soup is also delicious on its own.
饂飩くろさわ
Comments(7) [ good cheap eats | 麻布・六本木・赤坂 ]
みつ豆ホール 舟和
フルーツクリームあんみつ、１０５０円。It is alright. I have had really good ones so...
舟和
