Monthly Archive: October 2007 [11]
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October 29, 2007
自然食ビュッフェ 大地の贈り物
Lunch buffet!
Fried chicken and simmered pork belly.
Aubergine tempura, simmered pumpkin, fried oysters.
Sweet egg roll, lotus and mentaiko salad, sweet potato tempura, cabbage roll, meat balls, harusame(vermicelli) salad and chimaki.
Rice with ume(sour plum) and jako(dried little fish) in it.
Nikujaga, fried tofu, grilled anko fish and mango cream bun.
Kanten and fruits. Homemade warabi mochi.
From the second visit. All veggy side dishes. 5-grain rice.
Kinoko mushroom cream stew. Salmon and Sensai(green veggy) rice. Lots of salad.
Steamed organic vegetables. Mitarashi dango and caramel pudding.
The food is nothing fantastic but okay quality, cooked in Japanese style and has a large variety of options. The restaurant's name says "Natural food" so at first I thought it was organic food + healthy cooking but I think only the steamed veggy are organic. Also there are quite a few deep-fried things, and the cooked vegetables are all quite sweet(as in being cooked in sugar), so I guess it is not exactly that strict-healthy. Still you get to eat a lot of vegetables. The staff will shout whenever they bring something new from the kitchen, which is quite often thankfully. Original price for an adult with a time limit of 90mins is 1800yen, but I printed out the coupons from here and it became 1500yen.
大地の贈り物 (Daichi no Okurimono)
Add: 4F, 1-20-11 Ueno, Taito-ku
Tel: 03-3836-2640
October 25, 2007
Maison du Châtaigne (メゾン・デュ・シャテーニュ)
ホタテ貝とラタトゥイユのカソレット。 仔羊ジゴのロースト。
Scallop and ratatouille cassolette. Roasted baby lamb shoulder meat.
ラタトゥイユとリエット。豚ホホ肉のコンフィ。
Ratatouille and rillette. Pork cheek confit. Gateau chocolate.
ラタトゥイユ。 豚カタロース肉のロティ ローズマリー風味。
Ratatouille. Pork loin roti with rosemary.
生ハムと高原トマト、インゲンのサラダ。 牛バヴェット（ハラミ）のソテー 黒ビールのソース。
Prosciutto, tomato and kidney bean salad. Beef bavette saute in black beer sauce.
From four lunch visits. 1600yen lunch includes appetizer, main, bread and coffee.
First time I went, the scallop and the lamb were so wonderful that I went back again taking a friend for a weekend lunch. However the second time was disappointing - the pork confit was no good and the chocolate cake was simply bad. Wanting to know if the second visit was just bad luck, I went back the third time, and had the pork loin roti which was very good!! Why?! Why?! Not giving up and went back the fourth time: the beef bavette was hard and impossible to chew...so the quality fluctuates!! The scallop appetizer was delicious and other appetizers were pretty basic salad/ratatouille that don't go wrong so they are alright. The grilled vegetables on the side of the main dish are always nice too.
This restaurant is always completely empty at lunch time....basically it is just the chef, the waiter who is a little too attentive cos he has nothing else to do, and us/me. I was so glad to see other customer one time - the girl eating by herself - that I took a picture of her. ^^;;;; The bland interior, the claustrophobic underground space with no windows, and the complete silence make the atmosphere very depressing. ^^;;; Maybe it is more lively at night? Afterall the location is pretty local and not many offices nearby.
Lunch menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.
Maison du Châtaigne
Add: B1, 2-14-10 Nezu, Bunkyo-ku.
Tel: 03-3827-2503
Comments(4) [ french food | 本郷・根津・湯島・上野 ]
October 24, 2007
Fontana (フォンターナ)
From the 1250yen lunch which includes self-service salad bar, bread, soup, mini pasta, main dish and coffee. Pasta is pork, tomato and mizuna spaghetti.
For main dish I had Itoyori(fish) wrapped in lettuce in uni sauce. Sounds amazing but tastes pretty normal. Dessert from the self-service salad bar.
海老、ニンニクの芽、茄子のペペロンチーノ。牛ロース肉の薄切り、香味野菜とバルサミコソース。
From the same lunch course. Soup is corn potage. Little pasta is prawn, garlic and aubergine. Main dish is grilled beef with Balsamic sauce.
アサリとバジルのビアンコスパゲティ＆鶏ささ身と大葉の和風スパゲティー（梅風味）、￥１０５０。
ナスとツナのアラビアータ、￥９５０。
Half & half pasta lunch: Clam and basil spaghetti + chicken and Ooba(or Shiso) spaghetti.
Pasta lunch: Aubergine and tuna Arrabbiata.
Food is just so-so but there are always seats available even at the peak of lunch time so I ended up going back a few times. Also you can see some green from the window as it is near Ueno Park.
Fontana
Add: 1F, Hotel Park Side, Ueno 2-11-18, Taito-ku
Tel: 03-3836-5713
October 21, 2007
GALERIE CAFE LE GRAND （ガルリ・カフェ・ル・グラン）
Mont Blanc made from Japanese chestnut. Chestnut paste on top, cream in the middle, and merengue at the bottom. Very good and not too sweet overall. The house blend coffee included in the cake set(1200yen) is very nice too. Such a cozy little cafe in the middle of Ginza.
Went back again twice after having dinner in Ginza. It is opened til 23:30 so rather handy. Though they don't do cake+drink sets at night.
Cheese cake is soft and creamy. Mille-feuille is a bad choice...don't order it.
Mont Blanc again. New kind of chestnut since Oct and much richer than last time. Strawberry cake is not bad.
Drink menu(J) here.
GALERIE CAFE LE GRAND
Add: 5-10-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku
Tel: 03-3289-1550
Comments(5) [ cakes and sweets | 新橋・銀座・日本橋 ]
October 18, 2007
根津の谷
Organic restaurant that doesn't use meat, fish, egg, dairy products, white rice, white salt, white sugar...etc. Left pic is the front of the store selling organic goods.
日替定食：豆腐ハンバーグ、茎わかめときゅうりの酢のもの、切干大根煮、玄米、味噌汁、おしんこ、￥１１００。
野菜カレー、￥１０００。
Today's lunch(1100yen): Tofu hamburger, wakame and cucumber with vinegar, simmered shredded radish, genmai(brown rice), and miso soup. The tofu burger is really nice. The brown rice is easy to eat. Though the portion is so small that I got hungry really quickly. I went back again for lunch a few times afterwards when I wasn't feeling too hungry, and the small portion healthy veggy lunch was just right. Right pic is vegetable curry, 1000yen.
You can get to the restaurant through the organic store, or through an entrance at the back. The restaurant is only opened for lunch, except on Fri when it is also opened for dinner. I tried the dinner set(1300yen): chilled udon, vegetable and atsuage, sesame tofu, fried veggy with miso, genmai onigiri.
高野豆腐のはさみ揚げ、モロヘイヤのり和え、さつま芋と金時豆の煮物、玄米ご飯、味噌汁、￥１１００。
玄米おにぎりセット、￥７００。
Fried tofu sandwich(potato and carrot in the middle), Jew's marrow, sweet potato and red kidney beans nimono(stewed dishes).
Genmai onigiri set.
I guess the restaurant is trying to be environmental friendly - the air-conditioning is minimal even on a very very hot summer day, and simply no air-con at night with only the doors opened. There is no paper napkins on the tables...my nose was running while I was eating the curry and I had nothing to wipe my nose...bring your own tissue to this restaurant!
Past entry here.
Lunch menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.
Dinner menu(J): 1, 2.
根津の谷(Nezu no ya)
Add: 1-1-14, Nezu, Bunkyo-ku
Tel: 03-3823-0030
Comments(4) [ japanese food | 本郷・根津・湯島・上野 ]
October 15, 2007
bis LA BETTOLA(ビス・ラ・ベットラ)
クィーンポーク（豚ロース）のグリル、サラダ添え。
Grilled pork with salad.
新鮮なうにのスパゲッティ。 かにのリングイネ。
Spaghetti with sea urchin. Linguine with crab.
Cheese tart.
La Bettola is a very popular and high-profile Italian restaurant. The original shop is La Bettola da Ochiai where the main chef Ochiai is based in. He goes on TV a lot - gourmet shows, CM etc. Booking is almost impossible - apparently 2 months wait is the norm. This sister restaurant I went to is only a few minutes walk from the original shop and is easier to book because they only take bookings one week in advance. Still we were only allowed to stay for two hours before giving up our seats to the next round of customers.
Dinner course is 3360yen, where you can choose 3 plates from an extensive menu of appetizers and pastas. There is no "main dish" in the menu, but the pork I picked, which is supposed to be an "appetizer" and came first, was so huge that it was practically a main dish. The uni pasta is the chef's specialty(available also in original restaurant) and it is to die for! I mopped every bit of the sweet and creamy uni sauce with bread. A must order! Dessert and coffee are not included in the course but they are inexpensive. The cheese cake I had was not too sweet and very good.
There are a few restaurants bearing the same name La Bettola. Make sure you only go to the original shop La Bettola da Ochi or bis LA BETTOLA. The other two branches (LA BETTOLA per tutti Nihonbashi and LA BETTOLA per tutti Nishi-Shinjuku) are not directly related to the original shop and definitely not as good.
bis LA BETTOLA
Add: 1-27-8 Ginza, Chuo-ku
Tel: 03-3567-5657
Comments(2) [ my favourites | italian food | 新橋・銀座・日本橋 ]
October 11, 2007
韓国家庭料理アレンモク
海鮮ネギチヂミ、￥１５００。
Chijimi: Korean pancake with seafood and spring onion.
Free appetizers.
ポッサム（小）、￥３０００。チャプチェ、￥２０００。
Possamu: Pickles and pork wrapped in cabbage.
Chapuche: Stir-fried bean-starch vermicelli and vegetables
ユッケ。アンコウチム、￥３０００。
Yukke: Korean tartare beef served with sweet soy sauce and egg yolk.
Anko-chimu: Anko(Angler-fish/Monkfish) with spicy sauce.
Chijimi was delicious, Yukke and Chapuche were good but nothing special, the most expensive Possamu and Anko-chimu - both recommended by the restaurant staff - were no good. 3 of us shared all the food, 2 beers, 1 tea and 1 makkori(Korean rice wine), it came up to 5000yen per person...quite expensive!
アレンモク (Arenmoku)
Add: 2-2-8 Ueno, Taito-ku
Tel: 03-3839-1472
Comments(6) [ other cuisines | 本郷・根津・湯島・上野 ]
October 09, 2007
梅蘭 (Bairan)
梅蘭やきそば、￥８９３。
Bairan yakisoba. Fried noodles with onion, beansprout, chinese chives, pork, perfectly made with a crispy egg crust on top. Slightly spicy and very delicious! I should have taken pics of the noodles underneath...but too lazy! The original shop is in Yokohama. This branch in Shibuya is very conveniently located on Dougenzaka and has very good service(for a shabby chinese restaurant!).
梅蘭(Bairan)
Add: 2-9-1 Dougenzaka, Shibuya-ku
Tel: 03-5489-0866
Comments(2) [ good cheap eats | 渋谷・恵比寿・代官山 ]
October 06, 2007
Bistro Grasso
焼鮎と枝豆のリゾット、￥１０００。
Grilled Ayu(sweetfish) and Edamame(green soybean) risotto. Comes with bread, salad and coffee.
Free little dessert(pumpkin pudding and fruits) only on rainy days.
コンビネーションプレート： 牛グリルと、海老＋トウモロコシのピッツァ、￥１０００。
マグロとししとうのスパゲッティ、￥１０００。
Combination plate: Grilled beef, prawn and corn pizza.
Pasta lunch: Spaghetti with tuna and shishitou pepper.
コンビネーションプレート： トマトと茄子のオーブン焼きと、木の子・生ハムのリゾット、￥１０００。
ほうれん草のカルボナーラ、￥１０００。
Combination plate: Oven grilled tomato and aubergine, mushroom and ham risotto.
Pasta lunch: Spinach Carbonara.
The food is generally good but the portion is tiny. The salad is so small that you just wonder why they would even bother. This restaurant is particular about their olive oil and they give you a big plate, but there is really no point because the bread is no good. The coffee is diluted and the little cookies are stale... They do all these little things which are not necessary anyway, but they don't do them very well. The main(pasta, risotto, pizza, meat) taste good and I always wish they would cut all those extra stuff and just make the portion of the main dish bigger. Anyway, the restaurant is always very empty and the seats are comfortable, so I find myself coming back again and again, when I am not too hungry and want to have a peaceful quiet lunch.
Menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.
Bistro Grasso
Add: 3-9-11 Yushima, Bunkyo-ku
Tel: 03-3835-1184
October 03, 2007
Goutte d'or et Crattini (グットドール・クラッティーニ)
ナポリのモツッレラとくじらのタルタル。
Mozzarella and whale Tartare.
Tomato cream soup(I think...can't remember exactly...).
阿波尾鶏レバーのパテ、マンゴー添え。
冷たい桃のスパゲッティーニ。
Chicken liver pate and mango. This is quite nice.
Chillled peach spaghetti. The spaghetti is hidden underneath. Nothing special except the peach is very sweet.
江戸前穴子と夏きのこのタリアテッレ、からすみがけ。
とっておき、生うにのスパゲッティ。
Tagliatelle with anago and summer mushroom and karasumi. Nice but quite spicy, especially after I accidentally ate a chilli.
Uni spaghetti. The same overly salty and spicy taste as last time(entry here).
赤茶豚リブロースのソテー。
Grapefruit and wasabi sorbet. Interesting combination... quite like it actually.
Saute of Akacha(?) pork Riburosu(don't know how to translate, it is this part). The pork itself is juicy and tender, though it would have haven nicer if it were grilled a bit longer. The veggy on the side were quite salty.
ココナッツのビアンコマンジャーレ、アプリコット添え。
マンゴープリンとパッションフルーツ。
Coconut blanc manger with apricot. Not much coconut taste...
Mango pudding and passion fruit.
ジャスミンティーのカタラーナ。
Jasmine creme brulee. Fresh herb tea. The desserts are pretty normal. The fresh herb tea was 840yen and I totally expected a pot, yet it came in a small cup and no refill...
I have to say my impression of this place doesn't get better on my third visit. The chef seems to like his food very salty and very spicy. Couldn't eat it without gulping red wine by the gallons. As a final blow, the service is rather bad...no smiles, sloppy response, and the champagne was not chilled properly - unforgivable!!
Menu(J) here.
Goutte d'or et Crattini
Add: 2-2-3 Marunouchi, Chiyada-ku
Tel: 03-6212-6882
Comments(2) [ italian food | 有楽町・丸の内 ]
October 01, 2007
味ちゃん ２号店 (Korean Kitchen Macchan 2)
サンギョプサル（２人前）。
Samgyeopsal(Pork belly).
ジャンボデジカルビ（２人前）。
Janbodeji karubi(Pork karubi).
ユッケジャンクッパ。ジャガイモチヂミ。
Yukkejan Kuppa(Rice and vegetables in spicy soup). Potato chijimi(Korean pancake) - it reminds me of hash brown!
Some friends took me to this popular Korean BBQ place in Shinokubo, which is like a Korean town with many eateries and shops. We went to the branch which is right next to the original shop. We booked in advance so didn't have to wait. And thank god for that - look at all those people without reservations waiting outside! There is a time limit of two hours, which is more than enough to stuff our faces with yummy food. Everything we ordered was so nice, but the best was definitely the pork belly. It was surprisingly not that greasy, just like my friends assured me before we went. The hot plate is slanted so all the oil drips down into a bowl. You are not supposed to grill the meat yourself - the staff will do everything for you. The lettuce and other green veggy are for wrapping the meat, and you can have as many servings as you want. Service is not like smiley or friendly but they are efficient and you get what you want quickly, like water and extra servings of veggy. Most importantly this place is cheap!! We ate like pigs, and including drinks it was only about 2700yen per person. Definitely want to go back again.
味ちゃん ２号店 (Korean Kitchen Macchan 2)
Add: 2-32-3, Okubo, Shinjuku-ku
Tel: 03-5272-3022
Comments(3) [ my favourites | other cuisines | 代々木・新宿・新大久保 ]
