Archive for the '02:神宮前・青山・広尾' Category

Restaurant Hiramatsu Hiroo (レストランひらまつ広尾)

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Taraba crab meat and avocado with ham-flavour jelly.
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春野菜と小イカ、ルージェのサラダ仕立て オリーヴのピューレとハーブのドレッシング。
仔羊のロースト タイム風味 グリュイエールチーズとジャガイモのガレット添え。
Salade de légumes printaniers au calamar et au rouget sautés, puree d’olives aux herbes.
Carré d’agneau rôti au thym, galette de pommes de terre au Gruyère.

Warm salad of spring vegetables, squid, rouget(grilled fish, only two tiny pieces though).
The lamb was soft but the expected nice smell of roasted meat wasn’t present for some reason. Polenta with orange sauce on top was nice though.
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The staff brought the cheese wagon after the main dish and since we were not full and still had some wine left so we ordered some.
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オレンジのムースグラッセ ミルフィーユ仕立てチョコレートのサヴァランと共に。
“Mille-feuille” de mousse a l’orange glacée, savarin au chocolat.

Lunch was 6300yen(a cheaper 4200yen lunch was also available but the menu didn’t appeal to us) plus 15% service charge. Had a glass of wine, and cheese, came up to about 11,000yen. Food is okay….a bit bland-tasting overall, and the portion is small. Petit fours looked great but tasted disappointing. Very nice environment though, with window seats overlooking a park.

Restaurant Hiramatsu Hiroo (レストランひらまつ広尾)
Add: 5-15-13 Minami Azabu, Minato-ku
Tel: 03-3444-3967

青山えさき (Aoyama Esaki)

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岡山平貝と季節野菜たちの前菜。
今朝捕れたばかりの魚。
Taira-gai(Fan shell) and seasonal vegetables.
Sashimi from fish caught in the morning.
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百合根万十煎餅包み 日本ほうれん草。
佐世保鰆の西京みそ漬焼き。
Yurine(lily root) wrapped in senbei, with spinach.
Saikyo-miso cured sawara(Spanish mackerel).
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0803010041Rice with cresson(watercress) and fish. Herb tea. Custard gratin with red bean.

From the 5250yen lunch course. The cheaper 3645yen course doesn’t include “Yurine wrapped in senbei”, but the rest is the same. Everything is delicious and you can really tell the high-quality of each ingredient. At first I was pleasantly surprised by the large portion(for a high-class washoku place), but unfortunately the Taira-gai appetizer was the only item that was in generous portion - the sashimi was tiny(though very fresh), the rice didn’t fill half of the bowl and not refillable(though absolutely delicious), and the size of the dessert made my friend laugh…..I didn’t drink but my friend did and all the Nihonshu options on the menu were quite expensive. Good food but not the best bargain in town. I guess the posh location contributes to the price too - the restaurant is somewhere between Omotesando station and Gaienmae station. We booked a few weeks in advance so we got the private room to ourselves, which is very nice. Try to avoid the table seats cos they don’t look so comfortable.

Menu(J): 1, 2.
Also an English review here.
青山えさき
Add: B1, 3-39-9 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku
Tel: 03-3408-5056

R style by 両口屋是清

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きんとんフロマージュ、¥500。
Cream cheese “Kinto” with red bean paste inside.
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0711280034あみ焼きだんご、¥700。
Amiyaki Dango: grilled Japanese rice dumpling(you do it yourself). Dipped in sweet soy sauce or red bean.
Both of the sweets are good. Japanese green tea is about 500yen and you can ask for hot-water refill and sit there for hours.

This cafe is produced by a traditional Japanese wagashi shop.
R style is on the top floor of Omotesando Hills.

L’Artemis Petillante (ラルテミス・ペティアント)

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5250yen 4-course dinner has the choice of either: 2 appetizers+main+dessert, or appetizer+fish+meat+dessert. I had the later. There is also a 3990yen course which is the basic 3-course meal: 1 appetizer, 1 main and 1 dessert. The portion for each dish is slightly bigger for the 3 course dinner compared to the 4-course one.
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フォアグラのポワレといちじくのロースト(+630円)。
Chilled corn soup.
Foie gras and roasted fig(+630yen).
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本日の魚のポワレ(カレイ) 丸ナスの厚切りローストとシェリーヴィネガーとケッパーのソースで。
フランス産 小鴨のヘーゼルナッツ焼き(+630円)。
Pan-fried “karei” flat fish, roasted aubergine, sherry vinegar and caper sauce.
Grilled baby duck with hazelnut(+630yen).
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本日のスフレ(洋ナシ)。
Pear Souffle and pear sorbet.

The food is not impressive but not bad in general. The roasted fig is really nice though the duck could be better. Many of the tempting choices in the menu have additional charges, like the foie gras and the duck. But the boring-sounding options without additional charges actually look good too so maybe it is best to stick to the basic options for better value. Tax is included and the service charge is 7%. Unfortunately the service is far from great - try to get the manager to explain the menu cos the waitress is not so helpful. Glass wine is less 800~900yen. Location is a bit inconvenient - about 10 mins from Harajuku station if you don’t get lost.

Menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.
L’Artemis Petillante
Add: 2-31-7 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku
Tel: 03-5786-0220

L’Embellir (ランベリー)

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カリカリのじゃがいもで包んだ赤座海老、オリエンタルなソース。
栗とリンゴのラビオリ、秋のキノコのソース。
From 4410yen lunch course.
Langoustines in fried potato roll, oriental sauce(herb).
Ravioli of chestnut and apple, in autumn mushroom sauce.
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0711280030うずらの丸ごととココット焼き、黒豚とフォワグラを詰めて、ソース・マデール。
Cocotte grilled quail stuffed with minced kurobuta(pork) and foie gras, Madere sauce. (+1050yen)
Chocolate mousse with honey ice-cream, chocolate and Rosemary ganache with vanilla ice-cream.

Been here before(see tag). I love the food much more this time cos my choices were all-hit-no-miss to my taste! You are supposed to choose 1 cold appetizer, 1 hot appetizer and 1 main dish, but instead I ordered 2 hot appetizers and 1 main(with no additional charge!) so I got to try the specialty Langoustines, and the ravioli which has my favourite food Japanese chestnut in it. Both are absolutely fantastic. The main dish and the dessert are both satisfying as well. The value for lunch is really not bad. Though glass wine is about 1575yen so it might be better to order bottles.

We went to this restaurant for lunch a few days after it got 1 Michelin star(though we booked way ahead) and saw all these flower bouquets in the front door. Some are from restaurants which also got Michelin stars.
L’Embellir
Add: 4-17-33 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku
Tel: 03-3423-0131

La Rochelle Minami Aoyama (ラ・ロシェル南青山)

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小さいなオードブル: ヒラマサのジュレ、イワシとサーモンのクレープ包み、ニシ貝のフラン。
ロワール産白アスパラガスに帆立貝と北海道産雲丹を野生のウイキョウの香りで包み。
From the 7350yen dinner course.
Amuse bouche: Hiramasa(fish) jelly, sardine and salmon crepe, Nishigai(shellfish) flan.
White asparagus, uni and scallop, uni and mango mousse(on the spoon), olive jelly(at the back), and fennel here and there. This appetizer is amazing!
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旬の野菜のカプチーノ仕立て。
赤座海老を舌平目で包み、黒のパン粉焼きにし、イカ墨のラザニアとトマト風味のバルサミコソース。
Pumpkin soup cappuccino style.
Akaza-ebi(Langoustine) wrapped in Shitabirame(sole), grilled with black breadcrumbs. Squid ink lasagna at the bottom, with tomato and Balsamico sauce.
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和牛肉をハーブとベーコンで包み焼きにし、モアールと尾尻肉をカナッペにして。
お口直しの小さいなデザート。
Wagyu wrapped in herb and bacon.
Small dessert is apricot soup.
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0707220102アップルマンゴーのデザートにはちみつのアイスクリームを添えて。
Apple mango dessert and honey ice-cream. Petit fours. After coffee, herb tea is also served.

Lunch was very good last time(see tag) so went back for dinner. What a nice restaurant. Delicious and delicate food, attentive service, lovely environment(though lots of cheering and clapping and flashlights when a wedding reception is taking place) - all at a reasonable price. Very satisfied!
La Rochelle Minami Aoyama
Add: 3-14-23 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku
Tel: 03-3478-5645

La Rochelle Minami Aoyama (ラ・ロシェル南青山)

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小さなオードブル。川原さんの畑の”いんげん”、オマール海老、イカのマリネと駿河湾のシラスを2種類の食感で。
From the 6510yen lunch course.
Amuse-bouche. Asparagus mousse in the front. Prawn and clam soup in the middle. Forgot the other two…
Kidney beans, with lobster and squid. Fried shirasu(baby sardine) and lobster on the spoon.
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かます&雲丹をサンドウィッチのイメージで、ベルベーヌ風味のソースを添え。
仔牛のフィレ肉にフォアグラの燻製を詰めてローストし、オリビエさんのスパイスとサリエットの香り。
Kamasu(Saury pike or Barracuda) and uni, sandwich-style, with Vervain sauce.
Veal and smoked foie gras rolled in sansai(wild vegetable) with spice and sarriette(savory) flavour.
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0707060060プティ・デセール。デザートワゴン。
A small dessert, and then dessert wagon service where you can choose what you like. I had ALL. ^^;; Petit fours with the coffee, and then a small cup of fresh herb tea.

The food is just amazing. The presentation is beautiful yet taste is not compromised to make it look good. The mille-feuille-looking fish dish is pretty AND delicious, with many layers of uni, fish, prawn etc. The veal is tender and perfectly cooked. The most impressive part however, is the veggy on the side - all standing up and artistic-looking, and each of them has something unpredictable stuffed inside, e.g. ratatouille inside the radish, corn paste inside the aubergine…I love them all! The desserts are nice too. Souffle cheese cake with lavender, and honey ice-cream were the best. For the 6510yen lunch course, you can also choose a dessert plate instead of wagon dessert.

The environment is lovely. There is a church next to the restaurant(first pic). In fact on the day we went, there was a small wedding reception going on, and one-third of the restaurant was partitioned by glass panels and separated from where we sat. We could still see the bride and hear the clapping and cheering though.

If you print out the coupon here, you get a discount of about 1000yen for the “seasonal lunch course”. Very good value! One coupon can be used for up to 4 people.
La Rochelle Minami Aoyama
Add: 3-14-23 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku
Tel: 03-3478-5645