Hakataya Kamata-ten (元祖もつ鍋居酒屋博多屋蒲田店)

Posted on December 24, 08 by seat

A friend took us to this local Hakata-style motsu-nabe place in Kamata. Reservation is a must as it is very popular. You can only stay for 2 hours but then you don’t really need more than that.

ハツ刺し。山芋ステーキ。
Hatsu-sashi – raw heart. Yamaimo(mountain yam) steak – don’t know why it is called steak while it is actually a fluffy omelette/pancake. Very nice though!

じゃがいもめんたい。豆腐めんたい。
We tried almost everything from the “Mentaiko series”. Left pic: Potato and Mentaiko. Right pic: Tofu and Mentaiko.

なすめんたい。めんたいホウレンソウ。
Aubergine and Mentaiko. Spinach and Mentaiko.
The spinach one is stir-fried with butter while the other three are grilled with cheese. They are nice but they taste pretty similar – trying 1 or 2 is actually enough. There are other common Izakaya dishes in the menu like “yakiton”(pork version of yakitori) but we didn’t order.

The main is of course Motsu-nabe, which is soy sauce based. The motsu is really nice! Noodles or rice are added to the soup at the end.

At first I thought each dish was a bit small(especially the hatsu-sashi), and we ordered the motsu-nabe for 3 people(we were a group of 4) but it wasn’t quite enough so we asked for one more portion. However, when the bill came we were really surprised…only about 2000yen per person! We got a coupon from the homepage below and got ourselves a free drink each so that contributed to the cheap price, but still!

Menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.

元祖もつ鍋居酒屋博多屋蒲田店(Hakataya Kamata-ten)
Add: 2F, 7-4-6 Nishi-Kamata, Oota-ku.
Tel: 03-3736-1666

Ceylon Inn (セイロン・イン)

Posted on December 15, 08 by seat

Dinner at a Sri Lankan restaurant near Nakameguro.
Patis – Sri Lankan Samosa with minced chicken and potato. Vegetable Godamba Rotti. Cutlets – Sri Lankan croquette with fish.

Mutton curry. Fish curry.

Pol Sambola – shredded, lime, garlic, chilli etc. String hopper.

Cashew nuts curry. Egg Roti.

Kottu Roti. Plain Roti.

Absolutely delicious food. Chef is Sri Lankan. Spicy but not overly spicy that my tongue goes numb and can’t taste anything. Small restaurant busy with ever-coming customers throughout a Saturday night. Reasonably priced – 4 people share all the food plus a beer and a Masala chai each, about 3500yen per person. My favourites of the night: Pol Sambola, Cashew nuts curry, Kottu Roti. Don’t forget to print out the coupon from the homepage to get free Lassi.

Menu: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Ceylon Inn (セイロン・イン)
Add: 2-7-8, Kami-meguro, Meguro-ku
Tel: 03-3716-0440

Tempura Kondo (天ぷら近藤)

Posted on December 10, 08 by seat

From 8400yen “Fuji” dinner course. Prawn head.

Two prawn.

Asparagus. Shiitake mushroom.

Kisu – white sillago fish. Renkon – lotus root.

Haze(Goby). Small onion(tongue-burningly hot!).

Anago. Satsumaimo taro(pic shows 1/4 cut) is not included in any of the courses but it is a MUST order. It takes a long time to make so you must order at the beginning.

Kakiage(with lots of scallop) tendon. You can also choose chazuke with the kakiage, or have kakiage and rice come separately. I wanted to try the sweet sauce so I opted for the tendon but to enjoy the crispiness, it is probably better to have it come on a separate plate.

“La france” pear.

Kondo is so famous that I think every foodie interested in dining in Tokyo knows. Somehow the idea of a 9F floor high-end restaurant in Ginza with only counter seats made me a little nervous before going, but to my surprise the atmosphere is totally casual and the staff are friendly. We sat in front of Kondo-san but there is a comfortable amount of space in between and he was busy making the food anyway so we were quite happy to be left alone. He cooks for other customers too and the younger chef also cooks for us so I guess it doesn’t really matter where you sit. We had the cheapest course with 2 prawn, 3 fish and 4 veggy, which is actually quite enough. The ingredients are all top-notch and fresh that I ended up eating them with just salt and sudachi and didn’t want to “spoil” them by dipping into the sauce with grated raddish. We were there for about 2 hours and as far as we could see, the oil(100% white sesame oil) was changed 3 times. I saw other customers ordering uni and shirako which looked so amazing that I couldn’t help drooling…too bad my friends were all too stuffed. I haven’t been to that many high-end tempura places so I can’t say much but I totally enjoyed the meal in Kondo.

Tempura Kondo (天ぷら近藤)
Add: 9F, 5-5-13 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
Tel: 03-5568-0923

Nagomi Dining WAKU (和楽)

Posted on November 30, 08 by seat

Complimentary appetizer is warm pumpkin.

I don’t normally go to this kind of trendy “modern Japanese dining” restaurants cos alcohol and nice interior seem to be the main focus while the food is usually not that great, but I was looking for a casual washoku place for a gathering near Shibuya area and the reviews on this place are quite positive so I decided to give it a try. The quality of food turns out to be pretty good. They have a regular menu, a seasonal menu and also a daily menu – everything we tried was nice. The drink menu(mostly Japanese sake) is quite extensive. I tried the store-made fig wine and red sour plum wine and they are both good. We printed out a coupon with a 10% discount and 4 of us shared all the food below plus 2-3 drinks each and the bill was about 4000yen per person – really a great deal! The restaurant is at the basement and is not that big – other than counter seats, all the tables were full on the Saturday night we went. But the atmosphere is quiet and relaxing – there is a table with sofa seats which looks so comfy. Service is friendly.

海老しんじょうととろけるチーズの春巻き￥６７０。
ラーメンサラダ半熟玉子のせ（すりごま風味）、￥７８０。
Deep-fried Harumaki(spring roll) of Ebi Shinjou(prawn dumpling) and cheese.
Ramen salad with half-cooked egg(sesame seed dressing).

アボカドとベーコンのチーズ包み揚げ、￥７８０。
Deep-fried dumpling with avocado and bacon and cheese.

エビのオーロラマヨネーズ(プリプリの海老フリッターを特製ソースで)、￥７９０。
かんぱちのカマ塩焼き、￥７２０。
Prawn fritter with mayonnaise sauce.
Kanpachi(yellowtail) head grilled with salt.

黒糖そら豆、￥４００。腸詰め、￥４５０。
Soramame green bean coated in black sugar. Sausage.

和牛のハラミ炙り焼きおろしポン酢、￥９８０。
牛すじのシチュー　バケットを添えて、￥８９０。
Grilled Wagyu harami(skirt meat) with grated radish and ponzu.
Beef tendon stew with baguette.

里いもとエリンギのラザニア風、￥８００。
木の子づくしの石釜ご飯、￥９００。
Satoimo taro and eryngii mushroom Lasagne-style.
Mushroom rice in stone-pot. Takes 30mins to prepare.

豆乳豚しゃぶ鍋　コラーゲン入り（２人前）、￥２４００。
Soy milk and pork shabu-shabu(portion for 2). The jelly thing on top is “collagen”. You can choose ramen or rice to add to the thick soup at the end – I think rice is better.

Today’s menu: 1, 2. (The regular and seasonal menu can be found in the restaurant’s homepage)

Nagomi Dining WAKU　和楽
Add: B1, 16-6, Sakuragaokacho, Shibuya-ku
Tel: 03-3463-7035

Sarafan (サラファン)

Posted on November 25, 08 by seat

露西亜風ハンバーグ、￥１０００。
A couple of lunch visits to this Russian restaurant in Jimbocho.
Russian Hamburger(Y1000). When I cut it into half, hot juice from the veggy in the middle came out. Very nice!

ボルシチ、露西亜風パン。
Borscht and Russian bread come with ALL lunch sets. I haven’t been to that many proper Russian restaurants so I can’t really judge but the Borscht here is the best I’ve tried.

若鶏のソテー　ローズマリー風味、￥１０００。
若鶏と小松菜のブイヨン煮込み、￥１０００。
Weekly lunch(Y1000) is always chicken. Left pic is Chicken Saute with Rosemary. Right pic is Chicken and komatsuna in Bouillon. Both are good.

ブリンチキピロシキ、森の壺焼（キノコと若鶏のホワイトソース仕立て）、￥１８００。
1800yen set includes the usual Borscht and bread, “Blintz”(crepe version of Pirozhki I think), and white stew of mushroom and chicken baked in a small ceramic pot(not sure but probably called “Zharkoye”). I like the “Blintz” but it is a bit small. The stew is good but nothing too special. Dessert and tea are not included and I was still hungry…

白いビーフストロガノフ、￥２５００。
White Beef stroganoff lunch set(Y2500) also includes Borscht, bread, cheese cake and Russian tea(with blueberry jam and lemon). I’ve never had a beef stroganoff with the cream sauce this thick. It is not bad but the beef is a bit tough. The cheese cake is so-so.

名物お米入りロールキャベツ、￥２５００。
Cabbage roll lunch(Y2500) also includes Borscht, bread, cheese cake and Russian tea. The cabbage roll is quite rice – there is rice mixed with the meat. I wish I could skip the cheese cake and tea and have a “Blintz” instead(you can order it as a side at lunch time).

In terms of value for money, I think Hamburger lunch is the best. This basement restaurant is very small and I think quite old too. Two chefs cook behind the open kitchen, and one staff serves in a robotic and formal way which was a little strange at first but I got used to it after a while. Seems popular as it gets full like 5 mins after it opens at 11:30am!

Menu(J): 1, 2, 3, 4.

Sarafan (サラファン)
Add: B1, 3-10-3, Ogawamachi, Kanda
Tel: 03-3292-0480

marukawa

Posted on November 15, 08 by seat

From the 12300yen dinner course. Maitake mushroom, yuba(tofu skin) and ikura.

Persimmon, kuruma-ebi prawn, anago eel, tsubugai shellfish in Shiraae(tofu dressing).

Nerimono(paste) made from oyster and tamago-dofu(egg tofu) and Tai snapper.
Seared wild torafugu(a kind of fugu) and Kanpachi.

Scallop with miso.
Layer grilled aubergine and kamasu, karasumi and yamaimo taro on the side, fried chestnut chips on top.

Kabu(turnip) and komochi-konbu(kelp covered with herring eggs).
Hirousu(fried tofu dumpling) with crab meat, Konjac, shimeji mushroom.

Kuromai(black rice) cooked with satsumaimo. Dessert is Kyohou(Japanese grape), black beans and pear in Persimmon sauce.

I really have mixed feelings about this kaiseki restaurant. Taste-wise, I think the ingredients used are truly top-notch but because of the way they are cooked and seasoned, I’m not entirely sure if I can introduce the restaurant as one of my favourites. Service-wise, since we were the only customers that night(this restaurant is reservation-only), the madam(and occasionally the chef too) were waiting right behind the counter and not doing anything as we ate and maybe I was just paranoid but I felt like I was being watched and felt quite uncomfortable. My Japanese friend didn’t seem to mind at all so that could just be my problem. After we finished our dinner, we started chatting a bit with the chef and the madam and that chat turned out to be a really long one because they are just the most friendly and nice people. You can really feel how hard the chef is trying to do his best in getting the freshest ingredients, creating good menu, communicating with customers, getting the best out of its location in a quiet residential area etc.. I do appreciate his efforts but then when it comes to food, preference is preference. ^^;;
marukawa

Osteria Nakamura

Posted on November 9, 08 by seat

ハーブ風味の豚耳入りソーセージ。牛ホホ肉とレンズ豆の焼きテリーヌ。
Herb sausage with pig ear. Grilled terrine of cow cheek and lentil.

カニとポロネギの手打ちパスタ。
Homemade pasta with crab and leek.

里芋とベーコンあえリガトーニ。猪と栗のラグー。
Rigatoni with Satoimo taro and bacon .
Wild boar and chestnut in Ragu sauce(Very good!).

岩中豚のルスティンネッガ。仔羊のカツレツ。
Simmered pork with cabbage and potato. Lamb cutlet.

パナコッタ、キャラメルジャラート添え。ババ。
Panna Cotta(caramel ice-cream on the side is very good). Baba.

ヘーゼルナッツとリコッタチーズの焼ケーキ。ピエモンテのプリン「ボネ」ミルクジェラート添え。
Hazelnut and Ricotta cheese cake.
“Bonet” – Piemonte pudding with cocoa and Amaretto liqueur.

This casual Italian is very near Tokyo Midtown – it is on a backstreet a bit off the main road so you really need a proper map to find it. I was a bit surprised it was packed on a Sunday evening. Very nice atmosphere with the open kitchen and the bustling staff – the madam who serves us most of the time is friendly and has a sense of humour! We sat in the table but the counter seats look like fun as the chef stands big and tall right behind the counter and you can really watch him at work.

I read in some reviews that the portion is quite big and the madam also suggested 4 of us to share 7 dishes and said that should be enough, so we had 2 apetitizers, 3 pasta and 2 main dishes(we split the food ourselves). Though the portion didn’t turn out as big as I thought(I mean for sharing). I wanted to order more but the food came quite slowly and it was getting late by the time we finished the main dishes. The 3 pasta we chose were all very nice – I wish I could eat more than a mouthful of each though(If you are a big eater like me, order one dish from each course!). For appetizers, I liked the sausage more than the beef terrine. For main dishes, I liked the pork more than the lamb cutlet. I had spumante, a glass of wine and a cappuccino and it was about 7000yen.

Part of the menu: 1, 2. (Check out the restaurant’s homepage for the whole regular and seasonal menu)

Osteria Nakamura (オステリアナカムラ)
Add: 2F, Roppongi 7-6-5, Mintato-ku
Tel: 03-3403-8777

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