Reasonable Edomae Sushi in Nezu

Just near the Tokyo Metro Nezu(根津) Station and along the Shinobazu Street(不忍通り), there is a sushi restaurant named "Hukumaru(福丸)."　This is neither a posh sushi restaurant that we are nervous on the price, attitude, etc., nor a cheap rolling sushi restaurant that price and quality are so-so. We can reasonably eat orthodox Edomae sushi.

Sushi Fukumaru

Sushi counter in Fukumaru

Lunch set superior 

Fukumaru is not so large and ran by only a chef and his wife. They have two lunch sets; normal(JPY1,450) and superior(JPY1,990). We ordered superior. It was good. In particular, tuna was delicious. The tasting of sermon caviar was well balanced. Rolled egg was properly made with bouillon and shrimp. The portion of each piece of sushi rice is bigger than average. We can be very full by the lunch set.  

If you feel to taste sushi at a local restaurant without caring the cost, this kind of individual sushi restaurant is recommendable. Much better than rolling sushi chains. My rating is 2.6 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

Hidden spot in Ueno, French cuisine

On a small street in Ueno-Ikenohata(上野池之端), there is a very small but nice French restaurant called "Caudarie(コーダリー)."  This is a hidden name restaurant. It's difficult to make a reservation. They have only 16 seats. Luckily to me, I got a reservation for the first time since more than an year. Tables were fully occupied. 

Entrance of Caudarie 

Inside of Caudarie

Champagne and white wine

Starter 

Bread (super delicious!!)

Foie gras with prune

Grilled scallop 

Red wine

Beef with red wine sauce 

Venison steak with port wine sauce 

Grape fruits sorbet 

Pear compote with caramel ice cream

Chocolate cake with berries 

Coffee and sweets 

Here, we can taste sophisticated French dishes in a relaxed atmosphere at reasonable price. It is indeed a small restaurant, but the taste and presentation are in the foremost rank. Strong impression of each dish is still left on me. Selection and preservation of wines are also good. A sommelier who is the owner of Caudarie selects suitable wines if you tell him your preference and budget. 

Also, breads served are super. So delicious. I can rate 5 for the breads. I want to come Caudarie even only for eating breads. The texture, salt balance, taste are perfect. I wish Caudarie to be more popular, but at the same time I would like to keep it secret... Even dinner, we can taste a set meal at JPY4,950(tax and service charge are also inclusive!). Cost performance is very high. My rating is 4.6 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 

Caudarie(コーダリー) http://restaurant-caudalie.com/

Well-known dipping ramen shop in Sendagi

"Tsukemen TETSU(つけ麺TETSU)" in Sendagi(千駄木) is one of the popular dipping ramen shops in Tokyo. The shop is very small that 10 people may sit. Even so, the fame is prevalent. People come from everywhere and make a queue. Nowadays, NIssin(日清), a big food processing company sells retort pouch dipping ramens by using the name of Tsukemen TETSU for family use.   

Tsukemen TETSU

Tsukemen, dipping ramen for lunch

We also had to wait for 20 minutes to enter around 3pm on Sunday. TETSU offers different types of dipping ramen for lunch and dinner. At lunch, we can eat thick noodle with soup made of fish and pork while we can taste thin noodle with fish and chicken soup.The taste was very nice! Perfect. I felt everything is well contained in the rich soup. I fully understood why TETSU is so popular. People must be addicted.   

If we continue eating, the soup becomes cold. So, we can ask "baked stone" which can make the soup hot again. This performance is also very interesting. Anyhow, it is worth for waiting. The portion is big enough. The volume of noodle might be 200g per person (I couldn't eat up...).  Next time, I'd love to taste the dinner ramen! My rating is 4 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 

Tsukemen TETSU(つけ麺TETSU)　http://www.tetsu102.com/

Cake chain that everyone likes

GINZA Cozy Corner (銀座コージコーナー) is a popular cake chain company which has more than 400 shops in Japan. They have shops near the stations that we can easily buy cakes on the way to home. The price is reasonable, the portion is big and the taste is nice. Each cake costs around JPY300. I believe everyone likes Cozy Corner. 

Panda Waffle (only in Ueno)

Cheese cake 

Though I like sophisticated cakes, at the same time I really love the kind of simple cakes! 

Everybody can be happy:) My rating is 2.7 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

GINZA Cozy Corner (銀座コージコーナー) http://www.cozycorner.co.jp/index.html

Unmistakable Japanese cuisine...Nadaman

As I had several coupons of Nadaman(なだ万, see the previous post), I went to one of their branches in the Imperial Hotel(帝国ホテル). The coupons were issued for helping rehabilitation of the devastated areas of the massive earthquake of last year. If we use it, several amounts are to be deducted and the deduction will be donated to the rehabilitation funds. I like this kind of win-win support. I can easily participate and continue. I can be a help while I enjoy myself.

Entrance of Nadaman in the Imperial Hotel

Inside

Beer and green tea 

Starter

Ginjyo sake of Nadaman label 

Steamed pine mushrooms with rich bouillon 

Fresh bonito sashimis

Boiled herring and seasonal vegetables

Grilled cod (saikyo-yaki style)　

Steamed rice with fresh sermon 

Sermon rice and miso soup 

Creme Brule and tea 

Nadaman is an established restaurant since the early 19th century. Truly, you can enjoy good Japanese cuisine there. Delicious. Every essence of Japanese food is presented in their dishes. We can feel the season through eating seasonal ingredients and seeing the decoration. Moreover, it seems we won't get weight even eat a lot here. The ingredients used for Japanese cuisine are very healthy and oil is used very few. But each dish has explicit flavor thanks to the delicate technique. 

Only a problem might be the price. Not inexpensive. We can eat set meal from JPY12,000 at night. Though we can be convinced ourselves considering the dishes, service and location. I can't go so often, but sometimes I' d love to taste Nadaman. My rating is 4 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 

Nadaman(なだ万 帝国ホテル東京)　http://www.nadaman.co.jp/teikoku/index.htm

Thai cuisine in Kasumigaseki administrative district

Kasumigaseki(霞が関), administrative district of Japan is a barren area of restaurants. The absolute number of restaurants is fewer comparing to other areas in Tokyo and accordingly, even not so good ones can survive there... Even so, we can taste variety of international foods. One is Thai cuisine cooked by Thai chefs in "Sukhumvit‐Soi39(スクンビットソイ39)."

Sukhumvit‐Soi39

Tom yam noodle

Whenever I go, I tend to order a tom yam noodle(JPY850). I've addicted to the complex taste made of seafood, vegetable and sweet herbs. Hot and sour. The portion is big that it takes time to eat up. After eating, we can't stay long as many customers wait outside. Quick serve, quick eat and quick leave! My rating is 2.7 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

Sukhumvit‐Soi39(スクンビットソイ39)   http://r.gnavi.co.jp/g501120/   

Rare Palestine dishes in Kanda

The other day, I had a chance to taste Palestine cuisine for the first time! The restaurant is located in Kanda, a business district which has a lot of izakayas, Japanese style pubs for salaried workers. So, finding such an ethnic restaurant there is a bit unexpected. The restaurant is "AL MINA(アルミナ)." AL MINA is on the underground that we hesitate to enter...

Entrance of "AL MINA"

Inside

Precious Palestine beer!!

Appetizer

Lentil soup

Salad with goat cheese 

Hummus with pita breads

Arabic pizza

Falafel and dolma 

Lamb and chicken kebab 

Stew in Tagine pot

Pudding with tea

With a chef from Palestine

As a result, the dishes were all delicious! Considering the geography and history, Palestine cuisine was quite similar to the ones of Turkish or Arabic countries. The cuisine seemed healthy using much various beans, herbs, olive oil, etc. All meats are halal, We enjoyed so much. Imported Palestine beers were also nice. "Special course", a meal set we ordered costs JPY4,000 per person. Proper price.

A chef from Palestine was a funny guy who is good at speaking Japanese (his sense of humor was like the one of middle-aged salary workers in Kanda...).  Service is a bit slow, but we didn't mind so much as we were chatting. Only complaint was a bit cold room. There is no door of this restaurant that we can directly feel the outside air....Without that, it was good! My rating is 3.5 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

AL MINA(アルミナ) http://www.almina-restaurant.com/index.html