Numata nori in Kappabashi sells top quality nori. The nori is harvested in the Ariake Sea in Kyushu. There are different styles depending on where it is harvested – the terroir of the sea, or single origin. One nori also includes aonori giving it a richer flavor. We stopped by recently and our favorite was…
Category: chefs
Taimeiken
Taimeiken is a famous yoshoku restaurant known for its omuraisu omelette over a ketchup seasoned rice. The Tampopo omuraisu comes from the Juzo Itami movie Tampopo and it is said this is the recipe that was used in Tampopo. The menu is long and includes beef stew (looks amazing), hayashi rice – like a beef…
Yumiko Kano
Elizabeth Andoh sensei took me to vegetarian cooking classes with Yumiko Kano about twenty years ago. Kano sensei is a prolific cookbook author with over 30 cookbooks, in Japanese. I have cooked from many of her cookbooks over the years and have learned so much about the many expressions of vegetables and unique cooking techniques….
Travel + Leisure Asia
Excited to have been tapped by Travel + Leisure Asia to pen a piece on eating in Japan. Great working with my editor, Veronica Inveen, to share with readers insider tips, having worked at both the Park Hyatt Tokyo and Takashimaya, and as the author of Food Sake Tokyo on dining out in Nippon. I hope you can…
Tsukiji Hitachiya
Japanese kitchenware contributes so many ways to cooking at home. One of my favorite shops for kitchen tools and gadgets is @tsukijihitachiya at #TsukijiMarket. I use many of their items at home including the pressed sushi and onigiri wooden molds, oroshigane grater for daikon and ginger, miso koshi to make it easier to add miso to…
Le Pristine
Dining well in Tokyo is easy. If anything it can be intimidating trying to plan the perfect itinerary for the best meals while in Japan. One tip is not to limit yourself to Japanese cuisine meals only. Japan offers amazing seasonal ingredients and I love tasting meals made by non-Japanese chefs working with what is…
Sougo
One of my favorite rice dishes in Tokyo is served at Sougo in Roppongi. It is burdock root that is julienned and fried as tempura and then stirred into rice with shio kombu, salted kelp. The shōjin ryōri restaurant serves a modern take on the Buddhist vegetarian temple cuisine. Chef Daisuke Nomura opened his restaurant…
Koma
From Kofu, Yamanashi, I jumped on the Chūō line train west towards Kobuchizawa. My friends have made the garden at a new delicatessen called Koma. My girlfriend said that I should come and check out this new restaurant. She knew that it was very special, and that I would like it. Chef Ayako Ono, former…
Vegetarian French at est
A delightful vegetarian meal at @esttokyo at the @fsotemachi. The cuisine is mostly made with locally sourced Japanese ingredients. Chef @guillaumebracaval masterfully creates dishes that showcase the seasonal vegetables. Highlights include a corn flan accented with a gazpacho-inspired tomato sauce and sweet corn kernals. Roasted potatoes thinly and accented with black truffles. Tartly pickled zucchini with a sweet…
L’Evo
Gastronomy tourism is a big part of why tourists are coming to Japan. L’Evo is an example of a restaurant featuring hyper-local ingredients and worth a journey. Chef Eiji Taniguchi’s restaurant is in the mountains of Toyama in the village of Toga in the remote Nanto district. The menu features local seafood and game with…
est
Contemporary French cuisine made in Japan is always fascinating as I love to see how the chef incorporates local ingredients. The menu at est at the Four Seasons Tokyo at Otemachi includes a map of Japan referencing where produce, meat, milk, cheese, honey, and more come from. Even the tableware artisans are included on the…
Chef Michael Anthony
Always a thrill to have a conversation with chefs. This time it was with chef Michael Anthony who is in Tokyo with a special Gramercy Tavern menu at Union Square Tokyo in Roppongi Midtown. Union Square Tokyo is in the Roppongi Midtown building. It’s a popular restaurant and was busy at lunchtime with a mix…
Pizza Marumo
2023 October update. Pizza Marumo was just voted top ten pizzeria in the world by the Best Chef Awards. Pizza Marumo opened near Ebisu station in December of 2022. The pizza crust is delicate and with a high amount of water making it light. The menu of pizzas is also quite extensive. Hard to choose…
Food Sake Tokyo
Three years ago today I had the pleasure of taking Alton Brown on a tour in Tokyo. We did a book exchange at the end, he gave me a copy of this newest cookbook and I gave him Food Sake Tokyo. It was such a pleasure to meet him and help him find knives at…
Sadaharu Aoki
Sadaharu Aoki is a Japanese pastry chef who first made his name in Paris before moving back to Tokyo. His retail shop with a café near Yurakucho station is a nice spot to rest your feet and rejuvenate with French pastries, some with Japanese flavors like yuzu, mattcha, and wasabi. The mattcha served at his…
Chef Bruno Menard at Imperial Hotel
Aiste Miseviciute of Luxeat is a friend who put chef Bruno Menard on my radar. My first time to try chef’s cuisine was at a wine dinner at the Imperial Hotel with Don Melchor wines. I was taken in with not only the cuisine, but chef’s fine touches on the dishes to pair them with the…
Kuoesu Breakfast
Kuoesu is the rare kaiseki restaurant that is open for breakfast. It is a long walk from Hiroo station, but worth the journey. The set morning meal starts at 900 JPY, so without the kaiseki prices. I was greeted by a female chef who guided me to the quiet counter. I was the first diner…
Japanese Breakfast – Kuouesu
I have a six-month column on Japanese breakfast in the Japan Times. This special spot was mentioned in my first column on traditional Japanese breakfasts. Kuouesu near Hiroo offers a very unique Japanese breakfast. The kappō restaurant is only open for breakfast and dinner. It was a long walk from the station, so best to…
Culinary Journeys with Chef Namae Shinobu
I am very excited to share air time with Chef Namae Shinobu in this month’s Discover Japan special on CNN. His show is airing today at 5:30 p.m. Japan Standard Time. Be sure to tune in to travel with him as he goes to Kyoto and to Chiba as he explores the world of tea…
Book Review – 32 Yolks
Eric Ripert is the chef of one of the world’s greatest seafood restaurant, Le Bernadin, in New York City. While in culinary school a girlfriend and I dined here and I still remember the room, the exquisite service, and the outstanding seafood. 32 Yolks is chef Ripert’s autobiography that is written with Veronica Chambers. I…
Umami International Symposium 2016
The International Umami Symposium 2016, was held in Yokohama on Sunday, June 5th. The presenters consisted of chefs and scientists and revealed many new insights. Some highlights from my notes: Fire and fermentation are two ways to change umami in food. At two months a baby can understand umami flavor and has an innate preference…
Sardine Lovers’ Lunch 新宿割烹中嶋
Chef Nakajima of Shinjuku Kappō Nakajima is often on television on a morning cooking show. His restaurant serves a multi-course kaiseki meal in the evening, but the lunch is a set lunch based on iwashi sardines. For less than $10 USD (800 or 900 JPY), the menu options are sashimi, furai (breaded and deep-fried), nimono (simmered in a sweet soy sauce),…
Dominique Ansel Bakery Tokyo
For my birthday we went to Dominique Ansel Bakery’s Cafe on the second floor of his shop. The menu has always intrigued me, especially since I saw a photo of his avocado toast. New on the menu is chicken pot pie, which was the best pot pie I have ever had. A crispy golden crust…
Noma Japan at the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo
The culinary event of the century. Chef Rene Redzepi and his team in Japan. 60,000, yes, sixty-thousand people, on the waiting list. I was lucky as I was contacted by someone in New Zealand who had a lunch reservation but could not make it. I didn’t believe that I was actually going until we checked…
Food Sake Tokyo 