20 Courses of Chicken (and Sake)

“Take one sip after eating and swallowing. The best time is 5s after the food is gone from your mouth. Do not drink in 2 sips”

We have seen chefs being super particular about timing, portions and steps – for example, Chef David Chang’s recipe for his signature Soy Sauce Egg at Momofuku calls for the eggs to boil for exactly 6 minutes 50 seconds – but this is perhaps the first time we have seen chef being THIS particular about how his dishes are to be consumed. 

50 Hours in Tokyo: 3 Museums in a Day (Part 2)

At first I couldn't quite connect the dots between the recent opening of Snoopy Museum Tokyo and the timing of my weekend in town, but when I finally realize I could actually be visiting the museum in its first month of opening, I was quite excited, given this little beagle has always been the unofficial mascot of our household.

Late Dinner at Sushisho Masa

I walked down the stairs into Chef Masakatsu Oka's Sushisho Masa restaurant with very high expectation. My foodie friend H (aka the icecream chef) recommended this place after her visit a couple months ago, so I made a reservation for dinner during my recent visit to Tokyo.

This 7-seater restaurant in the basement of a building in Nishi-Azabu - around 15 minutes' walk from Roppongi Junction - is popular among locals and foreigners and often requires reservation weeks in advance, unless you don't mind eating a bit late. I had my dinner booked for 9:30pm, which turned out working well for me as I had more time to run chores after work, and for the most part I was their only customer during that time slot.

Small fish in a much bigger pond - Isana Sushi Bar

I resorted to what must have been the most authoritative source of dining reviews, the Gentlemen's Quarterly (aka GQ), for ideas on new Japanese restaurants to try in Tokyo, and they pointed me to this sushi-ya in Roppongi, which was rated one of the best new sushi restaurants by the Japanese edition of the magazine recently.

Tokyo Short Trip - Tempura Yamanoue Roppongi

I was drawn to Tempura Yamanoue as chefs at the Michelin-starred Fukamachi and Kondo - which I went in my previous visits (the links were what I have reflected on those meals) - were trained there before setting up their own shops (so was the chef at Rakutei, another famous tempura restaurant in town). Tempura Yamanoue is an old restaurant, opened almost 60 years ago at the Hilltop Hotel in Kanda District, and the one I went was their Roppongi branch, located in the Tokyo Midtown commercial complex.

From Dream to Reality - Sukiyabashi Jiro Roppongi

“Is that THE restaurant featured in a movie?”
“Oh, you have seen the film, haven’t you?”
“How was it? Was it really that good?”

That’s usually how the conversations started when people heard that I just went to Sukiyabashi Jiro in a recent Tokyo trip.

Work brought me back to Japan for a second time this year, and with more time to plan this time around, I decided to take full advantage and try out more restaurants around Tokyo. I was excited when my dinner reservation was confirmed for this small restaurant with only 8 seats. Okay, it’s not the original one owned by the legendary Sushi maestro Jiro Ono per se, but many would still consider its Roppongi branch – one managed by his younger son Takashi and with 2 Michelin stars to show forth – a close second.