Hot oil heaven

I had been doing my research into tempura restaurants in Tokyo recently, and was fortunate enough to get a lunch reservation for this Tuesday at one of the best tempura restaurants in Tokyo - Mikawa. We had time for a nice long lunch before catching the train to Hakone that day, so a tempura set lunch was the perfect fit.

Since we were staying in Roppongi, I decided to make the reservation at the Roppongi Hills branch of Mikawa. Chef Saotome-san's wife runs this tiny joint with no name and a crew of three. So reservations had to be made almost two weeks in advance to get a table by the counter.

The restaurant can be a bit tricky to locate, but with the help of my iPhone 4's GPS, I was able to pinpoint the exact location very quickly as I walked towards Roppongi Hills. There was no signboard outside the restaurant, save for a very beautiful and distinctive golden mural of swallows in mid flight over a field of irises. In the center of the mural was a tiny Japanese sliding door, and when pulled back slowly, beckons one into the gastronomic realm of top notch tempura cuisine, accompanied by the sounds of greetings from the staff awaiting your arrival.

In this tiny but elegant restaurant, there were only eight counter seats, plus 2 small tables on the side with seating for four person each. The brightly lit yet intimate setting that put us at ease as the scent of freshly prepared tempura wafted through the tiny restaurants and set our stomachs growling.

Mikawa serves Edomae style tempura, classic fresh seafood and vegetables from the local area served during the Edo era, freshly caught and prepared just hours before cooking. The set lunch was 9000yen per person, which was to include various courses of seafood, a vegetable dish, miso soup and dessert. I ordered a beer and sat back to watch the young chef do his magic.

There were about eight courses for lunch, each piece freshly prepared, fried and served piping hot in front of each patron. The shrimps were still twitching when the chef started peeling off their shells and dipping them in flour. These were the sweetest tempura shrimps I had ever eaten.

The conger eel was placed in front of my serving plate, and with a fast crack of his steel chopsticks, the chef broke the eel into two crispy pieces in a flash, while steam wafted slowly from the exposed meat. I wished I had caught that on camera.

Another amazing course was the squid, so fresh that it almost melted in my mouth like soft butter as I sank my teeth into it. Tastewise, there was no mistaking the freshness of ingredients as I bit into each piece of seafood. The food was so delicious I did not use any of the seasonings on my serving plate. It was just pure finger lickin' good.

As I paid up and walked out the door, the images of those fried morsels on my plate kept flashing through my mind, as I tried to recapture those tiny little moments when I discovered each delicious piece of seafood and lingered over every next bite. Mikawa's meticulously executed lunch presentation truly elevated frying to an art form. I could have gone back for dinner that very same night, but we had a train to catch.

Mikawa is at: Roppongi Hills Residence B, 6-12-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan. Tel: (03) 3423 8100. The original location in Kayabacho is still run by Saotome-san himself. Reservations essential.

Tofu kaiseki under the shadow of the Tokyo Tower

For lunch today, I decided to book a room at Shiba Tofu-ya Ukai, a quaint Japanese restaurant with a magnificent traditional Japanese garden in the middle. As this week was still early winter, the Japanese maple trees in the garden were still bright red and golden, and the fall colors were still on display throughout the garden grounds and around the pond. 

We passed the gift shop selling all things tofu, and walked into the main entrance of the restaurant. The main lobby was beautiful, an old structure with dark wooden beams across the ceiling and dark wood floors. To one side were three rooms for tea ceremonies, one even had a pot boiling over the charcoal stove.

Our waitress, clad in kimono and speaking fluent English, led us down the winding corridors into a different wing of the restaurant, past small garden displays and to our private dining room. The room was large enough for four patrons, with a full view of the garden. In the summer time, the glass door could be kept open to allow the patrons to enjoy the fresh air and take in the serene landscape before their eyes.

Not feeling to hungry, we ordered the lighter of the two set meals, the Take course, at 5500yen per person.
Our waitress returned shortly with copies of the menu in English, and then set the table for our lunch. And so our gastronomic adventure began.

The lunch menu consisted of tofu prepared in different ways, each course a tasty delight in itself. The standout was the cooked silken tofu in seasoned tofu milk. The tofu milk broth was full of flavor and tasted as good as some of the best pork tonkatsu ramen broth I've had the pleasure of trying. Simply amazing. 

So, now I've found two very good tofu restaurants in Tokyo, Goemon for a cold winter's night feasting over a hot pot, and Tofu-ya Ukai for some extravagant kaiseki dining in the midst of one of the most beautiful traditional gardens in the city. And just hidden away under the Tokyo Tower, no less.

Matsukan in Roppongi Hills

First night in town, and I just couldn't wait to eat a very good local meal. Since it was Sunday night, most of the well known sushi restaurants were closed because the market was not open that day, so I had to consult the Grand Hyatt concierge for some recommendations.

The concierge personally recommended Matsukan, which she said was excellent for sushi, and not too pricey as well.

A brisk fifteen minute walk down Roppongi Hills later, we were standing outside a tiny little restaurant with a blue cloth banner covering the entrance. There was no English name displayed in front of the restaurant, but I was able to make out the Japanese characters for the restaurant.

The hotel had reserved counter seats for us, and we squeezed into the last 2 seats there. The counter, like most sushi counters, were manned by the head chef and a team of younger chefs, each serving a group of patrons. I requested for the sushi omakase set, and kicked back and waited for the action to begin.

First up was the cold Hokkaido snow crab, cut into quarters, and served with ponzu sauce on the side.

The the fresh oyster dish came quickly after, and served with a thin lemon wedge. The oyster was very fresh, and I wished they had given us more than one piece per person. While I was still lingering over the thoughts of oysters, the fish roe dish over citrus sauce was brought before us.

The fish roe tasted like steamed delicate foie gras. Really yummy. Next came the fried baby fish and sardine. This was also very well prepared and seasoned lightly with salt.

As we proceeded into the sushi section of the meal, out came the horse mackerel, then squid, followed by ark shell, abalone, seared toro, anago (sea eel), and a bowl of miso soup. The seared toro was so good that when the chef asked if we were full, I said we were almost there, but wanted a round of the toro again. This time, he gave us a more generous slice of the wonderfully layered meat. That, to me, was the dessert.

Misato Kaiseki

I recently came across a brief review of Misato in CNNGo.com. Seems the restaurant has been an institution in Shanghai for a number of years, and earning a reputation as one of the best kaiseki experiences this side of the Bund. Misato-san even had the privilege of cooking for former Prime Minister Nakasone as well. I couldn't get a seat at Sushi Oyama for tonight, so I thought this was a good alternative.

Located at the City Hotel along North Shaanxi Road, the restaurant looked pleasant by Japanese standards. Nothing too ultra modern along the lines of a Super Potato designed eatery, but very traditional Japanese aesthetics that are both welcoming and soothing.

I sat at the counter and selected their top kaiseki meal set, and braced myself for an exciting culinary experience. The reviews I read about this restaurant mentioned that the food was strictly traditional kaiseki style, meaning, the ingredients were the stars, and had better shine.

The meal started with an assorted appetizer dish, beautifully presented as three small plates on a wooden tray. While the ingredients were fresh, the preparation was nothing exceptional like recent kaiseki meals that I've tried. The sashimi course was overall fresh, but I thought the otoro could have been better.

The soup course was seafood broth, with a prawn, sliced fish and some mushrooms. This was one of my favorite dishes. The stewed course was a bit of a letdown, again, nothing mindblowing, and the ingredients were cooked in a very bland way. The grilled course consisted of grilled king crab legs. The waitress offered to grill each piece for me.

The meat course was pan seared wagyu beef sirloin, very well prepared and tasted delicious. The last course was rice, and this was served as chirashi don, with six types of seafood served with a bowl of miso soup. This was another of my favorite dishes.

 However, the chirashi don at Suju, another one of my favorite hangouts, was still superior to this. The dessert course completed the meal with three types of dessert - bean ice cream, fresh seasonal fruits and tofu jelly.

For this meal, I paid RMB800. This was one of the more expensive dinners I've had recently in Shanghai, but for this price, I could think of better options to spend my money.

Misato is at City Hotel, 5-7 Shaanxi Nan Lu, near Julu Lu.
Tel: +86-21-6215-7375

Bangkok has a new Nahm

The Metropolitan Bangkok recently renovated their Cyan restaurant on the first floor of the hotel and transformed it into the first overseas outpost for Australian David Thompson's Nahm restaurant, a Michelin-starred Thai restaurant at the Halkin in London. It was a pity the Metropolitan decided to do away with Cyan, instead of the lesser known Glow restaurant on the second floor, but I guess this meant there would be world-class Thai cuisine readily available, without even having to walk next door to the Celadon restaurant at the Sukothai.

I loved the soothing warm decor of Nahm, lots of hardwood, spot lighting and modern furniture. The tables were a bit of an annoyance because of the large diameter of the stem, which left little room for my feet to rest comfortably. But like I said, a small annoyance, really. I was very distracted by the extensive menu and the descriptions of each dish, and my stomach was starting to protest.

We picked the tasting menu, just so we could try as many of their signature dishes as possible. Everything else will have to wait till next trip.

The restaurant staff brought us an amuse bouse to start. Two pieces of pineapples topped with a sweet nutty sauce with chopped nuts and spices. Then the selection of appetizers followed - skewered oyster satays, fresh prawn salad, crispy fried rice noodles topped with seafood and vegetables, many with names that escape me. But they were all excellent in their own ways. Very fresh, tastefully balanced and not too spicy.

The main course selections consisted of grilled cod, minced prawn in coconut broth, tamarind smoked fish soup, a red beef curry that was astounding, and their signature dish of squid ink stir-fried snow peas with squid.

For dessert, we had stewed pumpkin, tapioca pearls and coconut puff pastries over coconut sauce.

By the end of dinner, I had no doubt Nahm would be one of my favorite dining choices in Bangkok from now on. For a start, it was much better than some of the more venerable Thai fine dining restaurants I tried last trip. And since the restaurant is still in its teething infancy, I can only assume there would be better things to come.

Nahm is at: Metropolitan Bangkok, 27 S Sathorn Road, Bangkok 10120, Thailand. Tel: +66 2625 3333

The Lounge, Four Seasons Hotel, Hong Kong

Reservations are a must but the benefits are legion. The impeccable service, the freshly baked scones and the three-piece jazz band create an incomparable atmosphere of complete relaxation for Sunday high tea to catch up with long lost friends.

Cafe Grey, The Upper House, Hong Kong

I am in HK for the weekend and living life as a complete tai-tai. Of course I had to meet my friend who is the authority on venues for power breakfasts and tai-tai high teas. He was the one who introduced me to breakfast at Mandarin Oriental's intimate Cafe Causette.

Today, he arranged for a table at Cafe Grey located on the 49th floor of one of the nicest new boutique hotels, The Upper House. The Hotel sits above the JW Marriott at Pacific Place. It used to be the Atrium serviced apartments but it has been transformed by local designer Andre Fu into a beautiful modern Asian offering with all the latest gadgets and amenities (except a pool).

There are two choices for the tea set and I opted for the simpler option which meant raspberry scones, salmon rolls on pumpernickel squares and a choice of beverage (Earl Grey Tea). The more elaborate set included a selection of finger sandwiches.

We had a small table at the lounge area which meant that nobody else was there as it was too early for drinks. Through the duration of our tea, I was treated to a magnificent view of the HK Harbor and Kowloon as we chatted. It was a real treat that all self-respecting ladies of leisure should absolutely indulge in.