Tag Archives: Sancerre

Lunch in the Sky

. celebration, Food, Friendship, Japan, Tokyo, Wine . , , , , , ,

ph6Today my little lunch bunch ate at Kozue, the Japanese restaurant at the top of the Park Hyatt hotel in Shinjuku.  It was a magnificent experience! The entire wall is windows looking out onto the city.  It wasn’t clear enough to see Fuji-san, but from our perch on the 40th floor, we could see straight through to Yokohama to the north.ph1

If the view wasn’t enough, the food was exquisite.  Served by beautiful young women in stunning kimono, the black lacquer bento box practically told a story in its intricate design and contents. The first course was a bit of egg tofu in a soy milk sauce, and a clear miso soup with a dumpling made of flounder, along with a taste of burdock and ginger in it. And then came the big, two-story box.  On the top there was katzuo (bonito) sashimi, and other small delicacies including a tiny squid, a shrimp head, a bit of egg rolled with cheese and a miniscule mound of sauteed spinach.  The bottom layer held some grilled mackerel, simmered vegetables and two small dumplings of shrimp and corn.  We paired it with a decadent glass of

The contents of the bento - both levels.

The contents of the bento – both levels.

Sancerre from the Loire Valley of France.

Mango tart and the sugary-est whipped cream I've ever tasted!

Mango tart and the sugary-est whipped cream I’ve ever tasted!

After we lingered over lunch itself, we repaired to the lounge on the forty-first floor where we had coffee and

dessert.  I chose a mango tart, but one friend had chiffon cake and the other had strawberry ice cream and

Close-up view of the intricate design of delicacies.

Close-up view of the intricate design of delicacies.

raspberry sherbet served in a large martini glass.  In the lounge, which had floor-to-ceiling windows, we were able to see more around the building to various other sites of the city, including all the way toward the Imperial Palace.

It was truly an unbelievable afternoon and I am privileged to have shared it with good friends. This was a celebratory lunch for our last meeting since one member is

Shrimp and corn dumpling

Shrimp and corn dumpling

repatriating shortly.  But if I know us, it’s just for now. As expats know, it’s never goodbye for good – it’s just for now – more of a see you later.  And it’s said with all the love we can muster.

Restaurant Review: Le Pot Aux Roses, Azabu Juban

. Food, Japan, Tokyo, Wine . , , , , ,

The wine was so great that it even went well with the dessert!

When walking from Roppongi Hills, past Tsutaya and toward Azabu Juban Shotengai, there’s a  corner building that has huge windows on the fifth floor.  It’s more noticeable at night when the darkness highlights the window, but it can easily be seen during the day as well.  After talking about it and seeing people sitting in the window for months, my husband and I decided to see what was up there.  What we found was a delectable feast of the senses called Le Pot Aux Roses. (They don’t have a website, but you can see a few things here)

My husband and I took the elevator up on a random Saturday night on the early side, before 7pm.  We were greeted in Japanese by a lovely young woman who was the server, and then in English, by a man who was clearly the head chef, based on his outfit and demeanor.  What struck us as funny – and then delightful – was that the chef spoke English with a thick French accent, not a Japanese one.  He later told us that he spent many years in France, but many years ago.

The menu was a nice size, with many items on it, but we have found that in most places when the chef offers a course menu, it is generally the best he has to offer and we should just take that.  He even came over to us with a basket of raw mushrooms, showing us what he had and what was special for the season, and promising us a warm, sauteed mushroom salad that we wouldn’t forget.  He was right.

As in most restaurants, we were given the drinks menu first and we decided to skip the cocktail and go right for the wine.  The wine list was extensive but not overwhelming, and we chose a light, but dry white from Sancerre.  The chef approved of our pairing, and I really do think that he was the type to correct us if we didn’t chose well.

But the salad wasn’t the first course – we had mussels first.  The mussels were in a slightly thickened sauce of garlic, butter and wine.  It was a healthy serving, large by Japanese standards, but we couldn’t help mopping up a little of the broth with the fresh crusty bread served on the side for that purpose.  The salad was second, and as promised, it was wonderful.  There were three or four varieties of mushroom lightly sauteed and served over mixed greens.

Mussels!

Following the salad, we had a fish course of cod broiled in a lemon-butter sauce, which melted in the mouth.  Served in a bowl, this was the only course of the evening that was a small size; everything else was fairly large.  Our main course was a duck leg stewed in a red wine sauce.  It fell off the bone in a red mass of sweet and savory combination that I have never tasted before.

Dessert was a lovely slice of French apple pie with a side of vanilla ice cream, but the flavors were complicated by the caramel sauce on the plate underneath the pie, and chocolate sauce on the plate under the dollop of whipped cream.  It was quite the combination.
While our idea of a reasonably priced dinner is arguably skewed since living in Tokyo, for the city, this dinner was indeed a good deal.  The set menu was Y6300 per person, with the wine at another Y7000, which means we had a very full dinner including drinks at under Y20,000.  Just trust me – it’s reasonable for Tokyo.  Don’t covert to another currency.

It was a wonderful evening out with my husband and a delicious meal to boot.  Special occasion or regular Saturday night, Le Pot Aux Roses is bound to be a hit.