I suppose it’s the influence of sushi culture, but in Japan there’s such a thing as French food you eat with chopsticks, sitting at a counter and chatting about life with the chef. The most famous place in this style is probably Toki in Ginza, but it’s pricey and I’m somehow not keen on Ginza, and luckily there’s a place with the same concept near my home, so I decided to go with a drinking buddy. Come to think of it, it’s been French after French lately. This weekend and the one after, I already have plans to eat at French restaurants. Last month it was Italian after Italian.. -_- I seem to be becoming a master of doing things in bursts.
Cured ham and potato
This is less a starter and more an otoshi. I ordered a glass of Champagne and they brought it out. Clean flavor. The portion was small, so I polished it off in no time.
Jamón from Akita
I had to shoot fast, so the photo is a mess. It’s a jamón made in Akita, and a big one. It’s not Spain, and I had no idea anyone in Japan made serious jamón like this. Judging by the size and freshness it had to be good, so I ordered it without hesitation.
Quiche and vegetable salad
It felt a bit short on vegetables; I should have ordered more. Quiche is basically a Western-style jeon, so it’s perfect with drinks. ^_^ Around here I ordered a glass of white wine too.
Translucent Akita jamón
The best quality I’ve ever had. Chewy, with an amazing deep flavor, it packs in the ultimate taste that cured meat can offer. It didn’t go with the white wine, though, so I ordered another glass of Spanish red.
Scallops and pasta
The scallops were just okay, but the pasta was delicious. Timing the cooking of noodles really is best left to the pros.
Foie gras
Fairly cheap for foie gras. But by this point I was thoroughly drunk and deep in conversation, so I ate it after it had cooled, and sadly a lot of the flavor was gone. Next time I won’t order temperature-sensitive dishes like this as the last item.
Bread
The slight shortfall in carbs gets filled with bread. The cook has good sense. The moment you feel you need something, it appears. That’s the advantage of Japanese-style counter French, I suppose. The bread had walnuts in it and was about as good as at Korean restaurants that are obsessive about their bread. They don’t bake it here; it comes from a sister restaurant. I’ll have to visit that one soon too.
Beef braised in red wine
This one was also eaten after it had gone cold, and it was less impressive than I expected. Then again, maybe it’s because I was drinking at far too fast a pace.
After a good meal we headed to a nearby wine bar for round two.
Cured ham and mashed potato served as a snack at the wine bar
When we got there, the place was full of people I know. This neighborhood is way too small. We had some more wine and a cocktail there too, and went home pleasantly tipsy. You can’t live on work alone. You need days like this now and then to make life worth living. I think I’ve fully become a local here too.