Tokyo has plenty of wonderful restaurants, but apart from a few that are nearly impossible to book, there are not that many I feel I absolutely must make time for. However skilled the kitchen, there is a ceiling set by the quality of the ingredients, so it is hard to expect dramatically better food at a similar price. With French in particular, Asakusa has Hommage, a French restaurant with fantastic value for money, so there is really no need to go anywhere else. Even so, I always keep a few famous French places on my to-visit list, and one of them is L’Embellir in Aoyama.
The place was not hard to find, though it sits in a semi-basement. The atmosphere is cozy, but it was not as roomy as I expected. Good-value French restaurants inevitably have tightly packed tables. I suppose you need to go up to the level of Joël Robuchon, Sant Pau or Narisawa before the atmosphere is perfect too. The prices are just as steep, mind you.
First, a glass of sparkling grape juice
A sparkling grape juice called Raisi-Bulle (a non-alcoholic French one). It costs a bit, but it tasted good.
Non-alcoholic cocktail..
I did not try it, so I have no idea how it tastes. It was nice of them to have a non-alcoholic cocktail ready for people who find alcohol a bit much at lunchtime.
Amuse-bouche
There was a refreshing jelly inside.
Bread and butter
Very stylish.
Marinated early-summer eggplant from Kagawa, Miss Tomato (a fruit tomato), langoustine and firefly squid
It captured the feel of early summer delicately, but the flavor did not seem to have much character.
Skate meunière, scallop with red bell pepper, green chili purée and chive blossoms
The fish main, and this one was also just so-so..
Poêlé of wagyu cheek with potato croustillant
A decent meat main.. but again, I could not really tell what made it special.
Onion
A refreshing taste.
Three-chocolate dessert
They pour hot chocolate over it at the table.
Herbal tea
Restaurants in Japan always serve great herbal tea, and it never fails to impress me.
Petits fours
A single piece of pastry comes out..
Financier and jelly
Quite a lot of desserts come out. Among them, the warm, freshly baked financier was especially moving. I think it may well have been the best thing I ate that day..
A parting gift
A nice touch.
This is what was inside..
On my way out, the owner-chef came out to say hello, bringing a Korean chef along with him. I suspect it was because I had been photographing the food with a DSLR, and getting that kind of treatment when I am not even a big-name blogger felt a bit awkward. Running a French restaurant in Aoyama, I guess he has to be sensitive to blog reviews.
Since I only ordered the cheapest course, it was nowhere near enough to grasp what this restaurant is really worth, and the service and atmosphere were on the good side. Still, it seemed a bit too trendy for a middle-aged guy like me. Then again, there are not that many un-trendy French restaurants around these days.. Since this visit I have been to a few more famous French places, and it should be fun to compare them. No idea when those posts will go up, though.
Join the Discussion