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The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” – G.K. Chesterton

Thursday 26 November 2009

Indian @ Bombay Cafe, Tokyo

A couple of weekends ago, feeling tired (and a little lazy) and not wanting to cook dinner (encouraged by Rob's and Honey's "Let's eat out tonight!"), we headed to the nearby Triton Square in search of an Indian restaurant that one of my Japanese mum friends had recommended. I wasn't given the restaurant's name, but a short search on the internet yielded Bombay Cafe. We really ought to try out more restaurants in the neighbourhood, but we suffer from the 'It's-in-our-backyard-we-can-go-anytime' syndrome. The restaurant is managed and run by Japanese staff, but the chef is Indian, so we know the food is authentic. It is a popular choice for families with young children, and even a baby as young as our 1-year-old enjoyed the Indian bread and mildly spicy dal (mind you, I have already introduced curry into his diet from when he was 9 months).

We had a "drink service" coupon downloaded from the internet, which entitled each of us to have a free drink each, including alcohol (valued at least 480 yen each). Rob got the standard Mango Lassi, Honey the Mango Lassi Cocktail and I ordered the Peach Lassi Cocktail. Rob's non-alcoholic lassi was the nicest because I don't think yoghurt combines very well with alcohol. We ordered some Stuffed Kulcha, which contained a filling of chicken and cheese, and this was quite nice for Zak to munch on so that he didn't feel like he was missing out on Indian food.

Lassi Drinks: (left to right) Mango Cocktail, Mango and Peach Cocktail; Stuffed Kulcha with chicken and cheese:


We got some Keema Puffs and Spicy Fish, both of which came fresh out of the oil and piping hot. They were tasty and spicy, but a little bit too greasy for my liking.

Keema Puffs and Spicy Fish:


For mains, we enjoyed some Dahl and Lamb Rogan Josh with Garlic Naan. The dahl had a buttery taste and was only mildly spicy, mild enough for little Zak to tolerate (in fact, he loved it more than the chicken porridge I'd packed from home!). The rogan josh was spicier, and Rob and Honey both thought this was the best dish of the dinner, but I thought the lamb 'fragrance' was a bit too strong. I'm not a fan of lamb meat though, so I'm sure most people would agree with my husband and sister that the rogan josh was delicious. The naan was deliciously garlicky, not unlike garlic bread, and resembled closer to the traditional style (charred and crusty) than the soft, fluffy and chewy naan served at our favourite Indian restaurant. Strangely, I found myself thinking that the soft, fluffy naan would have done a better job at mopping up the dahl and rogan josh than the more traditional one we had.

Dahl and Rogan Josh with Garlic Naan:


We had some Kulfi for dessert, which was flavoured with honey and a hint of almond. The texture was unexpectedly crumbly and a little dry, but not unpleasantly so. Rob and I prefer the one served at Nawab.

Kulfi:


Bombay Cafe is a nice restaurant, but it still can't beat our favourite.

Friday 20 November 2009

2nd Revisit: Korean @ Kanton, Tokyo

My birthday celebrations continued the next night with the rest of the family and my friend Kim, and we went to K-town for some Korean food at our favourite Korean restaurant, Kanton no Omoide. As always, Kanton was very accommodating to having a 1-year-old diner, which always helps when dining out with a baby. And as always, the complimentary banchan set was also delicious.

The banchan:


Since it was both my sister's and Kim's first time to Kanton, we ordered favourites such as the Chapchae (cellophane noodles), Chijimi (seafood pancake) and Possam (steamed pork with leafy vegetable). As previously noted, these dishes were delicious. We also ordered Ddeokbokki (cylinder-shaped rice cake) which was served with boiled eggs (chicken and quail), sweet potato cellophane noodles, and vegetables. The ddeokbokki was good, but not as nice as the other dishes. (Photos are courtesy from my sister Honey.)

Chapchae; and Chijimi:


Possam; and Ddeokbokki:


It was a good birthday meal with family and friend, and after dinner, we went to the hoddeok (sweet Korean pancakes) vendor (same as before) for dessert.

Monday 16 November 2009

Modern Kaiseki @ Ryugin, Tokyo

On the night after my birthday, hubby took me out to a Michelin 2-star-rated restaurant for dinner, having arranged with my sister to babysit the kid. I had no idea where we were going until we walked up to the door of RyuGin. Chef Yamamoto serves up Modern Japanese cuisine done kaiseki- or dégustation-style (read: a multi-dish dinner with lots of dishes!), and there is only one course on offer at this exclusive restaurant: the Gastronomy Course. The food is highly seasonal with the chef preparing dishes based on his inspiration for the ingredients he obtained earlier in the day at the markets. This means that what was served tonight would most probably not make an appearance in tomorrow's menu. When dining at an acclaimed chef's restaurant, I am more than happy to let the chef decide what would be in my meal, as I have the assurance that the chef would have given a lot of care and effort into preparing each and every dish the chef has chosen for the day.

The embroidered oshibori:


I haven't had as much experience with kaiseki dining as I would have liked to (they are notoriously expensive, after all), but the two occasions that I previously did have, I enjoyed the experience and food very much. I love sampling small portions of a variety of the chef's specialty dishes, much like the dégustation dinner we enjoyed at Loose Box earlier this year.

An artpiece on the wall - ink painting of a dragon:


We were given very professional service from the moment we stepped through the door. Our waiter spoke English quite well, and used appropriate vocabulary when describing the beverages, which is no small feat considering that there were 40 types of champagnes, 80 variety of white wines, 120 red wines - and this isn't including the Japanese brands and alcohol! The interior has been tastefully and artistically decorated, with an unsubtle emphasis on dragons. 22 gorgeous ceramic plates hang on the wall, and the centerpiece ink painting of a dragon dominates one wall. I appreciated the understated and simple colours which lended to the classy atmosphere. And the food! I loved the attention to detail given to each dish, the artistic presentation in gorgeous wares, and the fact that you can taste excellence in the top quality ingredients that were used. All 12 courses were exquisitely prepared, and I enjoyed every single bite.

For apéritif, we chose some Torotoro Umeshu, on the rocks, which was gorgeously fruity and not too sweet.

1st course: Vegetable Amuse of Two Clams and Okara - this was the perfect start to the meal, smooth creamy texture interspersed with slightly crunchy carrot and bursts of citrus flavour from bits of yuzu.



2nd course: Warm Appetiser of Steamed Abalone and Fried Potato - the abalone was cooked for 6 hours, and the result was the most tender abalone I've ever eaten! The croquette had prawns in them, and I loved the textural contrast of the crunchy coating and the soft creamy centre.

3rd course: Cold Appetiser of Two Crabs with Apple Vinegar Jelly - the sweet flesh of the blue swimmer crab was topped with the kani miso (literally means "crab brains", i.e. innards) of the Shanghai crab and finished with a mildly sweet vinegar jelly. Eating crab guts may sound gross, but it didn't taste like I was eating innards of a crustacean. I honestly do think that it served quite well to emphasise the sweetness of the crab meat. And it was pretty nice on its own too, with complex crab flavours, and not as pungent as other kani miso I've had.



4th course: Chef's Autumn Specialty of Clear Soup with Grilled Snapper and Matsutake. Made with ichiban dashi (first brewed soup stock) and the famously expensive matsutake mushrooms, this was a real treat to eat. The crispy skin snapper had been grilled to perfection, and was succulent and delicious. I really liked the lacquerware that held the soup - the gold dragon on the inside of the lid was a pleasant surprise.



5th course: RyuGin Assorted Sashimi with Red Snapper, Tuna and Japanese Lobster. I love sashimi, and this one was excellent! I savoured the raw lobster meat slowly, and had the first piece of the other items on its own without any wasabi, soy or other condiments. I had fun with this course as I squirted the second piece of every item with Japanese lime juice, dunked them in salt and topped with wasabi. Simply delicious.

6th course: Autumn Special (seasonal dish) of Ankimo (monkfish liver). Our waiter was accurate in his description of 'Japanese fish foiegras' - it was every bit as fatty and delicious as its duck or goose counterpart, and it was so rich that I could only have half of my portion (hubby happily helped finish off the rest). The liver patty was served in a shallow broth of grated gobo (burdock root) and a type of bright green bean.



7th course: Char-grilled Sea Perch - the fish had a coating of crispy fried (or popped?) rice, topped with a mound of fluffy grated chestnut and finished with a grilled matsutake mushroom. This was another excellent dish, a treat for all the senses: visually appealing, soft tender flesh contrasted with the crispy coating, and wonderful flavours.

8th course: Meat of the Day with Iwate Wagyu, Shiitake and Figs. The wagyu was cooked rare and every bit as fatty and tasty as wagyu ought to be, served with a relish of onion and chestnuts. A cube of sweet marinated persimmon, nut-coated fried shiitake and a juicy fig segment were creative accompaniments to the beef, and so delicious that I wish there were more of them. Dare I say that I enjoyed these accompaniments more than the wagyu itself? They were that good.



9th course: Seasonal Rice with Miso Soup and RyuGin Pickles. The grilled anago (seawater eel) was perhaps the best I've had, and the yuzu-seasoned rice that the anago laid upon was quite refreshing. The pickles were gorgeously presented in a nori wrap.





Hubby had an additional optional Special Rice course because he still had room in his belly for more food (I was well and truly full at this stage!). This course was a small portion of seasoned rice with fish and ikura (salmon roe). I didn't have a taste of this, but hubby said it was pretty good.



10th course: First Dessert of Orange and Fragrant Olive Sorbet - I love the colour, and if bright could have a flavour, this sorbet would describe it. Excellent palate cleanser.

11th course: Second Dessert of Warabimochi with Coconut, Kinako and Genmaicha Flavours. The warabimochi was prepared like a mousse, and each little cube would burst in the mouth, releasing an explosion of intense flavour on the tongue. All three were good, but our favourite was the kinako (roasted soybean).



12th course: Third Dessert of Baked Chestnut Cake with 2 Types of Cream (Chestnut and Sweet Potato with Lemon). One word: divine.

To finish, we enjoyed a bowl of perfectly prepared Matcha. I love anything matcha-flavoured, so drinking the real thing is always a nice treat.




I really enjoyed this birthday dinner, and I left with a very full and happy belly. It's our second real dinner date (i.e. without baby) since our boy was born more than a year ago, and our last dinner date was more than 6 months ago! We both love our son very much, but it felt good to enjoy each other's company on an actual date.

Wednesday 11 November 2009

My birthday treats @ home

For my birthday this year, Rob got me a large box of Godiva chocolate truffles - even larger than the one he got me last year! He sure knows how to pamper me - not with flowers nor jewellery, but with dark chocolate truffles!

Delicious truffles:


My sister Honey brought Nonya cuisine home when she cooked Ayam Pongteh (chicken and potato stew) using our grandmother's recipe. It was yummy, and I was glad to not have to cook dinner that day!

Chicken Pongteh, just like my mum's and grandma's!


The birthday treats didn't stop there - I enjoyed a sinfully extravagant dinner with Rob while Honey babysat Zak at home, and I will post photos up of that dinner next!

Monday 9 November 2009

Teppan eats @ Bambi, Tokyo

The other weekend, the three of us, with the baby in his pram, took the short walk into Tsukishima for the local specialty, Monjayaki as well as Okonomiyaki and Yaki soba. We went to Bambi on Monja Street where Rob had been twice previously with family and friends.

On Monja Street:


My sister took plenty of photos, but since I've previously given a pictorial on how to cook okonomiyaki and monjayaki on the teppan (hot plate), and cooking yakisoba is quite straightforward, I'll just show the "before" and "after" photos of these dishes here.

Monjayaki with Cheese and Mochi - the cheese gave a lovely bottom crust and the mochi (glutinous rice cubes) gave a chewy contrast of texture:


Okonomiyaki with Ebi (prawns) and Hotate (scallops):


Yakisoba Gomoku (with five ingredients):


For dessert, we got some delicious Chocolate Crepe, which Rob kindly cooked for us. In fact, Rob cooked most of the other dishes too, and did a great job (I was happy to sit back and not cook for once!).

Chocolate Crepe - the ingredients; and pouring the batter on the teppan:


Spread the batter thinly; then placing the chocolates on the thin layer:


Folding the batter to your desired shape:

Thursday 5 November 2009

Sushi and Ice cream, Tokyo

I mentioned previously that my sister Honey recently arrived in Tokyo to stay for a while. Naturally I've been taking her to our favourite eats, including to our favourite sushi restaurant at Sushi Zanmai in Tsukiji.

On our first visit, Honey and I shared an order of the Sashimi Set as an afternoon snack (we had the 1 year old with us, so we chose a table instead of sitting at the counter). The set included kohada (gizzard shard), maguro (tuna), ikura (salmon roe), ika (squid), akagai (ark shell) and botan ebi (spotted shrimp). All were fresh and delicious. On our second visit only a week later with my friends visiting from Australia, we left Zak at home with Rob so that Honey and my friends could have the counter experience. As always, the quality was excellent, and everyone enjoyed the variety of sushi that is not available back home in Australia, such as uni (sea urchin roe/gonads), ama-ebi (sweet shrimp) and joh-anago ('top quality' sea eel).

The Zanmai Sashimi set; and Joh-Anago (grilled sea eel), which is one of my favourite sushi items at Zanmai:


After our sushi brunch, we headed into Ginza on foot, past the Kabuki theatre, and by pure chance we arrived on the main street (Chuo-dori) at 12pm on the dot which is the the time when the street becomes a "pedestrians paradise" (only on weekends). We watched as the police waited for the nearby clock to start chiming and then set up road blocks to cordon off motor traffic for pedestrians-only access on the street.

With Honey on Chuo-dori in Ginza:


I brought our group to Pierre Marcolini Chocolatier where we indulged in delicious (but pricey) ice cream (I've had ice cream from this chocolatier twice before).

Poring over the ice cream menu in front of the ice cream cafe section of Pierre Marcolini (next door is the chocolate cafe); Honey's 2-scoop ice cream cone:


The display case inside, showcasing cakes and eclairs as well as ice cream;: