143. Tokyo - Arigato gozaimashita: Wrapping Up A Week in Japan / ありがとうございました, 日本!

If I dedicated a post to every single restaurant I visited in Tokyo, I would never get to my long back log of posts from the Bay Area and the East Coast.  Here's the remainder of the eating, seeing, and doing from Japan... all in one post.

Ken and I slurped up some very homey ramen that really hit the spot after an exhausting morning at Tsukiji Market.  The shop owner joked that the bamboo was from the same place Ken was from... Taiwan.  Look for a red noren that says ramen in white Japanese lettering (ラーメン) hanging in the doorway.  The faded red business signage reads Chinese food (中国料理) in Japanese.  The owner says the gyoza is very good too.

天好 24
東京都 台東区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Taito Ward
花川戸 1-15-7 / Hanakawado District, 1 Chome 15-7

We passed the Asahi Breweries Headquarters on the way to Tokyo Skytree, the tallest freestanding tower in the world.  It was camouflaged against the gray sky and too pricey to travel up to the observation deck.  We relaxed over some chocolate and macadamia ichigo wafflate on the entrance floor instead.  The coffee is decent, and the chocolate beverages are milky and quite delightful.

100% Chocolate Cafe
東京都 墨田区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Sumida Ward
押上 1-1-2 / Oshiage District, 1 Chome 1-2
東京スカイツリー / Tokyo Skytree
東京ソラマチ 4F / Tokyo Solamachi, 4th floor

A popular expat gathering hole serving Spanish-Italian influenced Japanese tapas helped us shield the hustle and bustle of Metropolitan Tokyo at bay.  We ordered the hot spiced chicken, fries with anchovy butter, squid in black ink sauce, and quattro formaggio pizza, oysters, and more.  The highlight was the octopus and ooba pasta with yuzu pepper.  The shiso garnish helped keep the pasta light.

Rigoletto Bar and Grill
東京都 港区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Minato Ward
六本木 6-10-1 / Roppongi District, 6 Chome 10-1
六本木ヒルズ ウェストウォーク 5F / Roppongi Hills, West Walk, 5th floor

Kristen has a knack for introducing some very aesthetically appealing treats.  She ordered a gripping grape tart, and I selected a scrumptious summer peach tart.  There are more than two dozen tarts, all of which center around an individual fruit or combination of fruits that are formed into various flowers and other intricately carved shapes.

Berry Café
東京都 中央区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Chuo Ward
銀座 3-2-15 / Ginza District, 3 Chome 2-15
外堀通り / Sotobori-dori Street
ギンザ グラッセ 6F / Ginza Glasse, 6th floor

A true late night in the streets of Tokyo must include yakitori at an izakaya.  Grilled chicken wings, skewers of extra crispy chicken skin and succulent meatballs are go-to favorites.  What captured my attention, though, was the mentaiko omelette... salty orange fish roe rolled into sweet yellow tamago for the ultimate egg in egg action.  Oh, and the beer here is only 380 yen in the wee hours of the night.  Kanpai!

串焼ダイニング十兵衛 (Juubee Skewers Dining)
東京都 渋谷区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Shibuya Ward
恵比寿南 1-23-5 / Ebisuminami District, 1 Chome 23-5
恵比寿 スカイウォーク出口 / Yebisu Skywalk exit
アメリカンブリッジ ビル 1F / American Bridge Building, 1st floor

We celebrated the final night in Tokyo with drinks... a foam topped Yebisu Stout at the top of the Westin overlooking Ebisu District seemed fitting.  There is a scenic view of the Tokyo night scape just behind the bar.

コンパスローズ / The Compass Rose
 東京都 目黒区 / Tokyo Metropolitan, Meguro Ward
三田 1-4-1 / Mita District, 1 Chome 4-1
恵比寿 ガーデンプレイス 内 / Yebisu Garden Place 
ウェスティンホテル東京 22F / Westin Tokyo, 22nd floor

And that's about as much as my stomach can handle.  It's time to pack, get some rest, and head to the airport first thing in the morning... Taiwan is next on the itinerary! Super big thanks to Ken, the Lee family, and Kristen for the utmost guidance and hospitality on this trip.  Without you guys it would not have been as fun and gluttonous as it was.  Arigato gozaimashita!



I'm going to finish up a few posts on some recent fooding in the States.  Posts on my trip to Taiwan will start popping up in October, so stay tuned... until then, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20130625-30

136. Tokyo - Bread, Bread, Bread at Saint-Germain / サンジェルマンのパン (Tokyo: Shibuya-ku, Ebisu / 東京都: 渋谷区, 恵比寿)

If you ask anyone about what he or she wants to eat while visiting Japan, the likely answer will be sushi... sashimi, perhaps... maybe even ramen or tempura.  Well, at the top of the list for me is none other than bread (pan / パン).  While strolling through Yebisu Garden Place, I came across Saint-Germain, a two story bakery and café brimming with the warm aroma of baked goodness.  This popular chain is part of a larger family of bakeries including Maison Kayser, one of my favorite producers of European style Japanese bread.

Lucky for me, the nearest location of Saint-Germain was a hop, skip and a jump from the Westin Tokyo where I was staying.  Right across the street from the entrance of the Yebisu Sky Walk (恵比寿スカイウォーク), it was utterly convenient to grab some breakfast on the way to Ebisu Station (恵比寿駅) on the JR Yamanote Line (JR山手線).  For those that don't know already, I am bread crazy.  Like... insane when it comes to bread.  This was my loot from just one morning.

Mentaiko bread (明太子パン) is easily one of my favorite types of Japanese bread.  A salty spread of pollock roe that is utterly glowing is smeared across the soft inside of a crisp baguette making for an absolutely irresistible version of caviar on toast.

There is no way to avoid a curry donut (カレードーナツ) when visiting a Japanese bakery.  When done right the outside should be golden brown but not to the point of crunch.  The inside of the football shaped fried fritter is gooey with spicy curry, peas, and carrots, and the mantle of bread should still be soft and easy to tear apart to reveal the goods within.

This bacon and cheese baguette (チーズベーコンバゲット) captured my attention the moment I laid eyes on it.  Tender and succulent slabs of sweet bacon and cheddar are sandwiched inside thin, crusty French style bread.  Japanese bacon is usually not as crispy or salty as American bacon, which makes for a texture more like that of a fatty ham.  Yum.

Just close your eyes and take one bite of the pork cutlet and egg salad sandwich (サンドイッチのとんかつ卵サラダ), and you will feel like you have gone to heaven.  There is nothing like a deep fried pork chop with sweet ketchup essence submerged under a fluffy cloud of egg salad.  Really, there isn't.  When the pork cutlet and egg salad canoodle under the covers of a soft bun, the combination becomes the definition of excess and decadence.

I picked up a tomato, cheese and bacon calzone (カルツォーネ) based on the staff recommendation.  I still prefer a piping hot pocket feel stuffed with heart attack inducing fillings, but if you like a more delicate, less oily take on the Italian-American classic, this is a good choice.

Custard pudding (カスタードプリン) or flan, Japanese or not, is one of my favorite things to eat of all time.  So naturally, when I saw it sitting in the refrigerator section, I had to take one back with me for dessert.  It was something that I could eat without needing to glance away from the morning paper.  Digging for the caramel syrup that lines the bottom of the smooth custard is like diving for gold at the bottom of a treasure chest.

Also somewhere in this mess of carbs was a hash brown, but I ate it so hastily that I did not get a chance to take a picture of it.  Just a heads up... my next meal is definitely carb overload too.  Until the next carb fest, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

サンジェルマン / Saint-Germain
東京都 渋谷区 / Tokyo Metropolis, Shibuya Ward
恵比寿 4-20-5 / Ebisu District, 4 Chome 20-5
恵比寿 ガーデンプレイス 内 / Yebisu Garden Place

Check out some more mentaiko madness from my Flickr set here.

ML - 20130627