Sushi Saito

The lunch course at Sushi Saito has to be the best-kept secret in Tokyo. For 5500 yen, diners are served a tiny appetizer, miso soup, 10 pieces of exquisite sushi prepared by Chef Saito himself while you watch, and a tuna roll to finish. Considering that it's only about 1500 yen more than the omakase course at Sushi Dai in Tsukiji, but with the benefit of a reservation (i.e. no 3 hour wait) and the unforgettable mesmerizing experience of watching a sushi master in action, not to mention its 3-Michelin star rating, I was fairly surprised that I was able to secure a reservation for lunch only 3 days in advance, and even more surprised to find 3 empty seats throughout the lunch (in a 7-seat restaurant). While I'd love to keep this secret to myself so that I never have problems securing a lunch reservation, I've decided I shall share, so that you too can enjoy the perfect sushi dining experience that is a meal at Sushi Saito.

Unfortunately I have no photos, but there are some great ones here: http://www.potatomato.com/seat/archives/002588.html

Food rating: *****
Bang for buck rating: 5

The essentials:
No website
Location: next to entrance to a garage directly across from the US embassy, 1-9-15 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Price of 10-piece omakase lunch: 5500 yen (~$60); dinner prices increase significantly

Gion Fukuzumi

Gion Fukuzumi is a moderately priced ryokan-hotel (I call it ryokan-hotel because it's not a small ryokan with only a few rooms but rather a hotel type building with 6 floors and many rooms and has the institutional feel of a small hotel) in the Gion area of Kyoto, at the foot of Chion-In Temple. The ryokan itself is unspectacular - your basic tatami room (some with views of the mountains), shared onsen (very basic, more like a big bathtub) and inclusive kaiseki dinner and Japanese-style breakfast. However, it's good value for Kyoto or a first-time ryokan experience (about 15,000 per person including dinner and breakfast, but prices are higher during weekends, holidays and certain other periods), and the kaiseki dinner was surprisingly delicious and beautifully presented.

Sakura wine with assorted appetizers

Sashimi course

Yuba in broth

Gorgeous presentation

Tempura

Sakura-flavored dish made with glutinous rice, in dashi broth

Squid and shrimp in gelee with shiso leaf

Gohan course - shaped onigiri with black sesame and sakura, served with tsukemono (pickles), tamago and stewed chicken

Dessert - green tea jelly topped with red bean and sakura ice cream

Food rating: ****
Bang for buck rating: 3.5

The essentials:
http://www.gion-fukuzumi.com/
Location: Higashi-oji Shimbashi, in Gion, Kyoto
Average price of stay per person (per night, includes dinner and breakfast): 15,750 yen

Pizzeria 1830

Apparently the first pizzeria was opened in Naples in the year 1830 - hence the name Pizzeria 1830, located in the shadow of Tokyo Midtown in Nogizaka. Lured by the promise of true Napolitan-style pizza, I was truly looking forward to dinner at Pizzeria 1830. The menu is extensive, with pizzas that include tomato sauce or not, and various combinations of toppings. For a group of four, the mixed appetizer plate and two pizzas were more than enough. The crust is paper thin, barely strong enough to hold up the cheese and toppings - if you try to lift the pizza from your plate with your hands, it will start folding into itself - this is no American-style pizza!

After my visit to Pizzeria 1830 a couple months ago, I visited Rome and discovered that the pizza in Rome was indeed almost exactly like the pizza at Pizzeria 1830: super thin crust blistered at the edges, spots of melted fresh mozzarella, and just a smattering of toppings. So while I might have wished for more cheese or more toppings prior to my trip to Italy, now I know that Pizzeria 1830's pizza is authentically Italian.

Mixed appetizer plate

Sausage and mushroom pizza

Food rating: *** and a half
Bang for buck rating: 3.5

The essentials:
http://www.stillfoods.com/1830/
Location: 9-6-28 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Average price of dinner for two (with drinks): 4500 yen (~$50)

Kyo-hayashiya

If you're like me, you think that "Green Tea" is the greatest dessert flavor on the face of the planet. Seriously. What beats Green Tea flavored ice cream, cake, macarons, shaved ice, cookies, etc.? Only once in my life have I ever come across a flavor that was better than Green Tea, and that was the Earl Grey ice cream at Sketch, a now defunct ice creamery in Berkeley, California. Oooh, their Earl Grey ice cream was amazing. So amazing that one Saturday I woke up and immediately drove across the Bay Bridge to get myself an extra big serving, skipping breakfast and lunch to make up for the huge intake of calories. But I digress. Back to Green Tea.

I have loved Green Tea so much and so long that I now have a Pavlovian response when I see anything labeled as Green Tea-flavored. I automatically must have it. Despite having been disappointed time and time again by bad or weak flavored Green Tea items, whenever there is a Green Tea-flavored anything, I am psychologically trained to want to try it.

Walking through Tokyo Midtown (quite possibly my favorite building complex in all of Tokyo) soon after my arrival in Tokyo, I came across Kyo-hayashiya, a small cafe in the basement of the Galleria building that specializes in all things Green Tea, from savory ochazuke lunch sets to gigantic desserts.

Every time I visit Kyo-hahashia, I overdose on Green Tea because they require each person to get their own item, even though one shaved ice is more than big enough to share between two people. Before you can ever reach the bottom of the dessert glass, you will feel sick from the overload of sugar. And then you might not want to eat anything Green Tea-flavored for about two months. But years of Pavlovian conditioning doesn't go away because of a few overdoses!

Shaved ice with condensed milk and green tea soft serve, mochi balls, red bean and green tea syrup (on the bottom of the ice)

Green tea parfait with red bean, fruit, cream, green tea soft serve, green tea ice cream and green tea jelly

Green tea roll cake set with choice of tea

Spring gohan set (1050 yen)

Food rating: ****
Bang for buck rating: 3

The essentials:
http://www.kyo-hayashiya.com/
Location: B1 in Galleria building, Tokyo Midtown, Roppongi
Average price of dessert for two: 2000 yen (~$22)

Tokyo Weekender: http://weekenderjapan.com/?p=18429

Tsing Tao

Taking a little break from Tokyo reviews to write up one of my favorite Chinese restaurants in the SF bay area: Tsing Tao, in Albany. Tsing Tao specializes in Chinese-Korean cuisine, which is the cuisine that Chinese immigrants in Korea created/adapted for Korean tastebuds.

Jja jang myun is thick, handmade flour-based noodles topped with a black bean based sauce that includes pork, shrimp and vegetables. In Korea, jja jang myun delivery is as common as pizza delivery in the States. When made right, it is deliciously satisfying. Tsing Tao does it right - best jja jang myun I've had in the bay area.

Koreans call jja jang myun "Chinese" the way Americans call burritos "Mexican", but you won't actually find jja jang myun in China or burritos in Mexico. Jja jang myun was created in Korea by Chinese immigrants the way burritos were created in the States by Mexican immigrants. Chinese-Korean restaurants usually serve up the Chinese version of kimchi, made with regular cabbage rather than napa cabbage and satisfying in its own way.

If you are Korean, Tsing Tao will place a Korean menu in front of you that includes jja jang myun and jjam bbong (handmade flour noodles in a spicy rich seafood broth), but you won't find these on the English menu (at least not the last time I checked).

Order the yang jang pi - flat glass noodles tossed tableside with stir-fried pork, sea cucumbers, egg, shrimp, squid, cucumbers and carrots in a spicy mustard sauce. It is the best Chinese-Korean dish EVER, period. I always order this when I visit Tsing Tao and am never disappointed.

Also order the jja jang myun, which will arrive with the noodles in one bowl and the sauce in another. Pour the sauce over the noodles, mix thoroughly and dig in. Don't forget to wipe your mouth afterward, you'll probably have a black bean mustache. (sorry, unfortunately I don't have photos of the jja jang myun. forgot to take some because was too busy stuffing my face!)

Ah, I miss the bay area.

Yang jang pi - a delicious mix of glass noodles, jellyfish, shrimp, sauteed pork, octopus, sea cucumber, veggies, egg

Food rating: ****
Bang for buck rating: 5

The essentials:
No website
Location: 1479 Solano Avenue, Albany, CA
Average price of dinner for two: $40

Asterix

Asterix is one of those places that makes me wonder - how did people ever discover this restaurant? In the basement of a non-descript building one block from Akasaka Biz Tower, it's one of those places you probably pass a hundred times on your way home, to work, or another restaurant, and don't give a second thought to. I'd put Asterix on my list of "to-try"s after coming across the review on bento.com, so I thought it was a lucky coincidence when a friend suggested it for lunch. As it turns out, it's not a coincidence - it's a jewel of a restaurant that serves excellent French food, which is why it's likely to stay "undiscovered" for long.

Lunch sets are a bit pricier than the standard 1000 yen lunches found throughout the city, but definitely worth it. The lowest-priced lunch course starts at 1600 yen for an appetizer, main and dessert with coffee. For 900 yen more, diners can choose from more "upscale" appetizer/main offerings, such as foie gras.

Pumpkin cream soup - savory, creamy yet light, absolutely delicious

Classic French salad with romaine lettuce, poached egg and warm bacon dressing (although true French versions usually use frisee instead of lettuce)

Pan-fried fish of the day with veggies and couscous

Fish souffle with Mediterranean couscous

Dessert plate - tiny bite-sized slices of their various tarts and cakes (perfect for people like me who can't decide on dessert and want to try everything)! (you can also choose a full-sized creme brulee)

Food rating: ****
Bang for buck rating: 4

The essentials:
No website
Location: 6-3-16 Akasaka, B1F, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Average price of lunch for two: 3500 yen (~$40)

Cabe

After an Indonesian ex-patriate friend living in Tokyo recommended Cabe with rave reviews, a friend and I decided to make the trek. We had spent a week in Bali in late 2009 and fallen in love with the flavorful cuisine, especially the simple but delicious nasi goreng (Indonesian fried rice)! Good ethnic food (meaning non-Japanese) can be hard to find in Tokyo, Michelin-starred French and Italian notwithstanding, so Cabe is a rare jewel - a truly authentic, full-flavor Indonesian restaurant specializing in Javanese and Balinese cuisine.

(PS - I'm told the best dishes are actually off the menu and have to be ordered in Indonesian)

Nasi goreng with heart-shaped fried egg (you can feel the love put into this dish!)

Sauteed veggies (sorry, can't remember the name!)

Food rating: *** and a half
Bang for buck rating: 4

The essentials:
http://www.cabe-eco.com/
Location: 2F Barbizon Building 48 3-12-7 Meguro, Tokyo
Average price of dinner for two: 4000 yen (~$45)