Hello again blog.
I started this blog while vacating for a month in Toronto in 2007 to update everyone back home that I'm alive and fine (and so that I don't have to call/sms home, a habit that I have - no contact when I'm overseas please, give me a break!) Hence
Wanderlust. Lately, it's not been living up to its name with the infrequent postings which only indirectly refer to travelling or at all. New year resolution to revive my dormant blog!
It's therefore apt that I start the year with my first encounter with a
3 Michelin starred restaurant (and No. 20 on S.Pellegrino World's Top 50 Best Restaurants in 2011) in the Michelin star capital of
Tokyo! The experience was so sublime that you don't really balk when you get the 60,000 yen bill, or maybe it's cos I was not the one picking up the tab haha. And just to show that I am relatively objective of the standard of the restaurant, I didn't know which restaurant I was going to (until we kinda lost our way and KM had no choice but to reveal the name so that I could look out for it haha), least of all the 3-star Michelin accolade.
Service was top notch and unobtrusive. We were half an hour late and no fuss was made even though there was a second seating later. But then you generally get unparalleled service in Japan so I was expecting that. I like that even though it was obviously a fine dining restaurant, the staff were warm and welcoming with no hint of snobbery even though we looked very newb.
RyuGin is located in a nondescript apartment along a small lane in Roppongi. This is as hole in the wall as you can get. You have to slide this screen door to enter, very cool. I would say that we literally stumbled upon it in desperation after much searching in the cold with many bags in hand.
Just like the books, they welcomed us in, took our coats (!) and bags and gently ushered us to our table which was plainly our table since all the tables were filled and everybody had already started on their 11-course
omakase journey. I was wondering whether it is appropriate to be taking pics but everybody around me were doing so and seriously, how often does one get to eat at such places?? I like how the waiters will explain each dish to you for eg. where the ingredients are from, and inform you the best way to mix the food or which part to start with. It was with excited anticipation that we waited for each dish (both cold and hot dishes) to be served!
The representative dragon motive floating behind me. Our menu was tucked in the red envelop and placed under a dish for us to uncover when we sat down.
The cosy interior and pretty crystal ornaments on each table.
The menu printed on handmade paper no less!
1st course - creamy tofu with moochi in turtle soup drizzled with green onion oil. the green specks are green onion.
2nd course - simmered abalone with seaweed from some place in Japan, shrimps and roe. all these were placed on top of vinegar jelly. The tartness of the jelly went well with the saltiness of the other ingredients. I'm not fond of abalone but this was so fresh and well braised that you can see the "sinews".
3rd course - Monkfish liver from Hokkaido with ark shell clams and a sprinkling of veggies. I
hate liver but Monkfish liver makes me crave for more of it. KM's fav dish haha.
4th course - Crab of the day was from Sanin. It was wrapped in a delicate piece of cabbage and then placed in crab broth with a hint of yuzu. Ignore the bubble in the pic! The tag which came with the crab in the morning was presented to us in a plate. Simply love how the Japs do things!
5th course - a smattering of sashimi. The unseasoned squid and turbot (fish) were to be given a dash of sea salt or wasabe. The semi grilled Spanish mackerel simply melted in my mouth.
6th course - sea perch (fish) grilled on charcoal with the chef's famous roasted rice on top (like rice krispies!). The orange glob is sea urchin which tasted kinda bubbly to me. There were nicely grilled oysters too and some fruity tasting chewy moochi like thing on the side. I'm really bad at identifying food as you can see.
7th course - this dish brought the most appreciative murmurs and camera flashes. it is called "Christmas Chicken!?" on the menu haha. The waiter will carry a Christmas tree with billowing dry ice to your table while ringing a bell. At first you'll think that this is some sort of dessert or surprise present until they whip out a steaming hot fried chicken from within the boughs! A very delicious fried chicken hollowed out inside and stuffed with glutinous rice and truffles.
8th course - Waggyu beef in sukiyaki style with a fried poached egg on top. Fried
poached egg?! How on earth do you fry a poached egg?? The pairing was delicious though just as egg and beef will always be.
9th course - Love this dish especially the rice cooked in sakura tea and the crunchy morsels of sakura shrimp which was lightly coated with some sort of batter. The bowl contained miso soup which is totally unlike the miso soup we get here because it was made from shrimps and mini clams. In fact the miso soups we get from restaurants in Tokyo all had mini clams in them so you can imagine how sweet they tasted.
10th course - strawberries for dessert. I was a little resigned when I saw it as I curiously dislike strawberries but again, I cleaned out this dish cos the strawberries were not stinky or sour! This dessert, called the "-
196 degrees Celsius candy strawberry and +99 degrees Celsius strawberry jam", is a RyuGin special and showcased Chef Seiji Yamamoto's expertise in molecular gastronomy. We were served with a candy strawberry and told to smash the candy open. What poured out was sorbet frozen into powder form with liquid nitrogen. The waiter will then heap a spoonful of hot strawberry jam over the sorbet so there! you get the dessert as it is called. This was the chef's only display of molecular cooking which was good actually as I don't like the newfangled foam or liquefied food.
11th course - dinner really ended with a bang (and a satisfied sigh) with the homemade egg pudding with honey. Again, I don't particularly like egg custards and pudding but we were told that this was steamed not baked to make it smoother. The creamy and dense texture was a dream! And aren't the origami wrapped lids a nice touch?
Matcha last to cleanse our palate.
When we were all bundled up and reluctantly trudged out of the restaurant into the cold, we were greeted by Chef Yamamoto himself all smiling and waving us goodbye.
