French restaurants can be very fun in Japan, when the chef is Japanese and is not afraid to push the envelope (see my experience with Goh). Nabeno-Ism, headed by Robuchon’s alumnus Yuichiro Watanabe, is certainly a perfect example of this trend. Yuchiro opened the restaurant in 2016, after 21 years of work in the Robuchon group. During this time, he came to become the head of the main Robuchon’s restaurant in Tokyo and he maintained three Michelin stars status for 9 consecutive years. His new restaurant was immediately awarded one star that became two in the 2019 and 2020 editions of the Tokyo Michelin Guide. The symbol of the restaurant that looks like three stars is taken from Yuchiro’s family crest (the three stars being three dumplings to be offered to the gods). The name encapsulates various elements, including a reference to Osaka Abeno cooking school, where his journey as a chef bagan.
The visit
The restaurant is located in an area South of Asakusa, on the bank of the Sumida river.
From the rooftop you can get a great view of the Sky-Tree.
I and two friends had lunch on a Sunday in October 2019 and we had the Komagata menu with a fixed course and the choice of fish, pork, or beef as a main.
The amuse bouche was actually a spectacular composition of appetizers: chilled tomato soup, with orange juice, maple syrup, and lemongrass foam (center); a Japanese rice cracker with French butter, an anchovy, a caper, and spices (bottom-right); beetroot tartare and cream cheese in a Japanese-wafer known as monaka (center right); a marinated green olive and dried plum wrapped with sliced sliced dry sausage and pickled cucumber (upper right). Difficult to describe all these unique flavors. Too bad they were small bites.
As expected for a French table, there was a bread basket. The bread, freshly baked, was the only element of the meal that was pretty ordinary.
The second dish was a buckwheat mash, with kombu jelly, sea urchin, grated wasabi, green onion sprout, and a golden leaf on top. On the spoon there was a bit of Vodka cream to be used to mix the mash).
The next dish was pigeon. I am not a fan of pigeon even if I know it is an important component of French cuisine. However, the meat was so perfectly cooked that I overcame my recalcitrance and I enjoyed the dish. There was a combination of pigeon breast cooked sous-vide and a sort of pate. The dish was completed by deep-fried eggplant, ginger jelly, quinoa, and two kind of grapes.
Next was a salmon confit on a toasted brioche, topped by salmon roe (ikura), rice, and a house-made paste made with boiled eggs and spinach. Three sauces were “splatted” on the plate: Sorrel paste, fresh cheese with fish sauce, and lemon. I guess a dish to mark the time of the week, the Sunday lunch.
My main was a delicious scorpion fish (difficult to know the exact species). The fish was deep-fried (but still very soft) and came with broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. The sauce was made with sherry vinegar, heavy cream, and a hint of soy sauce.
The first dessert was a marinated persimmon ball, lime jelly, and Juniper berries ice cream.
The second dessert was a composition of pasted chestnuts wrapped in cracked meringue with ginger and cassia sauces, plus a scoop of Laurier ice cream
Tea and petit four concluded the meal.
In describing his philosophy on the restaurant’s website, Youchiro refers Shizuo Tsuji, the dean of Japanese high-cuisine, that advocated a French style expressed with Japanese sensibilities, unique, and fun. The meal I had certainly lived up to his reputation, was one of my best meals of the year and I appreciated the boundless creativity and the unexpected combinations, not to mention the artful plating. It was French cuisine with Japanese sensibilities.
The check
I do not have a picture of the check, but this menu, available for lunch, costs 10,500 yen (96 USD). Menus for dinner are, of course, more expensive. Both for dinner and lunch also shorter courses are available, but I would recommend the full experience. Considering the quality and creativity of the course, I think the price point is incredibly generous. A place to visit again and again, with the menu changing frequently depending on the season and availability of ingredients.
Where in Tokyo:
2-1-17 Komagata.
In Japanese: 東京都台東区駒形2-1-17.
Website: www.nabeno-ism.tokyo.