This was our second day in Tokyo. The hostess at kanetanaka the night before recommended Chikuyo-Tei when i asked her for a good Unagi (Freshwater eel, a japanese summer favorite) restaurant, and since the Michelin Tokyo 2009 guide gave it a star i thought we would try it out.
Chikuyo-Tei is located in Ginza. It has been located in this building since 1924, althought the restaurant itself dates several decades earlier, with the current owner being the 7th generation owner.
There was quite a striking contrast between this building and the surrounding highrises of the Ginza district. One of Tokyo's many charms is how it manages to blend its strong historic legacy with ultra-modern buildings that put Dubai (the city that i reside in) to shame.
The interior of the restaurant was very simple, and the room that we were led to had just four tables, although they do have private rooms available.
Onto the food! The sidedish was a clear soup made with the Unagi liver, accompanied by some pickles.
The soup was very light, it was very simple in true Japanese fashion.
Onto the Broiled Unagi. This was the large portion (choices are large or regular). The Unagi was very moist and smoky in flavor. The juices from the Unagi, along with the basting sauce coated the rice transforming it into a delicious glutinous rice-unagi mix.
The Lunch menu cost around 2,700 JPY per person (29 USD) if i remember correctly, no tips ofcourse as is customary in Japan.
The service was fast which was convenient as this was a lunch meal and we had a lot of exploring to do, and the food was great.. All for a reasonable price.
Haha ... Rabeeh you have to stop comparing the Japanese penchant for conservation and respect of traditional culture to Dubai ... as I remember the only traditional area left is the few blocks around the fort in Bastakiya. I found neighboring Oman (Nizwa!!) to be a little more interesting culturally, but perhaps that's just me.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm not mistaken, that clear soup looks like Kimosui, the broth made with the "Kimo" of your unagi. Although it literally means liver, I hear it's actually the stomach. Delicate flavors!
Paul
Actually, Dubai has almost zero traditional culture. It tries to portray itself as an ultra modern city akin to New York, London and Tokyo. Even in that respect, it is in a different league altogether. Our mind was blown by Tokyo quite honestly. Here in Dubai we always have (had at least) real estate fares with minature models of what dubai would look like in 2020 with futuristic walkways and greenery amid massive skyscrapers, well that is what much of tokyo is already like.
ReplyDeleteAs for the food descriptions, its like shooting in the dark for me in many cases since i speak very little japanese, haha.