Tokyo Food Page Restaurant and Market Guides

Chic Hotel Bars

If you're looking for a change of scene, a bird's-eye view of the city, or a Bond-worthy martini at 3pm, Tokyo's design-savvy luxury hotels are just the ticket.

Forget brass-studded Naugahyde chairs and watered-down highballs. These days, the hotel bar experience is more fun than merely funny. Internationally acclaimed designers have injected the stodgy hotel bar with real style, and skilled bartenders have revived the art of the properly mixed cocktail.

Mandarin Bar - Sumptuous is the word for the Mandarin Bar at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Nihonbashi. The scale of everything here, from the bathtub-sized chairs with gargantuan cushions to the fireplace that stretches nearly two floors to the ceiling, feels playfully large. The bar itself is rather spacious, with two main seating areas on either side of the central bar....

Peter - The Bar - The experience of walking into the bar at Peter, the Peninsula's much talked-about fusion restaurant, defies expectation. Design team Yabu Pushelberg has created a 21st-century fantasy of the '80s, a post-modern atmosphere filled with shiny surfaces and accents that seem lifted from the pages of a Bret Easton Ellis novel. Patrons lounge on pod-shaped seats beneath polished chrome trees, while ambient electronic music mingles with the soft glow of lavender neon from behind the black marble bar....

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Akasaka Biz Tower

It's been in the works for years, but the new TBS complex is finally open for biz.

More than thirty food and drink shops cover every price range and include some interesting cuisines from Belgium, Portugal, Catalonia, and Bretagne.

There are late-night bars, plenty of bakery and take-out choices, and there's even a Seven-Eleven that's open from 7-11. Plus a major concert venue, theater and gallery space. Here are a few highlights.

Castelo Branco - Suckling pig is the specialty of the house, with a choice of Berkshire pork (kurobuta) from Kagoshima or Iberico pork from Spain. And as one might expect there's a good selection of Port and Madeira wines....

Anassa - The large counter at this tapas bar, with its clean white stools and gleaming rows of wine bottles, beckons one in for a quick snack. The menu features tempting Mediterranean dishes like Greek cabbage rolls, fried cauliflower salad, and rice croquettes....

Delirium Cafe Reserve - Ten Belgian beers are served on draft here, with 100 more by the bottle. The simple menu includes pastas, Flemish-style beef stew, and of course mussels. The big, shiny semi-circular bar is the focus of attention here, but there's also a cozy table section off to the side....

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Hamasite Gourmet

Up until now the biggest restaurant complex in Hamamatsucho has been the aging, early-closing basement of the World Trade Center Building, which has served local office workers for many years. This new venture adds a bit of fresh life to the neighborhood, with some gorgeously decorated restaurants and drinking spots and a couple of late-night options (at least on Thursday and Friday nights). There are several more restaurants also worth checking out, but here are a few notable highlights.

Hanmariya - A lot of Korean restaurants focus on one particular dish, and here the specialty is called tahhanmari - a very tasty, delicately flavored chicken soup. One order of soup is Y3600 - large enough for 2-4 people, it includes a whole chicken along with leeks and other vegetables. Extra toppings are available and, as with Japanese nabemono, it's traditional to add udon noodles or rice at the end of the meal to soak up the fantastic chicken broth....

Unzen - This attractively appointed izakaya is a branch of a popular Osaka shop specializing in grilled and fried morsels of meat and vegetables on skewers. But not just any morsels on skewers - the 40-odd varieties range from simple salted prawns and chicken wings to green peppers stuffed with minced shrimp and salmon with porcini sauce. Try them all!

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05/10-05/11, 10am-8pm. Two-day Thai food festival.

This enormously popular outdoor event is now in its ninth year, as over 90 participating Tokyo-area restaurants showcase their culinary specialties, and Thai food shops sell imported ingredients. Scheduled events and activities also include music and dance performances, Thai massage, and cooking and vegetable-carving demonstrations. The festival will be held in the section of Yoyogi Park next to NHK headquarters, and admission is free.

05/12, 2:30-4:30pm, 6-8pm. Spring ginjo sake tasting in Yurakucho.

The Japan Ginjo Sake Association, the organizers of Tokyo's big annual autumn ginjo sake tasting, will also be holding a spring tasting this year, showcasing the season's new sake from dozens of breweries around the country. The venue is Diamond Hall in the Tokyo Kotsu Kaikan (12F), located at Yurakucho 2-10-1 (just across from JR Yurakucho station). There will be two two-hour sessions, starting at 2:30 and 6pm, and admission is Y2500 per person per session. For further information check the website at www.ginjyoshu.jp or write kyokai@ginjyoshu.jp.

05/12-20. Colombian guest chef at the Westin.

Chef Leonor Espinosa, the owner-chef of one of Bogota's top restaurants - Leo Cocina y Cava - will be bringing her innovative modern Colombian cuisine to Tokyo when she guest-chefs at Victor's restaurant in the Westin Hotel in Ebisu. Five-course prix-fixe lunches are Y6,000, and dinners are Y12,000. Call Victor's at 03-5423-7777 for reservations and menu details.

05/23-06/01. Hibiya Oktoberfest 2008 in Hibiya Park.

No, it's not October yet, but this big ten-day festival will feature plenty of imported German beers, German, German wines, plus live musical entertainment from German bands. There are also a few German-style beers from local microbreweries, which are reasonably priced and well worth trying. Admission is free, and booths are open 5-9pm May 23 and 11am-9pm each following day. Look for the bandstand in Hibiya Park or follow the crowds, and check www.nihon-oktoberfest.com for a detailed schedule close to the date.

06/11, 4-8pm. Sake festival in Ikebukuro

Nihonshu Fair 2008 promises to be the world's largest sake tasting event, offering fans the chance to try 500 award-winning premium brews (ginjoshu) and sake from every region in Japan. The event combines two major public tastings to be held at two locations within Ikebukuro Sunshine City; one ticket allows entry to both venues. From 4-8pm, you can sample to your heart's content and then pick up a bottle for later; sake exhibited at the event will be available for purchase. Nibbles will also be on offer to give a taste of the local flavor. Tickets are Y3500 at the door; advance tickets for Y3000 can be ordered at Sake Plaza in Nishi-Shimbashi (03-3519-2091) or online at http://eplus.jp/sake (Japanese only). World Import Mart Bldg 4F and Bunka Kaikan 4F, Ikebukuro Sunshine City, Higashi-Ikebukuro 3-1.

Sunday-night Burgers and Zinfandel at Beacon.

Beacon, the popular "urban chop house" in Aoyama, is introducing a new menu of gourmet burgers and Zinfandel wines, served every Sunday and holiday evening. Besides the classic Beacon Burger there are variations like the foie gras burger, pizza burger, mini sliders and Wagyu burger. And to drink - half a dozen good-value Zinfandels, all priced at Y4000 per bottle. The mood is casual, and kids and families are welcome. Call Beacon at 03-6418-0077 for reservations and menu details.

1st and 3rd Mondays of every month. Half-price wines at Cardenas Charcoal Grill.

It's a great deal on one of the best California wine lists in Ebisu - every wine at Cardenas Charcoal Grill will be on sale at 50% off the regular price, on the first and third Monday of each month. The food menu offers first-rate international cuisine with an emphasis on charcoal-grilled meats and fish, with main courses from around Y2500. Call Cardenas at 03-5428-0779 for more information and reservations.

En: Suidobashi

Calling En an izakaya doesn't quite do them justice - the food and drink are both top-notch, the decor elegant and modern. Most of the dining spaces take full advantage of the wrap-around glass walls, looking out over the Tokyo Dome complex and Korakuen. The food is original seasonal small-plate dishes using only the best ingredients; budget around Y7000 for dinner with drinks. Koraku 1-3-61, Tokyo Dome City Meets Port 5F; 03-5842-3835. (Open March 19) [data]

Enotria Diana: Suidobashi

We certainly can't complain about a conveniently located indoor-outdoor cafe-bar that's open all afternoon and serves great food and drink. The menu offers simple but tasty dishes like duck confit and mussels steamed in white wine, along with freshly baked pizzas and wines by the glass, all at very reasonable prices. Our only worry is that they'll be too popular to get into. Tokyo Dome City Meets Port 3F; 03-5803-7676. (Open March 19) [data]

Barco: Suidobashi

Produced by the Tokyo Dome Hotel, this inexpensive Spanish-Italian restaurant offers typical tapas dishes like shrimp in garlic oil, stewed tripe and chickpeas, plus paella, pastas, and heirloom pork dishes. Wines start at Y2625/bottle. Tokyo Dome City Meets Port 2F; 03-5805-3167. (Open March 19) [data]

Brasserie La Classe: Shin-Yokohama

This sprawling cafe-restaurant in Shin-Yokohama's Cubic Plaza is produced by the popular French brasserie-cafe Aux Bacchanales, and it includes a brasserie section, bakery and tea salon. Convenient early-morning hours start at 8am. 045-478-7020. (Open March 26) [data]

Aux Bacchanales: Shinagawa

This small chain of French brasserie-cafes is popular for their authentic food and atmosphere. The cafe serves simple dishes like omelettes and salads all day long, while the brasserie has more substantial fare, with lunch an especially good value. Quiches and pastries are ready to take home from the bakery section. Takanawa 4-10-8; 03-5798-7070. (Open March 11) [data]

Vinos Yamazaki: Yurakucho

The little tasting room in the back of this well-stocked liquor store is a good place to wind up a shopping afternoon or start off an evening in Ginza or Marunouchi. You can choose from at least ten wines by the glass, with a three-glass set priced at Y1000 and smaller tasting sizes starting at just Y200. Or you can buy a bottle from the front of the shop and drink it here; Yamazaki imports their wines directly from the wineries that produce them, and the selection includes a lot of unusual and hard-to-find wines from both Old and New World. To accompany your wine, there are six different cheeses and other wine-friendly foods like pate, smoked duck and chicken pastrami. Yurakucho 2-7-1 B1F; 03-5224-6391. [data]

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