The specialty at Spoon is a hearty "French curry," prepared with European-style fond de veau stock and a mix of Indian spices, and it's one of the tastiest and most original Japanese curries in town. The menu lists several variations, the fanciest of which is a deluxe Special French Curry (Y1600) featuring tender braised beef tendon, a poached egg and many different vegetables, along with a meaty roux served over brown rice.

The individual vegetables in the mix - stewed daikon, baby corn, bitter goya - are each distinctive and quite delectable on their own, while the roux is meaty and well balanced with a satisfying amount of heat. In the evenings you can choose from several wines by the glass and various side dishes, and these are worth exploring.

We enjoyed a summertime multi-part appetizer plate (Y500) which included small dishes of chilled corn mousse, creamy chicken stew and a garlicky cold tomato soup, all of which were excellent. When combined with the rather voluminous special curry this ends up being a lot of food, but there are smaller portion options if you're having more than just curry.

The restaurant has a simple counter-style setup, with nicer-than-average seats and place settings. Curries are priced from Y930 (Y730 for a two-thirds portion size), and wines start at Y590 per glass or Y390 for a mini-glass.