{ Panino Vino }

2013, Feb 18

Opened on December 25th, 2012 in Omotesando, this cafe/restaurant serves tasty panini’s. From the spacious terrace seating to the entrance way, chairs, beautiful tiled floors, wood ceiling and the nice bathroom, you can tell there was an excellent designer behind this place and no expense was spared. It’s hard to imagine how much all of these details cost but it’s not just beautiful, it’s also cozy. We visited this place on a weekend and they have a different menu than during weekdays (as most places in Japan do).

They give you a choice between two options for the bread on each panini you order, Focaccia or Ciabatta. We ordered the clam chowder (500yen) and the “Salsiccia Verdure Panini” which includes Italian sausage, grilled vegetables, lettuce, rucola and spicy salsa sauce for 1200yen on Ciabatta bread — mmmmmm! We also ordered the “Pollo lattuga Panini” which comes with smoked chicken, lettuce, rucola, and tartar egg on focaccia bread for 850yen. The clam chowder was more watery and different from what we expected but both of the panini’s had such fresh vegetables and ingredients with tasty bread so we enjoyed both of them. The service was also very good. We actually had to wait about 5 minutes before we got seated and they served us free tea. Definitely gets some brownie points for that ;)

PS: Panino Vino is owned by the same owner as AW Kitchen.

Address // 4-5-12, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan (map)
Phone Number // 03-5772-2896
Website // http://www.eat-walk.com/panino_vino/

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{ Minoringo }

2013, Feb 8

This place is rated No.1 in the “curry” category in the Harajuku area and it was also featured on TV so we decided to come try it. It’s a hole in the wall kind of restaurant and the owner must be a fan of the comic “One Piece” since they have figurines from it scattered throughout the entire restaurant. As for the food, Minoringo has four types of curry: Chicken (Mild), Pork (Semi-Spicy), Keema (Spicy), and Beef (Very Spicy) and they are available in three different sizes (S-800yen, M-900yen, and L-1000yen). You can also order the Minoringo special that includes both the Keema and the Chicken curry on the same plate for 400yen more.

I ordered the medium-sized Keema Curry that comes with an egg on the top and I added melted cheese for an extra 150yen. The curry was well-seasoned and the melted cheese was really good but overall it was a bit spicy for me. I’m not too hard core with spicy food so that must be why. If you’re into spicy food, you will probably love this as many other people do. The other dish pictured above is the medium-sized Minoringo Special. The mixture of the spicy keema curry with the mild chicken curry in the Special dish seemed to be the perfect combo because the spices were very well balanced and it lets you appreciate the food more. The chicken curry is made with tomato and yogurt as well so it has more of a mild sweet flavor to it. I found myself wishing I had ordered the special after trying a bite of it… sigh

Just a note, the Beef and Pork are very popular and the owner said it usually sells out by 3 or 4pm so come here for lunch if you’d like to try one of those two.

Address // 1-22-7, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan (map)
Phone Number // 03-6447-2414
Website // http://www.minoringo.jp/

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{ Totoya Uoshin – とゝや魚新 }

2013, Feb 4

It’s Japan Restauarnt Week again and many restaurants that are usually a bit out of reach have some great deals for you to try.

With so many restaurants to choose from it was hard to decide where to go, but I ended up choosing a one-star Michelin rated place in Akasaka named Totoya Uoshin. We went during lunch and all of us got the Japan Restaurant week special for 2100yen. The fish of the day was buri (yellowtail) and they made a traditional buri daikon into a very sophisticated looking dish. Every plate came out beautifully presented and the teishoku-style meal was an elevated version of a typical everyday meal for a Japanese person. It’s nice that the rice was also all you can eat in case you’re still hungry.

The service was good and I definitely suggest you take advantage of the special offers available during Japan Restaurant week if you live in Japan or happen to be here now! It’s happening til February 11th, 2013.

Address // 1F, 5-1-34, Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan (map)
Phone Number // 03-3585-4701
Website // http://www.uoshin.ne.jp/totoya/index.html

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{ Bistro Tama }

2013, Jan 16

We’ve been coming to Futakotamagawa more frequently as it’s less crowded and has many of the shops we want to go to. Got hungry at 4pm… so decided to snack here after choosing from many options in this mall. Ended up deciding on Bistro Tama, a French inspired bistro that I was immediately drawn to.

They had a “Mont Sant Michel Rice Omelet with demiglace sauce” for 1100yen so I got that and the other dish pictured above is the Bistro Tama European Spicy Curry for 1200yen. Both were pretty good and satisfied our empty tummy’s. The omelet was so fluffy that it felt like air. Loved the presentation of the dish too. They also had baumkuchen desserts so you can choose that for a mid-day snack too. Since the restaurant is on the 7th floor, you get a nice view of Futakotamagawa if you get to sit by the window.

Address // 7F Dog Wood Plaza, 2-23-1, Tamagawa, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, Japan (map)
Phone Number // 03-3709-2105
Website // http://www.ccinc-love.com/bistrotama/index.html

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{ Ciao! Bamboo }

2013, Jan 14

Is this really Tokyo? You’d never guess this Thai/Vietnamese restaurant is located in Omotesando. This place is in a small side alley but it’s still very popular amongst locals so you might have to stand in line. Pictured above are the spring rolls (310yen/per roll), pad thai (780yen), tom yam kun noodles (950yen), and gapao rice (990yen). I’m not sure if they are authentic flavors, but it sure was tasty and I really liked this Asian street market vibe. They also have a take out menu/section on the side of the restaurant so you can order to go as well.

Address // 6-1-5, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan (map)
Phone Number // 03-5466-4787
Website // n/a

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Category Archives: Restaurant

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{ Minoringo }

{ Totoya Uoshin – とゝや魚新 }

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