June 15, 2007
L'Atelier de Joel Robüchon
We hit the ground running in Tokyo. We hit Harajuku, Omotesando, and Roppongi Hills right after landing. Unfortunately most of the shops were near closing by the time we got to Roppongi, but the main attraction Tokyo CityView stayed open late, so we had time to get something to eat before going up. I'm normally all for experiencing the local cuisines, but L'Atelier is right next to CityView, the big name is attractive, and the Japanese are perfectly capable of producing high-end Western food.
Thankfully no reservations were necessary at the deliberately informal bistro. The interior in black and red is dominated by a long bar surrounding the impeccable open kitchen populated by eager young Japanese chefs. The prix fixe menu offered just enough variety for two at a fair (but high, yes) price. The amuse set the tone, a shot glass of custard with a purple dollop of port sauce topped off with parmesan foam. The foam offered the character and flavor of the cheese without the hard saltiness to overwhelm the soft richness of the custard.
My appetizer was a lobster mousse on top of a crepe cracker with some avocado bits underneath. The basket of different mini-rolls went nicely with the smooth spread. SO gets the tomato salad with greens and fresh tomatoes on a bed of tomato jelly. My richer morsels was concentrated umami goodness, but the salad had its own simple Californian-style appeal. For the soup/fish course I had a perfectly soft-poached egg in a martini glass topped with foamed champignon soup. The soft egg took the creaminess of the cream-of-mushroom soup over the top. Fresh scallops don't need to be embellished much, and SO's big, pan-fried scallops were very fresh and very tasty sitting on a pool of herb-oil for some variety.
I ponied up the supplement for the fois gras main. Yeah, it's duck not goose, but it was still full of livery goodness. The bed of risotto soaked up the leaking fat and I wiped up any leftover juices with a Japanese-soft mini-roll. SO had pan-fried herb fish fillet on a pool of clam-based jus. Felt the herbal flavors was a bit strong for the fish, but that's a bit of East vs. West attitude toward how fish should be treated.
Desserts were simple affairs. Mine was vanilla ice cream on wine-simmered cherries, hers was tangy yogurt ice cream on cranberry gelatin garnished with fresh cranberries. A light way to close out a satisfying but not gut-busting meal. The room was about half foreigners/tourists, which was fine with me in this case. Foams and jellies and such things may no longer be El Bulli material but coming from the gastronomic backwater of Taipei seeing and tasting the basic techniques done well was almost enough to bring a tear. The cool but unpretentious atmosphere was the perfect way to celebrate the start of our trip.
L'Atelier de Joel Robüchon
Roppongi Hills Hillside 2F
6-10-1 Roppongi Minato-ku
Tokyo 106-0032
03-5772-7500