Den, Tokyo

Fresh from our travels from Japan and Korea one of the most eagerly anticipated meals was at Den in Jimbocho, Tokyo. Chef patron Zaiyu Hasegawa serves up his take on modern kaiseke cuisine. Situated down an alley a couple of minutes walk from Jimbocho station it can be easy to miss the Den "傳" signage, the hostess was surprised that we had found the restaurant without any trouble.

We had an early booking for 6pm and me being overzealous not to be late we were ten minutes early and waited in the seating area whilst the kitchen finished the prep for the night. Immediately we could see the playful aspect of the restaurant which it is famed for as we noted scribblings in black marker along the walls and doors from famous visiting chefs from all over the globe. Notable familiar UK chefs included Isaac McHale who had visited a month earlier.

Savoury play on red bean monaka, this one was filled with foie gras, chestnut and pickles. It was so good Wendy wanted another one.

Blowtorched crabshell hiding a piping hot crab croquette filled to the brim with crab meat and roe.

Beautiful bespoke crockery

Chef presented us with a chicken box next with a title of DFC. Inside was a nice surprise with a thanks for coming message and chicklet bearing the Union Jack. The star of the box however was the perfectly fried stuffed chicken wing, filled with rice, goji berries and pine nuts.

Meguro sashimi with a tomiko brown sauce which we mopped up with gusto.

Japanese mackerel served with a divine monkfish liver sauce and celery sauce with a garnish of fried radish. This was simply amazing, the celery sauce brought a good balance to a otherwise rich dish.

Next up was Chefs signature salad showcasing Japanese produce, fried leaves, raw and cooked vegetables all added to a complex dish, the star for me was a delectable tomato.

We noted a rice pot cooking away during our meal and inside was our next course. Chef presented a sakura ebi ricepot to us which are in season two times a year. The essence of the shrimps permeated through the rice as it cooked and this was a delight. We didn't want the meal to end with this being the final savoury course.

Dessert served with a gardening theme complete with "rusty" chocolate spade, the contents included a charcoal cheese pudding covered in green tea, brown tea and barley tea.

The last course was a rich Italian truffle and chocolate pudding served in a mug similar to the coffee chain, this one however signified Chefs determination to regain his second Michelin star.

 Being avid followers of Chef on Instagram for which he was humbled, his face lit up when we mentioned Pucci Jr. Chef even brought him down from his slumber and he became the centre of attention. Pucci licked my hands when I stroked him, Chef said he could smell the DFC on my hands which is his favourite! Amazingly when chef said arigato, Pucci would put his paws together and bow to thank the customers!

The sake and wine pairings were great and value for money, with the whole meal costing around 34,000 Yen for two. Chef even provided some recommendations to us when we enquired where to sample different types of Japanese cuisine. He even offered to make  his special version of whatever we wanted if we returned, now thats service!

www.jimbochoden.com

The Woodstock Kushiyaki Bar, London

The Woodstock Kushiyaki Bar bills itself as bringing the feel of Japanese Izakaya to the capital. Situated on Woodstock Street off the busy Oxford Street, it is ideal for a drink and bite for shoppers or after work drinks. Infact the website states the concept is based on the pubs and bars found in Japan, acting as a ‘pit-stop’ for a ‘pint and skewer’ before heading home after work.

Kirin Ichinban lager is served with a frozen top (but sadly without the Mr Whippy effect) and acts as an refreshing thirst quencher.

We ordered a range of yakitori to wash down our drinks including:

Chicken gizzards 

Chicken heart

Beef fillet

King prawn with lime and chilli

The gizzards and hearts were the pick of the yakitori, although we maybe biased as we are fans of the innards. The prawns could of been grilled more and the beef fillet lacked any real flavour.

 

Wagyu beef slider with spiced cherry tomato chutney - for some reason I'm always drawn to sliders on menus and then regret it when they come. These appeared a little too charred with the patty being overcooked.

 

Pork tonkatsu kushi age - the execution of the frying of the panko breaded pork was commendable, light and grease free with a good colour. The pork was moist and just about cooked and slightly pink. My favourite dish overall.

For the location the prices ranged from being value at £2.50 for the gizzards and chicken hearts to £6 for the slider, pork and beef fillet skewers. For a pint and skewer the Woodstock does the job competently.

Totto Ramen, New York

Totto Ramen is one of New York City’s favourite ramen joints at the moment with a loyal cult following. Waiting lists form before it opens at 5.30pm and huge queues on the sidewalk are common. We visited the 52nd Street branch and the wait was around half an hour due to the small intimate nature of the ramen bar but it was swift moving even with around twenty people ahead of us.

The interior is no frills with seats at the ramen bar and a few tables dotted around the rest of the narrow room. This is not a place to hang around; the focus is on the ramen, in and out.

I chose the special Totto spicy ‘Nibo’ ramen, chicken broth base, original rayu, spicy sesame oil and dried fish powder with paiten ramen topped with scallion, bean sprouts, onion and cabbage. The broth was rich but lighter than pork bone based broths from other ramen joints. Not overly spicy but just right.

Mrs Nom had the signature paitan ramen, chicken and soy based soup topped with scallion, onion and nori. The ramen was served softer upon request.

Overall the ramen was different and lighter than tonkotsu based ramen we usually find in London but very enjoyable.

Ippudo (Westside), New York

We were looking for an early dinner and originally planned on visiting Totto Ramen on 52nd St to find we had half an hour to kill before they opened at 5.30pm. Walking around the block we stumbled upon Ippudo which opened a touch earlier and unanimously declared that Totto can wait for another day! We have visited a branch of Ippudo in Hong Kong and were suitably impressed.

The Westside branch in New York is dominated by a ramen bar with space down the middle for staff and a separate room for larger parties. Not long after we were seated at the ramen bar a queue began to form. 

We ordered an appetiser from the specials menu, Kamo tataki, miso marinated duck breast with grilled negi, yellow bell pepper and a citrus miso glaze. The duck was well marinated with the miso flavour penetrating through the meat.

For the ramen I choose the Shiromaru Hakata classic, with a tonkotsu pork broth, thin noodles topped with pork loin chashi, sesame kikurage mushrooms, menma, red pickled ginger and scallions. The pork broth was packed full of flavour without being too rich, the ramen was cooked just as I like it with a lot of bite. 

Mrs Nom chose the Akamaru Modern, a variation of the classic pork broth, thin noodles topped with umami dama miso paste, pork chashu, cabbage, sesame kikurage mushrooms, scallions, and fragrant garlic oil.

Additional servings of noodles were available for $2 but we just the one serving was enough for us and we finished with a selection of light sorbets and ice cream. The best of the bunch being a sublime Earl Grey tea ice cream and a blueberry sorbet. Mrs Nom loved them so much that the couple opposite us must of noticed and ordered the same!

The Ippudo brand has recently opened its first restaurant in London and if the quality is to go by from its international branches it is sure to be amongst the favourites for ramen fanatics.

Ichimura at Brushstroke, New York

Trying an omakase sushi meal has been high up on my agenda for a while. Having given up on trying to secure seats at Sushi Tetsu in London and Sushi Nakazawa in New York due to the demand  I was excited to find out that Mrs Nom managed to book us into Ichimura at Brushstroke during our NYC trip. In what was to be my first ever evening meal in the busy metropolis and what a fine one it was. Ichimura is located in the former bar area of Japanese restaurant Brushstroke, both held one Michelin star during our visit but Ichimura has since been awarded a second star in the 2015 Michelin guide for New York City.

Due to the small sushi bar setting seatings are limited to two per night at 6pm and 9pm. There were nine diners during our sitting and after after a short wait for the first set of diners to depart we were luckily plonked right in front of Master Ichimura, ideal seats to watch the master at work. 

Master Ichimura was very softly spoken asking us if we had any allergies as we took our seats, with a permanent friendly and smiley demeanour that lasted through the whole meal all of the diners including us couldn’t help but feel charmed by the Master. Below is a summary what we experienced during our sitting. Starting with an appetiser plate followed by sashimi and chawanmushi before the endless nigiri selection featuring some very fine fresh fish. Our descriptions wouldn't do the fish justice so we will let the pictures do the talking. Each piece was expertly cut exuding natural oils and served at the right temperature before melting in the mouth. Freshly grated wasabi and the level of soy was decided by Master Ichimura and he got it spot on each time.

Appetiser plate

Sashimi plate - chu-toro, mmberjack, striped sea bass, octopus, abalone, red snapper

Chawanmushi - steamed egg with Dungeness crab and truffle 

Sea bream

Isaki

Striped sea bass susuki

Kinmedai  - Golden eye snapper

Aji horse mackerel

Bonito

Serra Spanish mackerel

Amberjack

Herring

Shima-Aji - Striped jack fish

Red sea snapper

Sea urchin – Nagano and Hoikkido

Sea shrimp

Chu-toro, medium fatty tuna

Ikura – salmon roe

O-toro, fatty tuna belly

Grilled sea bream & Myoga plum sauce

For us the double layer chu-toro and o-toro nigiri along with the sea urchin were the best pieces of the night, but in truth all of the other fish we sampled were extraordinary. The meal has set a whole new benchmark for us when it comes to sushi, it may only be topped by visiting Japan, hopefully sooner than later. At $180 a head before drinks and at around £170 each with moderate sake it is certainly priced at the high end but for the quality of the fish it is a price worth paying.