ぐりまー ついんず

I visited Hakuun in Minami Aoyama for the first time in two months. The season has shifted from spring to early summer, and the ingredients of summer beautifully adorned the course.- Cold Chawanmushi with Kitakushiyu Uni from Otaru and Grilled Sweet Corn It was cold and sweet, and the roasted sweet corn added a delightful aroma, making it delicious.Next, we were introduced to Ayu from the Tenryu River in Nagano. It was a nice-sized fish.- Grilled Eel (Shirayaki) Served with yuzu salt, sudachi, and wasabi. The skin was crispy, while the flesh was tender and fluffy. So delicious!- Grilled Torigai from Noto Served over rice and with green peas. Grilling really brings out the flavor of the torigai.- Freshly Shaved Bonito Tasting Oh, the chef is shaving it again after a long time.- Clear Soup with Hamo and Water Eggplant from Amakusa The hamo was fluffy without any bones, and the water eggplant melted in your mouth. A wonderful soup!- Chopped Tiger Fish from Tokushima Served with grated daikon and ponzu. Cooked with the skin on, the gelatinous skin and the sweetness of the flesh really stood out. So tasty!- Black Abalone Topped with liver sauce, crushed edamame, and white yam stems. It’s rare to eat abalone this way. As always, finely sliced (ﾟдﾟ) delicious!!- Grilled Ayu I took a big bite from the head. The unique flavor of the belly was intact, and I enjoyed the tail with some wasabi vinegar. It’s finally ayu season! So delicious!!- Cold Soba with Shiroika and Mizuna from Hiroshima The handmade cold soba was infused with shiso. Amazing! The aroma of shiso is incredible!!- Hairy Crab from Funka Bay with Winter Melon Sauce This also evokes a sense of summer! So tasty!- Grilled Silver Duck from Aomori with Charcoal-Grilled Manganji Pepper Served with salt or wasabi soy sauce. Today’s meat is silver duck! It’s one of our regulars. The duck was juicy and delicious!- Meal - Unagi Hitsumabushi - Pickles - Sansho - Wasabi Since it’s hitsumabushi, I first enjoyed it as is. The shirayaki was good, but eel is best as kabayaki! So yummy!! - For the second serving, I added wasabi and enjoyed it with the broth made from hamo bones. This was delicious too!- Handmade Soba And to finish the meal, the chef prepared handmade soba. The soba was delicious with the flavorful broth. I had seconds!- "Taiyo no Tamago" Mango from Miyazaki and Homemade Yogurt Ice Cream As usual, sprinkled with sugar from the dayflower. It was cold and delicious. The mango was so sweet!- Homemade Mizu Yokan This one was quite watery. It melted in my mouth as soon as I took a bite!?- Matcha As always, the food was delicious and satisfying. It was a great meal. Thank you, and I look forward to my next visit! Less

On July 9th (Thursday), Sushi Dokoro Yamato will be relocating to Hatchobori and starting its operations there. The restaurant I had planned for dinner that day had to be canceled due to the owner's health issues, so I was unsure what to do. Just then, I received an email about available seats at Yamato for that evening. Despite the approaching typhoon, it seemed like the weather would clear up by night, so I decided to go ahead and make a reservation. This will be my last meal at the current location.- Ishinomaki's Mako Karei Served with wasabi, you can choose salt or soy sauce. It was rich and delicious.- Octopus from Ainanshi, Ehime Prefecture It seems they source it directly from a fishmonger that Fujimoto-san uses. It had a lovely aroma. The skin was pleasantly sticky, and the meat was well-seasoned and tasty!- Hiragai from Aichi and "Amela" tomatoes from Shizuoka Hiragai and tomatoes go well together! I wonder what kind of oil and sauce they used? Maybe dashi soy sauce?- Asari Chawanmushi Topped with ginger sauce. The ginger aroma was delightful, and the asari broth was rich and delicious.- Mekikari marinated in sake lees So rich and tasty! They use Sake Kasu from Senkin. It’s a perfect match for Yamato’s Senkin!- Ankou liver - Masu-sen from Toyama Prefecture, re-brewed sweet sake - XO sauce (made with scallops, dried shrimp, ginger, and green onions) The ankou liver pairs well with the sweet sake, although the brand is different from what the chef Sugita usually uses. This dish makes you want to drink more!- Grilled eel Of course, it’s grilled locally. The eel was thick and had a tender, fluffy texture. Delicious!Now we’re moving on to the nigiri, but should I have more appetizers or go straight to the nigiri? There are fewer appetizers today, just the marinated kazunoko and the marinated squid, so I decided to add:- Additional marinated kazunoko The miso flavor was well absorbed, yet it retained its crunchiness and texture. So delicious!Now we’re starting with the nigiri. Previously, those who ordered extra appetizers were served later, but now they serve them together, which is better. However, there were times when I was unsure where to serve them, so this is a good change.- Sumi-ika (cuttlefish) with sudachi and salt. The texture was crunchy, but as you chew, it becomes pleasantly sticky. Delicious!- Tai from Akashi Mmm. It had a deep umami flavor and was delicious.- Additional marinated squid This was also well-marinated and incredibly tasty! It pairs well with sake.- Shima-ebi (striped shrimp) Soft and sweet, it matched perfectly with the mildly sour rice (ﾟдﾟ)ｳﾏｰ!!- Haruko-dai (young sea bream) with sudachi and salt. The flesh was tender and delicious, lightly marinated with kombu.- Hirame (flounder) Heavily marinated with kombu. Ah, I see. It’s clear that the preparation differs from that of the haruko. Delicious.- Katsuo (bonito) from Katsuura Served with chopped green onions and ginger. It’s a refreshing bonito, perfect for this season.- O-toro (fatty tuna) Rich, sweet, and delicious!- Aji (horse mackerel) from Yamaguchi, Hagi Served with sliced ginger and green onions. Just the right amount of fat, very tasty!- Shako (mantis shrimp) from Otaru I thought it was large while being prepared, and the meat was thick! What is this? It’s delicious and has a lovely aroma.- Kuruma-ebi (Japanese tiger prawn) This one is also big. It was served with miso in between. The meat was thick!- Shiro-uni (purple sea urchin) from Kumamoto, Amakusa This one is definitely a winner!Finally, we finished with boiled scallops, tamagoyaki (Japanese omelet), and miso soup. The remaining items were boiled clams, boiled squid, and hime masu (young trout), so:- Miso soup Made with the heads of shima-ebi. The shrimp broth is amazing! It would make the best ramen!- Additional hime masu Served with local mustard. Ah, it’s soft and delicious. But how will it pair with the sour rice?- Additional boiled squid Served with a dipping sauce. It’s surprisingly firm for boiled squid.- Additional boiled clams Served with a dipping sauce. Clams are delicious this season.- Boiled scallops Served with a dipping sauce. It seems they shaped the scallops after breaking them apart. The umami of the scallops spreads in your mouth.- Tamagoyaki A fluffy Edo-style omelet mixed with shiba ebi (small shrimp). So delicious!It had been 10 months since my last sushi at Yamato, but it was just as delicious as I remembered. I ended up ordering everything extra! It was a great meal.While dining, the chef shared that the current kitchen is small and gets so hot that it reaches 40 degrees Celsius, which prompted the move. The new restaurant will double in size from 13 tsubo to 28 tsubo! The counter will have 10 spacious seats in a "H" shape, and they plan to create fully private rooms as well. Additionally, Chef Sugita will be writing the new restaurant's name. So, they will be operating until the end of June. I also made a reservation for the new restaurant on my way out. I’m looking forward to it! Thank you for your continued support. Less

Many of you may already know, but "Sou" opened in November 2024 as a members-only salon that invites renowned restaurants from across the country, providing an opportunity to enjoy their offerings in Tokyo. Occasionally, they even host collaborative events between hard-to-book restaurants in the city, and sometimes they open up a few seats through OMAKASE, Pocket Concierge, or TableCheck.While I won't mention the address since it's not publicly available, it's conveniently located for me. I often found myself hesitating when I received emails about restaurants like F from Akita or Kobanzushi from Fukushima, wondering whether to go. However, since it's a pop-up service with a limited duration, I often couldn't align my schedule, and compared to the prices at the actual locations, it felt quite expensive, so I hadn't participated until now.However, I recently learned that the famous yakitori restaurant "Yakitori Taniguchi" from Mukonoso, Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture, would be featured, so I decided to visit "Sou" for the first time, making a reservation through OMAKASE.While the omakase course at the restaurant costs JPY 16,500, the meal-only course is JPY 32,600, and the course with alcohol pairing is JPY 39,200, which is quite pricey. However, considering the transportation and accommodation costs for the staff, as well as the profits for "Sou," a certain level of markup is understandable. Moreover, since they are not currently taking new reservations, and the only way to get in is to catch last-minute openings on the restaurant's Instagram, it felt reasonable to consider the travel and accommodation costs to Hyogo as a good deal. I also opted for the alcohol pairing, which only added about JPY 6,000, and it includes a total of 400ml (just over 2 go) served with every 3-4 dishes.Now, "Yakitori Taniguchi" is a restaurant from Hyogo, but the owner, Yuta Taniguchi, was born in Mitaka, Tokyo. Influenced by the personality of the master at the yakitori shop where he worked part-time during high school, he initially joined a transportation company but returned to the food industry. After managing a yakitori franchise in Osaka, he opened his restaurant in Mukonoso, a city he fell in love with. The restaurant features only a counter with a course that serves four whole rare Takasaka chickens to eight guests. Apparently, Takasaka chickens stop laying eggs after 115 days, which depletes their nutrients, so they only source and process chickens that are under 115 days old.On the other hand, "Sou" is quite spacious. Although it only has counter seating, there are a total of 12 seats, which is about 50% more than usual. Additionally, the charcoal grill set up in the island kitchen behind the counter was purchased in partnership with "Sou" specifically for this occasion. They really invested in this! By the way, right after our visit, a popular yakitori restaurant from Yokohama, "1000," called asking to use the grill. They offered to rent it for JPY 5,000 a day, haha.So, given the different number of customers and the unique circumstances, let's enjoy the yakitori from "Yakitori Taniguchi."- Chicken Consommé Soup A rich and delicious soup made from chicken bones. So good!- Sashimi of White Meat (Breast) Served with ginger soy sauce. Chewy and delicious!- Presentation of Liver - Sashimi of Liver, Heart, and Gizzard Drizzled with sesame oil and served with salt. This is where the true quality of Takasaka chicken shines. The white liver of Takasaka chicken rivals foie gras!Now, let's move on to the yakitori.- Chopped Breast Meat Served with fresh wasabi to taste. The chewy texture is consistent with the sashimi, and the umami between the skin and meat is strong—this is delicious!- Chopped Thigh Meat First, enjoy the meat alone, and when the fat spreads in your mouth, add some salted fresh pepper. Ah, this method is quite logical! The sweetness of the fat pairs perfectly with the spicy fresh pepper. Amazing!- Oni Oroshi A palate cleanser. Refills are free.Now, let's move on to the skewers.- Tsukune Starting with tsukune?! So soft! The inside is slightly rare. Fluffy and delicious!!The serving plates are carefully wiped clean after each dish.- Tomato Is this a fruit tomato? Sweet and juicy, with a firm texture at the core—delicious!- Red Meat (Inner Thigh) I thought red meat with wasabi was odd, but this juicy and flavorful red meat pairs well with wasabi.- Chicken Wings Add lime to taste. Hot! The fatty skin and subcutaneous fat are delicious!- Lightly Pickled Cucumber and Myoga A palate cleanser. Refills are also free.- Liver Paste Of course, the liver paste is great, but the toasted bread is delicious too!- Negima Served hot! Ah, but it's tender and perfectly seasoned with salt—so delicious!- 3L Asparagus from Hokkaido Oshitani Farm This is some thick asparagus! The stalks are juicy and fresh! The tips are fragrant and tender—delicious! They say 3L or larger is only available for a short period.They were grilling two more skewers, and after that, we would finish with chicken rice and soup, so I ordered two additional skewers and a pudding. There are six types available, but since there aren't enough for everyone, I could only choose the quantity, not the types, so I requested two additional skewers and a pudding.- Upper Thigh With tare sauce. This is the upper part of the thigh that was served as chopped meat. It has some fat, but the meat is quite lean.- Furikake Meat around the shoulder. Topped with soy sauce-pickled green onions. The umami of the meat is incredible! It’s fluffy and too delicious!- Additional Bonjiri A firm bonjiri with a crispy texture—delicious!- Additional Thigh Joint (Soriresu) Topped with kanzuri. The skin is juicy, the subcutaneous fat is full of flavor, and the meat is tender—perfect!They also served seseri and back liver.- Meal - Chicken Rice - Chicken Soup Freshly cooked, the breast meat is tender, and the chicken rice is delicious! The soup is rich in flavor and very tasty.- Additional Pudding Wow! It has an incredibly rich color! And the taste is also very rich and delicious! It’s from a shop called "2/2" in Fukuoka.Wow, it was really delicious. I’ve had Takasaka chicken several times, including at the specialized restaurant "Katsu Tori" in Shibuya, but this was also delicious. It might be even better when enjoyed at the restaurant in Hyogo.By the way, I also ordered two additional skewers, pudding, a beer (Heartland medium bottle), a Yamazaki highball, and mineral water, and the total was JPY 7,450.Incidentally, I heard they plan to open a restaurant in June in Tenjinbashi, Osaka. The owner, Taniguchi, will be working at the Osaka location, while the second-in-command woman who assisted on this day will manage the current Mukonoso restaurant.Recently, I’ve only been making day trips to Kansai, so I’ve been wanting to stay overnight this year. I hope to enjoy yakitori at either the Tenjinbashi or Mukonoso location—or maybe both! It was a great meal! Less