Dinner at respiración

Dinner at respiración

at respiración on 10 May 2026
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This restaurant has earned 2 Michelin stars and 3 toques from Gault & Millau. It is set in a beautifully renovated traditional townhouse, offering innovative dishes based on Spanish cuisine.The menu features a unique style where only the ingredients are listed, leaving the dish names a mystery. The first dish is sweet shrimp, served as an amuse-bouche on a tart, marinated in salt koji. It looks like fruit, but the melting sweetness of the shrimp, along with the deep flavors of the shell and miso, is simply delicious. The sweet shrimp from Kanazawa is exceptionally rich and tasty, and the presentation is beautiful.Next is a dish featuring new onions, luxuriously simmered in gyokuro tea and topped with caviar. The sweetness of the onion combined with the subtle bitterness of the tea creates a delightful flavor. The dish also contains a fish sauce made from sweet shrimp, adding depth to the umami.The plate with foam features a dish of whelk mixed with chamomile.For zucchini, the first dish is a mousse topped with junsai (water shield). It has a moderate green taste, and the richness from the koji resembles cheese. The second dish is grilled zucchini, marinated in sake lees and Gorgonzola. The pre-cooked pickled zucchini was also presented at the table. Accompanied by a sauce made from Manganji peppers and a white cauliflower sauce, the zucchini is firm and flavorful, enhanced by the smoky aroma from the grilling and the complex tastes of various ingredients. The effort put into preparing two dishes is impressive.The oyster dish was a surprise; it was hidden inside a fried item resembling an American dog. Topped with fluffy homemade prosciutto, it is dipped in a soybean mousse. The hot oyster releases juices like a soup dumpling, making it incredibly delicious. The cooking technique for the oyster is outstanding.Silk Sweet, a type of sweet potato, is served under fried perilla leaves, accompanied by a ragu sauce made from Noto beef. Since game meat was not an option, I had it changed from bear to beef. The sweet Silk Sweet paired with the rich ragu is an unexpected yet delightful combination.The multigrain country bread was average; I have yet to encounter an exceptionally delicious one.The poached Shirosoi fish was cooked perfectly, pairing well with the emulsified sauce. The green asparagus was grilled with dried persimmons, offering a delicious balance of sweetness and green notes.A palate cleanser of tomato, not on the menu, surprised me with a rose-pickled topping. It was frozen, awakening my senses with its coldness.I switched from deer to Iberico beef, which I tried for the first time. A tart with beets and rice was also served. The grilled bamboo shoots were brushed with the sweet shrimp fish sauce again, which was so delicious I wanted to buy it. The beef had a slight gamey taste but couldn't compare to Wagyu.The crab paella, served with aioli sauce, was rich with crab flavor, as if the crab was squeezed for all its worth—simply exquisite. The aioli mellows the dish, but if you want to savor the crab, I recommend enjoying it on its own.The risotto made with larger sweet shrimp, known as gas shrimp, was a must-try in Hokuriku.For dessert, the first dish was sweet koji ice cream, reminiscent of amazake. The second dessert, labeled "Cedar," featured a matcha mousse topped with oil infused with cedar aroma. The cedar flavor was subtle, and as my palate adjusted, it became less pronounced. The milky mousse was topped with kiwi and brown sugar, providing a clear balance of acidity and sweetness.Instead of coffee or tea, a herbal tea made from ten different herbs was served, refreshing my palate and seeming beneficial for my health.The final baked goods included four varieties, offering a generous portion. The blueberry jam frozen with kombu added a Japanese twist. There were also Kaga bocha and brown sugar tuile, sesame and cacao sauce, and kuzumochi with matcha konpeito. The lemoncello meringue added an interesting balance of Japanese and Western flavors.This restaurant truly embodies the concept of local production for local consumption, incorporating not only ingredients from Ishikawa but also cultural elements like stained glass from Oyama Shrine, resulting in a high level of satisfaction. I even received chopsticks made from Noto cypress as a souvenir.It’s a wonderful place that I would proudly recommend to guests from abroad.

8 / 10