喘息男
I had been experiencing the Ban-san course at Yoroniku multiple times, but a considerable amount of time has passed, so I decided to visit the new location at Azabudai Hills. As a country bumpkin, I first got lost in Azabudai Hills. Enjoying the Ban-san course in a store with outstanding luxury and a view of Azabudai Hills was a true delight. The meat quality isn’t at a god-like level, but it was all about determining the best thickness for cutting those meats. I explored how to season, how to cook, and how to make the eating experience interesting through Ban-san's original dishes.
✔ Kimchi
✔ Namul
✔ Beef sashimi
✔ Tomosankaku (beef) - based on red meat, it was marbled and suitable for raw consumption.
✔ Tenderloin - only slightly cooked on the outside, giving a melt-in-your-mouth sweetness as soon as it hit the palate.
✔ Yukhoe bruschetta - many places have imitated this style, but Yoroniku is the original. First, the baguette is toasted (laughs), and then topped with exquisite yukhoe.
✔ Tongue - pan-seared on one side, it had a jaw-droppingly soft texture, delivering a fluffy mouthfeel, often referred to as "Erotan."
✔ Grilled tongue with seaweed - this unique way of enjoying grilled seaweed wraps was a first for me, elevating the flavor experience.
✔ Salad - flavored with Kagoshima apple vinegar.
✔ Shinshin - I love the finely textured mouthfeel of this cut among the various types of leg cuts.
✔ Tsuchinoko - the rare red meat from the lower back, said to be mythical due to its scarcity, was incredibly tender with a melting quality. The sweetness lingered beautifully.
✔ Special menu - filet mignon with corn. I wondered how they did it; it seemed like they hollowed out the corn cob to insert the filet. The cooking was perfect, giving the meat a chewy texture, and the sweetness of the corn wrapped around it was just heavenly.
✔ Caviar hand rolls - featuring raw meat, caviar, and gold flakes, it looked luxurious. Despite the flashy appearance, the balance was remarkable, combining the sweetness of the meat fat with the saltiness of the caviar perfectly.
✔ Chateaubriand - cooked carefully, then folded and shaped to steam the inside. The tenderloin was as fluffy as feathers. Incredible.
✔ Silken roast - grilled by smashing it onto the grill, resulting in varying levels of doneness that creates an interesting flavor and texture experience. You could taste the umami of the meat directly.
✔ Thinly sliced beef tripe - I rarely come across thinly cut tripe outside of Osamu-chan, so I was excited.
✔ Koppu-chan (beef intestine) - served with plenty of ponzu; a refreshing dish.
✔ Fillet cutlet sandwich - using bread from Sentorubakery, carefully and slowly baked at low temperatures. The fillet cutlet was served first, eaten simply with salt. The cooking was impeccable, and the finesse, thinness, and binding of the coating were extraordinary. After a long time, I realized that the fillet cutlet I had at Ban-san was on another level. The bread was finally finished, the cutlet was sandwiched, cut, and I quickly requested a finishing pose from Ban-san before eating it swiftly. The bread was perfectly crispy and fluffy, surprisingly detailed, complementing the beef cutlet well. The meat had a delicate texture and was tenderly chewable, with the coating providing just enough sensation. An exquisite item that made me swoon.
✔ Zabuton's truffle sukiyaki - lightly dipped in broth, the zabuton was then generously topped with truffle. I realized this style was also my first experience at Yoroniku. When the egg yolk was mixed in so much that it became fluffy, the aroma intensified and created a wonderful unity of flavors. Delicious, it made my cheeks melt. I even added rice to the leftover truffle egg yolk, essentially making it the reason for doing sukiyaki! (laughs) Unbeatable.
✔ Meat ochazuke - I experienced this style first at Yoroniku, and it has been upgraded, with Ban-san saying, “I’ll add mango sorbet!” That yellow paste was actually bottarga. I thought the hot broth might make it fishy, but it was perfectly calculated and matched wonderfully.
✔ Chilled tantanmen with raw meat - Let’s just say I broke it up. The cold, creamy soup and moderate spiciness were fantastic. The exquisite cut of the raw meat that accompanied the noodles was a new texture experience. Amazing! The noodles were smooth, and the meat had a delightful chewiness. Absolutely brilliant.
Finally, for dessert, I had shaved ice, which was my first time trying dessert at a yakiniku restaurant at Yoroniku.
✔ Hojicha shaved ice
✔ Shirokuma (Kakigori) shaved ice - I was full, but I could still eat this! The hojicha fragrance with the milky feel of Shirokuma was just superb. The quality of the ice was impressive, rivaling that of a dedicated shaved ice shop. I remembered being deeply moved at Yoroniku years ago. Since then, I’ve had various dishes, but very few have compared. Today, I was able to rediscover that feeling after several years, and it felt great to confirm that Yoroniku and Ban-san are truly supreme.