ゆぽんた
"Unagi is my favorite food. I visited the popular restaurant "Unagi Tokitou" in Azabu-Juban, where the owner, Mr. Tokitou, has 15 years of experience in eel cuisine after graduating from junior high school and working as a head chef at various restaurants, including overseas in France. In June 2018, he opened the world's first Unagi French Kaiseki Tokitou in Azabu-Juban, and I had the pleasure of trying their eel lunch course.
The lunch course starts for everyone at 12:00. First, there's the "Tokitou's Specialty Eel Bar," where the acidity of tomatoes perfectly complements the grilled eel. Today, we are served eel from Aichi Prefecture, and Mr. Tokitou proudly shows it to all the customers. The counter seats are right in front of the kitchen, making it an enjoyable space where you can watch the live cooking. Mr. Tokitou skillfully slices, skewers, and grills the eel right in front of you.
There's also a soup with fried eel and marinated turnips, which I love for its crispy texture. The three appetizers at Unagi Tokitou are delightful. The "Umaki" eel rolls come with a condiment of Arima sansho pepper, giving it a subtle fragrance of Japanese pepper. The eel and omar shrimp in cream sauce are rich in flavor, and the eel liver pate has a concentrated umami that pairs wonderfully with sake.
Since Unagi Tokitou is a French Kaiseki restaurant, we enjoyed some wine. I had a glass of Pinot Noir with my meal. There's even a chunk of prosciutto on display in front of the counter, which is a rare sight at an eel restaurant. Next, they served the "Shiroyaki" dish, which is grilled eel with prosciutto, sudachi citrus, wasabi, plum paste, salt, and yuzu pepper. Mr. Tokitou entertained us with stories about the superstitions surrounding the combination of eel and plum. The prosciutto and plum paste complemented the crispy Shiroyaki perfectly.
Then came the eel pasta, made with eel-infused tomato sauce and penne pasta. It's impressive how eel can be used in both Japanese and Western cuisines to create delicious dishes. Finally, it was time for the "Unaju," the eel over rice. Mr. Tokitou proudly grilled the eel and presented it with a mischievous smile. A three-minute hourglass was also placed alongside the dish, and we were instructed to open the lid once the hourglass ran out. It turns out that the eel is steamed inside the box. I asked for a smaller portion of rice, and I enjoyed the high-quality fatty eel from Aichi. It was tender and cooked to perfection, quite different from the days of "Ginza Tokitou." The rice had a firm texture, which I personally prefer.
I found the eel dishes at Unagi Tokitou to be quite innovative. This unique approach to eel cuisine is a result of Mr. Tokitou's extensive training at the renowned Nodaiwa restaurant and his experiences in France, particularly in Paris, where he learned about Western culinary culture. Eel is also used as an ingredient in European cuisine, and the collaboration between traditional Japanese cooking methods and French techniques is something to look forward to in the future.
You can also enjoy the famous Unagi Burger at Unagi Tokitou in Azabu-Juban."
探访者于2021年3月23日探访了位于东京港区麻布十番的"うなぎ時任"餐厅。这家餐厅的地址是東京都港区麻布十番2-5-11 AZABU MAISON 201,休息日是星期日、土用的丑年日、星期一和星期四的午餐休息日。详细信息可以在他们的网站http://tokitou-unagi.jp/或食べログ上找到。