La Rochelle ~ Shibuya (Iron Chef Sakai)

Lucky last! La Rochelle was the restaurant we picked to close out our holiday to Japan for this year. Some of us who have watched Iron Chef on TV, enjoy the entertainment of the weekly 'secret ingredient', while some of us mock the english voice overs, while there are others whom I know who follow it religiously. For me, I was always amused by the theatrics that came with each episode, the costume that the Chairman Kaga puts on, the guest judges ranging from food critics to has-been TV starlets. And the iron chefs themselves: The likes of 'sakai' and 'chen'...etc, I thought, were all ficticious, despite their dramatic introductions with each episode....wow, I was wrong. Turns out those Iron Chefs did have restaurants in real life! I blame my late realisation that wrestling was all staged for my scepticism. Must thank Mally for telling me to check La Rochelle out. I don't know a bigger fan of Sakai than Mally. More of this later.

La Rochelle has 3 locations in Japan. I went to the one in Shibuya.... a location that is always a delight! The famed 'shibuya crossing' where masses of people converge at a busy pedestrian crossing with one common goal: to get to the other side of the road. Oddly enough, when Ella and I were last there, it was considerably less crowded at the crossing. Check the crowd out. Kewpie says hello too!

Before we left the hotel that morning, we made sure to get directions on how to get to the restaurant.
We made note of which subway exit to take and which building to head for... when we got to Shibuya station, that plan didn't quite pan out... but after a few short moments and finding our bearings, we got to La Rochelle right on time for our lunch reservation. Along the way, we probably picked up a dozen packets of promotional tissue. Love it!

We took the lift up to the 32F of the Shibuya Cross Tower. When the lift doors opened, we were immediately greeted by someone from La Rochelle. As we were being ushered to our tables, someone from the reception desk calls out "chotto matte..." ~ I stop and turn... at this time I think to myself, "Oh crap they are going to kick me out cos I am not dressed up to spec....instead, I am greeted by, no, not Chef Sakai, but (who turns out to be their Director of Sales and Marketing) an impeccably dressed gentleman who asks me, "Would you like a private room so that we can set everything up for you and talk you through the menu?" Confused? Well, at the time of making the reservation I informed the restaurant that I was coming from Sydney and wanted to take some pictures during my meal.  My stomach has a quick word to my brain and I politely decline. I explain that I am very happy sitting with everyone else.  I had also decided to leave the scary camera in the hotel and use Ella's camera for today's lunch. It didn't seem right to have them go through all that trouble and for me to whip out a little point and shoot. I was very impressed with their hospitality though.

First impressions of the restaurant: bright and 'quietly' buzzy. Fancy, elegant but no tacky. Not as 'serious' as Joel Robuchon which made me relax a little more (remember my shabby dressing?).... and a great expansive view of the city from level 32. Ooh, Hermes crockery. Nice!

We have a look at the menu and quickly decide to go with the 'Maestro' menu (yes, it's the degustation that offers the most courses) ~ 6 courses including dessert. I won't go into too much detail about the food. Suffice to say, the Japanese maintain a very high standard of french cuisine at all levels. La Rochelle is one example of making french cuisine accessible to everyone without burning a hole in your wallet.

amuse bouche - 9 kinds of small appetisers

sauteed scallop, fish, steak with foie gras and truffle sauce. it is worth mentioning that the foie gras was totally devine. yes. there is alot of chatter about the unethical way in which foie gras comes to the table, but I make no excuse of liking it.

BULL DOG MOMENT: Here's a funny story that happened during service. I have to admit, that it's hard to understand some of the verbal descriptions that come presented with the food. After all, I did mistake "LAMB" for "RUMP" at Joel Robuchon... so I resolved just to smile and nod when  presented with food. I wasn't going to probe and ask if I didn't understand. Anway, we were up to the 'soup of the day'.... the waiter tells us it's "vegetable soup....with BOO DOG" ~ I look up, turn to him and repeat with eye brows raised like a curtain at a concert "BULL DOG??" And the waiter replies, "Hai, hai... bull dog! Chotto, I get pictures to show you" he says. I try very hard not to laugh right away... and as soon as he turned around, I burst out laughing... as quietly as I could... (again, you see why no one asks me out to fancy restaurants? *sighs*)

Soup of the day "vegetable with boo dog"

Dessert came in the form of a wagon which got Ella very excited. We had the choice of 1 of each if we wanted. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so I opted for things which I liked: panacotta, sorbet, green tea pound cake and a lovely jelly. *Click into image to enlarge*

At some point during service, the Director of Sales and Marketing (Chiharu-san) comes over for a chat. We talk about the food and Sakai... he then comes back with a laminated A3 sheet and says to me "I hope you don't mind, this is Sakai's handwritten notes of the menu." I was like "Wow, thank you..." and I bow profusely whilst sitting in my seat (probably should have gotten up to thank him). Chiharu-san goes on to explain that Sakai's in Sydney at the time, checking on produce. He also mentions that Sakai's got a good friend, Chef Harunobo Inukai, who own Blancharu in Elizabeth Bay. We chat some more and Chiharu-san leaves me his business card and even prints out details of Blancharu! Take a guess who was the lucky recipient of Sakai's menu?

Towards the end of dessert, we get given some macarons as well. I am a big fan of them. Am just intrigued by the colours, combinations of fillings and textures that macarons come in. And so I spend the next 30mins just taking pictures of the macarons.... all this while Ella goes "can i eat them yet? can i eat them yet?"

Definitely an enjoyable dining experience! I looked at my watch and we've been here for more than 3 hours, yet it doesn't feel like it. Ella and I walk out of La Rochelle feeling very full and happy. As we descend down in the lift, we debate what we liked in each of the 3 restaurants we tried on this holiday, but we decided in the end (in a very short space of time, with the fast descend down from level 32), each was unique in itself! Doors open: shopping time!

Just for abit of fun: this was the store we visited on our last night in Tokyo! It has 11 floors of shopping. 5 for boys and 5 for girls. There's a half naked buff dude that greets people at the entrance (come on ladies, you know this place). What you see in this picture below is winding stairs from about Level 8 towards the ground. 

If you know the name of this chain store... just leave a blog comment. DOE-MOE-A-REE-GER-TO

L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon (Tokyo)

The last time we were in Tokyo, the fanciest meal was probably sushi at the Tsujiki Fish Markets and
Gonpachi - with thanks to Carrie, who despite a crazy, fully hectic, work schedule,  took time to take us out to sample some of Roppongi's many restaurants. That was quite a delightful experience. Kill Bill fans will immediately recognise the restaurant.

Fast forward some 3 years since our last trip to Japan... amongst some changes: all the kids in our family got married. In this time, I also took up new hobbies: baking, flying, candle making and did more with my passion for photography. Perhaps the most dramatic change taste wise, is that I've gone from disliking sparking water to actually enjoying it ~ it all strangely came together when we spent 4 weeks in Europe last year where I also discovered confit of duck! ooh lah lah!

OK, so this time in Tokyo, having heard so much about the quality of french cuisine in Japan, we knew we had to sample what was on offer. After Iggy's in Singapore, the natural choice was Joel Robuchon's L'Atelier ~ ranked #20 in the Miele Food Guide. Incidentally, it was Joel Robuchon's restaurant of the same name in Hong Kong that knocked Iggy's off the top spot and took top honours for 2009/2010.

So in the lead up to our trip, I made a lunch reservation via email. The staff at L'Atelier were very professional. You could already feel that the experience was going to be something special!

We decided to head to Roppongi Hills for a wander before our lunch time reservation. I love Roppongi Hills. I don't know why exactly, but I just do! 'Midtown' is a very swish mall. I won't call it a shopping centre, but that just doesn't do it justice. It was super cool 3 years ago.... and it's still cool today!

Ella with some cherry blossoms

 Midtown ~ they have a dude that adjust the frequency of the droplets every morning before opening hours

One of the fancy supermarkets in Midtown: Y$85 to A$1 (today's rates)

Melon: A$82

Cherries: A$176

Mango: A$70

more of Midtown

Where's Wally?

Lunch beckons... 2 stops to Ebisu from Roppongi

After a short scenic walk from Ebisu station towards Yebisu Gardens:

The entrance to Joel Robuchon's castle is not up front. I told Ella she needs to say "open sesame"... that didn't work. In the end, we found the entrance and was greeted by someone from the restaurant in typical japanese politeness and ushered to the foyer of the 'castle'. L'Atelier is located on the 2nd level of the castle and a short flight of stairs later reveals the restaurant. 

As we are seated, I note that everyone is impeccably dressed, as is Ella for the occasion (note, I was in my usual, ie, looking like a bum in Japan). When we made the reservation I did make a purposeful mention that I would be taking photographs of our meals, just so they could put me where the 'light' is. However, once we were seated (Ella's bag got a little velvet chair to 'sit on' and my camera too got a little chair), amongst the grandeur of our surroundings, I quickly summised that the dining patrons wouldn't appreciate the shutter of my camera going off. Bugger, I didn't really want to use the point and shoot.

And here it goes. We order the lunch degustation. There were a couple of options, but we chose the one with the most food (hey, don't judge me...I was a fat kid growing up). Apologies for the photos, as it turns out, my point and shoot was flashing "RECHARGE"....oops...I swear it had full bars when I checked in the morning. Ella reminds me at this time that between waking up and getting to L'Atelier that I did my usual... happy snapping!

 amuse bouche ~ grapefruit, champagne, mint jelly

ENTREE

seiche de printempts confite aux aromates avec une salade de haricots vert aux amandes et "espuma" de poivron rouge ~ baby squid marinated with rosemary (ella)

foie gras de canard en duo de boudin noir avec un fondant de abricot (dexter)

SOUP

 laitue en fin veloute sur un flan trembolant a l'oignon doux ~ cream of lettuce (dexter)

radis noir en bouillon au gingembre, crabe et champignon ~ ginger broth, crab, mushroom, radish (ella)

Funny story: the waiter was trying to explain that for mains we had a choice of fish and meat. After opting for our choice of fish, he went on to explain. For meat: we have "rum" or "beef" - makes sense! For some reason, Ella couldn't make out what the waiter was saying.... I just repeated, "rump, Ella... you know... beef..." OR SO WE THOUGHT! As it turns out, it was lamb, not rump.... Ella and I burst out laughing.... wait till you hear about what went down at Iron Chef Sakai's La Rochelle.

MAINS ~ FISH

daurade servie avec une creme et huile de citronnelle et des poireaux etuves ~ sea bream with lemongrass (ella). Point and Shoot on last legs. I muster the courage to whip out, a proper camera.

"akaisaki" au bambou et avec une puree de pomme de terre citronnee ~ japanese fish

MAINS ~ MEAT

agneau en cannelloni fondant d'aubergine epice ~ lamb wrapped with eggplant

DESSERT

Pre dessert ~ sorbet to cleanse the palatte

fruits exotiques en gelee de citronnelle et vervine avec une creme vanillee et graines de basillic ~ this is really cool! see the ball that Ella has on her spoon? it's a tiny film of jelly with really intense fruit flavours inside

pomme en fine tarte tiede avec un sorbet au gout d'une tatin ~ mine is not so cool....but still really good

selection of cheese ~ this was Ella's pick

Pre tea / coffee dessert ~ pistachio 'something'...very good!

Inside L'Atelier: sugar, the window, the table setting

the dining room

As we rise from our seats to leave the restaurant, we are escorted from the restaurant, directed to the lift (I wanted to take the stairs, but didn't know how to tell the dude). Our friendly waiter/host person rides the lift with us and as the lift door shuts, the maitre'd bows in thanks and appreciation... very nice! Did you know that in Japan, when a plane starts to taxi off from the parking bay, the ground handlers actually stand together, bow and wave 'goodbye' to the departing plane? We could use some of that friendliness around the world! 

Anyway, we find ourselves back in the foyer area. I collect my 'designer' hoodie. Ahem.... and are handed a goodie bag. We are too polite to look inside, but bow and thank our host.

au revoir, merci beaucoup Joel Robuchon...even though you are never in Tokyo...

It was a lovely experience. Ella and I enjoyed every minute of the 3 hour experience. From the castle, to the service, to the interior decor, the choice of bread (sorry, I didn't do it justice), the cheese wagon and of cos, the various courses that we had.

The stand out has to be Ella's soup, my fish and Ella's dessert ~ those were my all time favourites. Everything else was top notch! I felt more relaxed eating at L'Atelier compared to Iggy's even though the decor was way more formal here than in Iggy's. Service was first class and the food, amazing.

An afternoon interlude with Amber

The second week of our trip saw us spending some time in Tokyo. We got the chance to catch up with Carrie and her husband. Carrie used to live in Sydney, but moved to Japan with her husband, Tom. One thing the 4 adults all share in common is a love for food. So each time I've caught up with Carrie, whether it's in Sydney or Japan, there is always alot of food and good food too! Anyway, I'll skip the food pics for this one and just include some pictures taken during the afternoon.

Mind you, Carrie's been married for nearly 6 years now and I've only just met Tom.... *sighs*.... it was only until I promised Carrie that I won't touch Tom inappropriately that she finally relented.

Oh, one final thing... Carrie has a sidekick in Sydney and between the both of them, whenever they see me, they will never fail to either pinch or punch me... or worse still, pinch+punch me.... have they not seen the ad on TV about violence against men? "Australia says nooooo...."

Slideshow:

 

p.s. If anyone needs any recommendations on where to go for food in Tokyo, just ask Carrie... Just email me for her direct contact details.....(ok, I am sensing a virtual kick from Carrie coming my way....)

Iggy's (Singapore)

And so the long awaited holiday kicked off with an early morning departure: first stop, Singapore. This 2 night transit is purely so that Ella can indulge in all the south east asian food that she craves. Don't be mistaken, she's not deprived of it, thanks to the combined efforts of mum and myself...but she just adores her food.

For those who have flown into Sydney, you'd all know how embarrassing the airport is. It has nothing to give, yet it takes so much... your time (to get out of), your energy (baggage clearance is a test of one's patience) and your cash (a 5min ride home costs A$20) . And for those who don't know, Dexter love, love loves aeroplanes and was very excited to stumble across the an OBSERVATION DECK! But I guess I always knew it was there, but like so many things, you just ignore or miss it. So after collecting our boarding passes, I dragged a bleary eyed Ella up some stairs and down some ~ it says "LIFT", but I knew we had to get a headstart on burning some calories.

Just as we got to the observation area, a Singapore Airlines A380 superjumbo breaks through the clouds and oh-so-quietly floats itself towards the ground... in its full glory, flaps down, nose pointed slightly above the horizon. At this time, my brain and heart get into a micro-mini debate: "To snap or not to snap"... ARGGGHHHHH...it was a no brainer. In a matter of a couple of seconds or less, I had my camera bag on the ground, unzipped, camera freed with lens cap off and subject acquired! "CLICK". We hung around for abit more, dishing out scores on landings.... Ella and I felt like judges at a gymnastics meet...all the while I could hear my dad saying "there is no such thing as a good landing..."

Oddly enough, we end up departing for Singapore on an A380... bonus!

Anyway, this post was meant to be about Iggy's. So who the heck is Iggy's? I first heard about it through a fellow foodie, Senri. He professed that it was better than Tetsuya here in Sydney. Big call for all those who have tried Tets. I had to check it out. Oh, here's a secret: Ella and I are probably one of the few food loving people who have not sampled Tetsuya's degustation. Ella's tried many a time... but for some reason I have resisted going to Tet's. Back to Iggy's: The restaurant itself is located in the Regent Hotel, in Singapore. You can read about it from the Miele site. It lost its coveted #1 position to Joel Robuchon (HK).

So here it goes. I am no Matt Preston or AA Gill. So there will be no attempt to be clever with words, humourous or overly descriptive with flavours (partly because I have only had 20mins sleep in the 38hours that have gone by).

Presenting the GASTRONOMIC MENU for March 2010

bread + olive oil

amouche bouche: something to amuse your mouth

white asparagus with duck, truffle

hirame (japanese fish) with micro tomatoes

Oyster from Brittany

Lobster with a Grand Marnier reduction


you can tell I liked this alot... who doesn't like lobster?

Wagyu ~ slow cooked for 40hrs

Egg, slow cooked with white truffle powder

Dessert ~ came in 2 lots: the one below is a play on sweet and sour

this one, they named "SOIL" (banana, walnut, coffee, kalamansi)

And something to go with coffee & tea

A grumpy chef - something I observed. Our 'host' made an effort to change a dessert item on the menu. One of the chefs didn't like it and kinda told off the 'host' in a less than discreet manner. I mean, if I knew what was going on, other patrons did too. FAIL. It does remind me of my time in hospitality.


Patrons are sat around a working island. kinda like a sushi bar. There are also proper dining tables, but this allows the host to explain each dish as it comes out from the kitchen. Personally, am not a fan of this set up... but it's something different to the norm.

And so, that was Gastronomic Menu for March at Iggy's. Am sure you're also wondering what Ella and I thought of the food and the dining experience. For someone that inhales his food, I had to be very restrained with how I ate. I have to make every morsel and crumb count.

What we liked:
Creativity, balance of flavours, dedication to slow cooking, good wine list (tip: try the in house wine ~ you'd be surprised)

What could have been better:
Service: be genuine. Am not saying service was fake, it just lacked warmth. I felt a stronger sense of hospitality from a Japanese Rail train conductor. Explanation of dishes and ingredients: I don't just want to know what or where they come from, I want to understand the background to why they were picked. Maybe I am asking for too much? I also didn't like the seating arrangements.

All in all, I'd say it is a good experience... good play of intense flavours, nothing too overpowering. When the first course came out, I whipered to Ella "Newton Circus".... which is where you'd find all the local 'street/hawker' food... but by the time SOIL was served, I knew we had to park that for another day.

Stay tuned for "How ella goobled up half of singapore for less than A$10"... and Joel Robuchon's L'Atelier in Yebisu Gardens in Tokyo and also a visit to Iron Chef Sakai's La Rochelle in Shibuya.

Here's a Singapore's latest shopping monster, erm, I mean mall. There's lots of good food in the food court. You can't miss this if you are in Singapore!