This French restaurant in Asakusa has two Michelin stars and is ranked 2024th in the 50 Asia's Top 80.

Chef Noboru Arai moved to France at the age of 24. He trained at the then two-star Le Clos des Cimes in Paris (now the three-star Régis et Jacques Marcon) and the one-star Auberge La Feniere in the south of France.

His master, Regis Marcon, cooks dishes that incorporate Italian cuisine. I think that this free spirit flows through Arai. Or rather, as I will reveal later, the breadth of his cooking seems to far exceed that of his master.

After all, Chef Arai must love cooking. And he can't help but want to feed his guests the new dishes he discovers by working with ingredients. This is evident just from the fact that six amuse bouche dishes are served before the first dish on the handed-out course menu (for the 38500 yen course. This time, we asked for smaller portions).

Each and every item is beautifully crafted, painstakingly crafted, and the anticipation of what will come next keeps you feeling excited.

An exciting new experience zone starting with amuse bouche

First, we start with four amuse bouches. The "hummus made from beans and sesame paste" (photo, front) is seasoned with Kikaijima sesame oil and extra virgin olive oil. It's the best hummus I've ever had. The "Korokatsugi" (center right) seasoned with bagna cauda takes you by surprise. The crouton-like "focaccia" (back center) is topped with semi-dried tomatoes seasoned with tapenade sauce and garnished with bronze fennel.

At the beginning of the course, the wide variety of spices seemed to be intended to awaken the five tastes of the eater. By the way, the focaccia was my favorite.

My mouth and stomach are already prepared.

What!? A French restaurant serving sushi rolls?!

These dishes alone are a dizzying amount of effort. If the ingredients are diverse, the recipes and seasonings don't matter whether they're from the East or the West. It's amazing how each dish converges on the sole goal of being delicious.

However, I received a slight shock when the next two dishes were served: both were variations on sardines, but the one at the back was a sushi roll.

The "Sardine Consommé" in the foreground is made by bruleeing Aiko tomatoes, coating them with black garlic miso, and pouring consommé made from charcoal-grilled sardines over them. These tomatoes are shockingly good. So good, it's a bit surprising. The fact that they've been charred enhances their sweetness, but the miso applied to them elevates the flavor to another dimension. It's like eating a new tomato. Wow, I can't believe they came up with such a seasoning. Consommé is a stock, and it pairs wonderfully with tomatoes.

I was quite surprised to see "sardine sushi roll" in the middle of a French course, but it went straight down my stomach without any discomfort.

A white gazpacho that can only be described as genius

The first dish that finally appeared on the menu was "Blue Lobster."

It is made with the idea of ​​using the entire lobster. The lobster meat is simply boiled, lightly scented with charcoal, and then topped with a generous amount of the finest caviar. It is served with yellow sabayon sauce and lobster consommé jelly.

What really stood out to me was the side dish of "lobster arm and claw salad," which was, in short, a gazpacho unlike anything I'd ever tasted.

The ingredients are amazing. Boiled lobster is surrounded by muscat grapes, melon, pear, raspberry and blueberries. The gazpacho, which has already been turned into a consommé, is then finished into a white gazpacho by adding almond paste and milk. The berries add a sour taste, and the pear cut into spherical shapes rolls sweetly and pleasantly in the mouth... The almond milk that connects it all together is nothing short of genius, and I'm sorry to use a mediocre description. I want to eat it again right now!

The best green beans I've ever had. Amazing century eggs!

I was also really surprised by the five kinds of "snacks" that were served next. The two that surprised me the most were the following. First, the "Spring Roll Tart" (center left) was a spring roll tart baked with maple syrup and smashed butter, filled with rhubarb jam and tofu cream, and topped with a salad of green beans cut into 5 mm pieces.

The "Peace egg and jellyfish tart" (back center) is made by tossing the yolk of a century egg in a white sesame sauce and topping it with lentils. It is surrounded by chopped century egg whites and jellyfish marinated in black vinegar.

Each of the five snacks had a very clear and powerful flavor profile, but I was particularly impressed by the deliciousness of the green beans. Green beans are a difficult vegetable to cook because of their watery, grassy taste, but this may have been the first time I've ever thought that green beans were so delicious, apart from in tempura and Chinese cuisine.

The most surprising items were the century egg and jellyfish. They were right in the middle of Chinese food. The fermented smell of century egg was barely noticeable. The sourness of the jellyfish neutralized the richness of the sticky yolk, making it a snack that was simply delicious. I thought these two dishes were masterpieces.

It's only because of the "homage" to the material

It should be noted that although Chef Arai presents combinations of ingredients that have never been tried before, these are not forced together by any means.

What is always felt is the humility of the chef as he confronts the "essence of umami" that the ingredients possess. You can sense this from the restaurant's name, "Homage." I apologize for sounding condescending, but I am even moved by the fact that Japanese French creation has reached this level.

The restaurant has been evolving for 2000 years since it first opened in 24, and the chef is undoubtedly at the peak of his career.

The perfectly cooked tilefish is irresistible

Finally, the main dish, "Shirakawa tilefish" was served (top image). The tilefish from Ehime Prefecture was grilled on a pine cone over charcoal. It was accompanied by potatoes, sweet corn, and edamame, and the sauce was a vermouth-based blue blanc sauce with caviar, resulting in a caviar sauce.

The chef's cooking is perfect. The skin is crispy and the meat is cooked to perfection, giving off a rich aroma. The caviar sauce that goes with it is a superb block of flavor with little saltiness, enveloped in the sweetness of potatoes and edamame. The already excellent meat of the tilefish is transformed into something even more delicious when combined with the sauce. I was truly impressed.

The second main dish was "Tokyo Shamo". The contents were pan-fried langoustine and ravioli with Shamo and prosciutto. It was poured with Tokyo Shamo bouillon (superior soup stock) and garnished with kinome leaf buds. The superior soup stock was comforting and really comforting. I felt a sense of style in the way the soup was sandwiched in between the dishes.

The final main course was roasted "wagyu skirt steak" from Hokkaido, a specialty of the chef. The meat was cooked to perfection. The beef diaphragm was juicy with little fat. The meat was cooked just right, and the sweetness and umami of the meat spread the more you chewed it. The sauce, called jeu de laulier, was excellent and brought out the flavor of the meat to the fullest.

Three beautiful and delicate desserts

The two pastry chefs are also masters.

The first dessert was a new interpretation of "Kaminariokoshi." Delaware is placed at the bottom, peanut and rice ice cream and mousse are placed on top, and gold leaf, a familiar motif in Asakusa, is placed on top. The balance between the crispy texture and the softness of the mousse is exquisite, but the dessert is very restrained and aesthetically pleasing, maintaining an air of elegance.

The third was "Japanese Pear," a Fukushima Prefecture Nansui compote topped with white chocolate mousse, sudachi sorbet, and a foam flavored with margao, a spice used in Taiwan, topped with shaved roasted white chocolate. This was a masterpiece!

One last thing to add is that, despite the course boasting such a large number of dishes, the timing of the food coming out was excellent.

The location of Asakusa is probably the best thing about it. There is not even a trace of pretentiousness. And yet, the sommelier and staff, led by the wife dressed in a traditional kimono, are extremely friendly and the service is impeccable. It's a really pleasant place, and makes you want to keep coming back and experience the chef's endless talents.

Tribute

Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo 4-10-5
Tel: 03-3874-1552
11: 30 to 15: 00, 18: 00 to 22: 30
Closed: Mondays and Tuesdays
Only chef's choice courses are available for both lunch and dinner.
Lunch: 14000 yen, 28000 yen, 38500 yen (tax included, service charge not included)
Dinner: 28000 yen, 38500 yen (tax included, service charge not included)