tokyo food file

Found my way upstairs and had a smoke...

Three from the smokehouse:  A nice plump trout, some slices of kamaboko; and cream cheese.

And a bottle of Sapporo "Red Star" lager.

I don't even remember the name of the place now.

But that fish was good…

Jim Meehan @ the New York Bar

It's always a fun evening in the New York Bar, up at the very apex of the Shinjuku Park Tower. With that sleek sexy setting – and that horizon-to-horizon night-time view – how could it not be? But last week's short residency by mixologist Jim Meehan was a little bit special.

Anyone who has ever made it to PDT, Mehan's speakeasy basement bar in NYC – I haven't yet, but intend to now – will know that he makes a mean cocktail, even if the high-rise setting was a bit different.

You can tell he means business, not so much from this serious "on the record" shot...

but from watching him in action...

  

And, of course, from what's in the glass. 

This little number (below) was the Dry Prefecture – made with mugi (barley) shochu, Yamazaki 12-years single malt, and Canton ginger liqueur. A great way to start the evening... 

 

Followed by the very tasty Lion's Den: 1800 Reposado tequila, yellow chartreuse, lime juice, agave syrup and shishito pepper. Plus plenty of ice, and shiso leaves on top.

 

Next up, the Oki-Nomi: Brugal añejo rum, awamori, cream de cacao white, passion fruit and lime juice, plus — yes indeed — a dash of okonomiyaki sauce. Served up in a classic tiki cocktail mug. Great stuff!

  

 

There were a few more after that, both on- and off-menu, including the Yuzu Shandy; the peerless Pierless; the Green Thumb; and the Alembic (made with Belgian peach lambic beer). But the photos got increasingy blurred… 

Along with its cocktails, PDT – that's short for Please Don't Tell – has developed a name for its hot dogs. For this event, the New York Grill produced three special recipes, and they were excellent. 

 

Actually, this was the only one I tried, but it was a monster: the Teriyaki Mayo dog, with smoked brats and braised burdock -- think gobo no kinpira, but with extra teriyaki spice in the sauce.

A dog worthy of a New York architectural icon...

seasonal brews 3: the Watering Hole big birthday party

 

On Wednesday, we dropped into the ever-welcoming Watering Hole in Yoyogi, to help celebrate the birthdays of owner Emuchiko-san and manager Nontan-san — amazingly they share the same day...

 

 

As always, there were plenty of great brews on the drink menu, starting with these specials, two non-orthodox Pilsners. Brewed by the Nihonkai Club in Ishikawa, they were as hopped up as premium IPAs. Not to everyone's taste, maybe, but most refreshing...

 

Next we turned to a couple of seasonal brews we'd been eying up on the online menu ahead of time… On the right, a Sakura doppelbock, brewed by the folks at Fujizakura Heights. And on the left, Yuzu Pale Ale (W-IPA real ale) from Minoh.

 

I always enjoy the Kata-akari chips (aka fried potatoes) at the Wateringhole, cooked in wedges with the skin on...

What else did we drink? It's hard to remember clearly, but we certainly ended with the Yaho whiskey oak barrel barley wine. Good stuff!

 

Kampai! And happy birthday!!

seasonal brews 2: Tazawako Cherry Beer

And no better way to welcome the blossoms than a brew of Sakura Beer. It's from Tazawako Beer in Akita Pref., and it's made with a yeast that is (somehow) extracted from cherry trees — not clear about the science here, so if anyone can contribute...

 

Bottom line, though, is that it's excellent — and totally seasonal, of course — and so is Craft Beet Market Jimbocho, which is where we supped on it.

As always, there were plenty of good comestibles to go with it. Starting with a nice fresh salad of new-season shungiku (chrysanthemum) greens...

 

…and then the lamb tsukune — actually more like a giant Indian seekh kebab, with plenty of cumin in that jumbo patty.

 

Great stuff — in fact, worth a lingering close-up...

 

What a buzzy fun place it is, Craft Beer Market. Just don't go along expecting a pub. It's not, it's closer to an izakaya in feel. You go for the food as much as the (excellent and well-priced) drink. If the tables are full, you just have to wait — and most nights you won't be the only people on the waiting list.

 

Here's the relevant section of the menu...

 

Here's a link to my piece for CNN... What's changed since then is that as of last month, Craft Beer Market Jimbocho is now open on Saturdays. It's just as popular, though.

And hold your hats for the third Craft Beer Market. Before the summer is out!

 

seasonal brews 1: Oiso Kotatsu-Mikan Belgian White & Sake-kasu Golden Ale

There's no better way to welcome in early spring than with some good seasonal brews and eats...

Down in Fujisawa, at Komazawa Shuzo's Mokichi Craft Beer, we sipped on Shonan Beers's early-spring special, Oiso Kotatsu-Mikan Belgian White (that's the pint on the right; the one on the left is the year-round IPA.)

The mikan in the ale are mandarin oranges — the kind you nibble on as you sit around the kotatsu heater in winter — grown on a farm in Oiso, Kanagawa Pref., which is just down the road from the brewery. The fruit adds just a light citrus buzz, nothing too sharp or acidic, so it doesn't overpower the food...

 

Which included a salad with hamaguri clams, strips of udo and nanohana greens...

 

…as well as deep-fried new-season bamboo shoots with batter-fried morsels of kasago scorpion fish — an ale batter, of course — on a tasty sauce americaine. 

 

Shonan Beer is producing some excellent new brews these days. We also tried this little number (on the right): Sake-kasu Golden Ale. It's produced with the addition of some sake lees — what's left after the sake is pressed — giving the ale a slightly more complex yeast profile. Intriguing indeed.

The brew on the left is the real ale chocolate porter. Also excellent.

 

I posted about Mokichi Craft Beer last year here...

And many moons back I wrote a column about the Komazawa brewery in my Japan Times column... Well worth the day trip!