Travelog Part Three
Michael Taylor is flown to Tokyo, Japan, by ANA InterContinental Tokyo, where he spends two nights as part of a press trip of journalists and travel writers from Hong Kong.
His first night: cocktails followed a sumptuous dinner at a Michelin stared restaurant. Pictured (left) Chef Pierre Gagnaire.
Eight Restaurants, Four Lounges
The ANA InterContinental Tokyo has 12 food and beverage outlets including eight restaurants and cafés and four hotel bars and lounges.
Included are three Japanese restaurants, a Chinese restaurant, a steak house, a café, and a fine dining restaurant serving French cuisine
Following cocktails at the Mixx Bar & Lounge, we head to the 36th floor for dinner at Pierre Gagnaire at 7.30 pm.
Tokyo has more Michelin starred restaurants than New York and Paris put together, and – with three stars – Pierre Gagnaire is one of them.
The restaurant serves contemporary French cuisine in elegant surroundings with stunning views of the Japanese capital. Open for lunch and dinner, the restaurant serves mouth-watering multi-course set menus.
On the night we dined at the restaurant, we were served an extravagant four course meal. No wonder this restaurant has three Michelin stars!
Our Menu
Foie Gras – jelly, slices and leaves of dried turnips, chantilly of duck foie-gras and white Porto wine, apple and cinnamon ice cream, and red onions. These yummy tidbits were beautifully presented in two neat little rows on glass trays.
Armadai and crunchy leeks with Dundee Pinky sauce – mouth waveringly delicious.
Veal – roasted Hokkaido veal, sauteed salpicon, scampi, and spatzle with black truffle. It looked like a salad, but lurking beneath those fresh veggies were yummy morsels of meat, seafood, and truffles – cooked to perfection and dressed in a delightful sauce! This was the highlight of the evening – except for the scintillating conversation with new friends.
Cheese – Roquefort cream, banyuls reduction, slices of crispy bread, Brillat Savarin matcha tea, milk jelly flavoured with cardamom, brie de Meaux black truffle, corn salad, and quince purees.
A symphony of innovative taste sensations brilliant textures, and unexpected surprises – all wonderfully presented!
Comment
Dining at the restaurant was a memorable experience. The menu was innovative, the food was delicious, the service was impeccable, the surroundings were sumptuous, and the presentation was a delight for the eyes.
What really made the evening enjoyable, however, was the warm hospitality of our charming hosts: Andrew Loader, Area Director of Sales and Marketing Tokyo; Geraldine Lopez, Director of MICE Sales: and Sayuri Koga, Director of Marketing and Communications.
We had only met a couple of hours earlier. By the end of the evening, however, it was as though we had known each other for years.
To Be Continued
This is the third in a series.