Joel Robuchon at Ebisu, Tokyo

And so the first of the Japan posts is finally up! No better way to start chronicling the food adventure than with our only visit to a Michelin starred restaurant (2, the last time we checked) during our trip. I've been to the Joel Robuchon at Roppongi Hills a few years ago, and was quite happy to try the Ebisu outlet since the reviews were pretty good.

The restaurant is housed in a European-style 19th century chateau next to Yebisu Garden Place, which was built on the site of the former Yebisu beer brewery, after which Ebisu (the district) got its name from.
They have a little garden just outside the restaurant. There are 2 restaurants in the chateau - La Table (ie. the cheaper version) at the ground floor, and Joel Robuchon Restaurant on the floor above.

We were at La Table for lunch, since it was the cheaper option. The interiors were very pretty.
Loved the little touches. Even their font is beautiful.
And so is their cutlery and crockery. They have a 2 course lunch for 2950Y, and a 3 course lunch for 3850Y. We all took the 3 course set, which came up to about S$60 per person.
The amuse bouche was a foie gras puree in a shot glass with a slice of biscotti.

It was wonderful. Just too small. The breads before the meal. The EVO was really good.
This entree was called Le Crabe - crab served with an avocado mousse topped with tomato jelly.
A closer look - this was really divine. The tomato jelly was very sweet, tangy and tasted exactly like a fresh tomato in jelly form, and this was very nicely balanced with the creamy avocado. The crab flesh was sweet and succulent.

This was Le Foie Gras - duck liver served with a daikon veloute (mash, really) served with beef consomme (in jelly form). I'm a foie gras fan and was in immense happiness having all the beef, liver and daikon flavours come together.

One of the mains was the El Arroz Bomba - similar to paella, it had seafood. I didn't try this. But the person who had it said it was good.
I had Le Porc - roasted glazed rack of pork. It wasn't that tender, and I was expecting a crispy skin. The desserts were really interesting as well - this was Le Fromage Blanc, cottage cheese light mousse with a raspberry filling and a strawberry sherbert. The mousse came in a casing which I can only describe as deconstructed meringue chips. This was fabulous. The little thin strawberry chips were so nice with the sherbert. The other dessert called Une Symphony wasn't as amazing but still pretty good. It was described as a fresh mango composition with condensed milk, and it was accompanied by a lemon sorbet and little drops of cream.

In Tokyo, I firmly believe that you don't need to see Michelin stars to taste good food. However, this was one of the most memorable dining experiences in Tokyo but I wouldn't say it's my best meal ever - that accolade remains with Eleven Madison (which got voted No. 10 best restaurant in the world!). Worth one visit in a lifetime, but I probably would spend my future limited time in Tokyo trying out other places.

http://www.robuchon.jp/ebisu/