The first meal of my trip took place at L'Effervescence, a modern French restaurant in Tokyo. Hei, having French rather than Japanese cuisine in Japan, are you kidding? Let's decide again after this post.
Shinobu Namae, the chef and the key person of L'Effervescence received training from reputable restaurants, namely Michael Bras and The Fact Duck. In 2010, Namae opened L'Effervescence. The restaurant is honored with 2 Michelin stars and ranked no. 12 of Asian's 50 Best Restaurants in 2015, just in 5 years from its inception. L'Effervescence is certainly on a fast track to become a star restaurant in Japan as well as in Asia. Sounds like a great choice, right? Remember to check its rest days and make a reservation early. I did my dinner booking online a month in advance. And I am happy that they accept 1 person booking.
There is only one dinner menu - A Prayer and the Light. My favorite dishes are highlighted in yellow for easy reference.
The dinner began with a plate of pickled olives.
corn, basket clam, sea urchin, tarragon, tomato
I was advised to taste all the layers in the glass on the left together first. The rich ocean flavor from the basket clam and sea urchin together with the sweetness of corn in such a small glass did impress me. When I tried the glass on the right, I was impressed again but this time was by the refreshing taste of tomato and tarragon granita melting in my mouth which helped to cleanse the strong taste of the previous glass. I would say this strong and refreshing couple was a perfect match. And this official first course marked a good start of the dinner.
From an idea of apple pie #20
Dessert time? Seems too early. Actually, this apple pie was made of eel, paprika and red miso which made it savory with a touch of spicy. The note stated the Namae's philosophy of cooking. Read it thoroughly while having the freshly baked apple-free apple pie.
from spring to summer
Different from common arrangements, spring onion rather than sea bass was the main character of this dish. The sauted spring onion tasted fresh and sweet did surprisingly well. In addition, the sliced sea bass "Furikake" and wasabi emulsion delivered a touch of soft texture and spicy flavor respectively. The hazelnut, summer truffle and wild rocket leaf further enriched the texture of the dish.
A fixed point
As suggested by its name, this dish is served for both lunch and dinner throughout the year. Yet, the taste of turnip varies between seasons. Mine was very juicy because it rained a lot in Tokyo before my arrival (June is the rainy season). The round turnip was roasted slowly for 4 hours which made it concentrated in flavor. Meanwhile, the parsley oil emulsion, Kinto Basque ham and brioche added different textures and tastes to the fresh turnip. Though I am not a fan to turnip, I could finish the whole dish without hassle.
the flame
The rice hay grilled Bonito was tender in texture and strong in taste with a light smoky flavor. On the other hand, the “Gassan Dake” bamboo shoots was crunchy and light. The contrast of these 2 ingredients complemented each and created a well balanced dish. Besides of morel, shiso sauce and flower were special enhancer of the dish. Yes, the beautiful purple shiso flowers are eatable and yummy.
Spring temperature
Unlike the traditional French cuisine, the foie gras cooked naturally tasted relatively light but still of its silky and delicate texture. Moreover, the mashed and baked carrot, St. Maure & semi dried tomatoes together with Japanese parsley gave the foie gras a refreshing taste which I had never tried before. It is notable that the Shotsurru caramel was made of Japanese fish sauce which delivered savory and sweet elements. I love this wonderful twist of the traditional and common ingredient.
Right and left - Taiwanese tea
Right & left refers how to drink this cup of oolong tea with ordinary look. When I swished the tea inside my mouth, I could feel the hot mixed with the cold helping to refresh my taste buds for the main course. What a surprise!
Wait, this knife is not a dish. Just the customers at L'Effervescence can choose a knife from a collection for their main course. I picked a blink blink one.
Bite
The main course was pure-bred pork "Nakijin-agoo" (a famous pork from Okinawaw) sirloin roast on open fire. The pork sirloin was very beautifully cooked with attractive light pink color and a bit chewy texture. I enjoyed the rich flavor from the pork together with grilled lardo oil, cucumber, homemade sour cream and wild pepper. For a touch of ocean, I simply swapped the grilled lardo oil with gaper clam and added dandelion leaves.
Our selection of cheese
I chose cheese between it and vegetables after the main course. It came with 4 kinds of cheese: the bottle right one was the easiest to taste; the bottom left one carried chewy texture and strong taste of diary product; the upper left one was a light version of blue cheese and is made in Japan; the top left was blue cheese paired up with spicy jam (the spicy feeling came as after taste), an unconventional combination.
"Haruyo-koi" - fallen for spring
This pleasant dessert consisted of various ingredients, say Sachinoka strawberries & crepe of black sesame wheat, marshmallow and cherry leaves ice cream, dill flowers and a hint of Shochu (a kind of Japanese liquor). I was advised to mix all the elements before tasting it. Among all the ingredients, I love the crepe most for it delivered the good smell of black sesame and mochi-like texture.
Terada and Fujimaru
Jelly and ice-cream made of different Japanese liquor invented by Terada and Fujimaru. Though the dessert was made of liquor, it was easy to taste and didn't make me feel drunk. Haha.
nibbles
The dinner was concluded with a cup of coffee and an interesting set of nibbles. The toothpaste was actually lemon jam to fill in the mini tart on the left and then put the meringue onto it. In case you are offered this chocolate ball in this restaurant, you better put the whole thing into your mouth. Otherwise, you will be shocked. Hei hei.
I was happy to meet (handsome) Namae in person at the end of the meal and expressed my appreciation to him. Last but not the least, I received a piece of pound cake as a compliment. The restaurant did try to deliver customer delights from the beginning to the end.
L'Effervescence delivers amazing culinary experience with fresh local ingredients, outstanding cooking techniques, artistic presentation and innovative ideas. Also, I was impressed by their attentive and friendly services, especially from Zacchari Touchane and Kazuki. In short, I highly recommend this restaurant.
Points to note:
1) Same day cancellation and no show fee which is equivalent to the cost of lunch / dinner is incured.
2) If you are from overseas like me, it's suggested to leave them your hotel contacts and the contact details before arrival in case there is any change.
3) The restaurant sent me an email to confirm the booking the day before the dinner. As a respect, I confirmed the booking shortly after i received it.
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