Hisashiburi (it’s been a long time)….since I wrote a proper food review, haven’t I?
I make it a habit to snap photos of my food when I visit restaurants that I haven’t been to before but none of them really quite captured my taste buds the way this one-star Michelin restaurant did just yesterday…
Cucina Hirata is tucked away in the labyrinth of cafes, shops, and restaurants in Azabu Juban, a neighbourhood a hop and a skip away from gaijin central, Roppongi.
The restaurant’s signage can be easily missed so keep your eyes peeled for a low stand that says Hirata and you’ll need to take the lift to the third floor.
I chose Set A (1,800JPY), which was a salad and pasta set, that also came with dessert and coffee/tea. I knew the restaurant had one Michelin star so I was very curious…
The salad looked vibrant with shaved red-tinged radish (I think?) and a bright, citrus dressing with olive oil. For a “set” salad, it was quite big. Me likey.
Like all good Italian restaurants, the bread was excellent. I loved the poppy seed flecked ones the best…soft and yummy with fragrant olive oil.
My friend recommended the vegetable lasagna and it was definitely a show-stopper. I was a little apprehensive when the dish was presented to me — it looked like a mess of gravy, cheese, and veggies. “Where’s the lasagna?!” I thought to myself. It was under all the gravy and it was moist, gooey, savoury, and very hearty for a veggie-only dish. I mopped up the extra gravy with bread and it was sooooooooo good.
Our meal was rounded off with a super-light no-bake cheesecake with ground pistachios sprinkled on top. The ice-cream was earl grey flavoured and lent an elegant touch to an otherwise pleasant but standard cheesecake.
I asked for herbal tea and they served the whole table fresh lemongrass and mint tea.
Gosh, I know I’m gushing but I’ve never felt so taken care of during a lunch. I have been to really lovely lunch places in Tokyo but I don’t think I had both culinary greatness and warm service at the same time.
Highly recommended and I would definitely come again.
Endo Bldg., 3F 2-13-10 Azabu-Juban
Tel: 03-3457-0094
