Monna Lisa Smile

For that special occasion with that special someone, MONNA LISA is the place to go. It’s a wonderful French restaurant in Ebisu (with another location in Marunouchi). My best friend took me here for my birthday 2 years ago and I absolutely loved it! It is definitely one of the higher-end restaurants in Tokyo but I think for the ambiance, food, and location, the visit is worth every penny (yen). Like the patrons who are all very composed and well-dressed, the dishes here are works of art. In terms of food presentation, this place ranks in the highest echelons. Some of the plates are just too pretty that you feel bad devouring it all up with your fork.

I had the 10,000 yen B course menu when I went, which included an amuse, 2 appetizers, 2 entrees (fish and meat), a cheese plate, a huge dessert plate, and caffe to finish. It was devine. But let me just say that the 6,800 yen A course will be PLENTY. I thought I was going to explode having the B course. Just so you know, there is also a 13,000 yen C menu as well as a Degustation (tasting) menu for 15,000. I think you'd have to be a starving athlete to finish them. Here is their current lineup for Course B:

Menu B
*Small size Appetizer
*Tartare of baked eggplant and seafood
*Galette of calamari and marinated vegetables, cappuccino style
*Risotto of grilled “Ayu” with summer truffle flavor
*Sauteed spiced veal and asparagus
Or　
*Langoustine-stuffed pintade, red pepper sauce
*Assorted cheese or Fruit soup
*Today's special dessert
*Coffee or Tea, Herb tea + sweets

The dessert plate is by far the best I have ever had. Maybe it was because it was my birthday? I dunno, but I had 8 petit gateaux on my plate. It was like a dream come true. (Photo source: Monna Lisa)


MONNA LISA EBISU
Shibuya-ku, Ebisu 1-14-4
Tel: 03.5458.1887
Open 11:30-14:00, 17:30-21:30 daily
http://www.monnalisa.co.jp/index.html

Nobody puts Babbi in a corner

And rightly so. 'Cuz this Baby rocks too.

Ok, so I just wanted to use that line because who doesn't have Dirty Dancing in their DVD collection, right? And even if you don't, you're admittedly in the closet about liking the film. Just like we all secretly love Doug Dorsey and Kate Moseley iceskate their way into love in The Cutting Edge (man, I love that film...), we cheer for Johnny and Baby too, having the time of their lives in the summer of '63 somewhere in the Catskill Mountains. Unfortunately however,  this Babbi rhymes more with Pappi than with Baby, and sounds more like a mobster name than a Jewish girl in a pink summer dress. But oh well. 

BABBI is the famous sweets brand established in Italy some 56 years ago, specializing in chocolate, wafers and gelato. Their first shop in Japan opened in 2002 and now has 12 locations throughout the country. I go to the Roppongi Hills shop because it's most convenient for me... and is great for those occasional slow days where I don't have to be back in the office until 1:30pm and I feel that I've worked hard enough the day before that I feel I deserve an after-lunch dessert. 

I absolutely love BABBI gelato. I think I've tried about 20 of the 30 flavors available. My favorites being menta stracciatella (mint choco chip), fichi (fig), latte fragola (strawberry milk), nocciola (hazelnut), and kid's (marble chocolate). BABBI gelato is definitely high-end compared to Baskin Robbins' 31 flavors, Haagen Dazs or even Coldstone Creamery, so be prepared to fork out a little more money for these Italian babies. But I guarantee you that they won't disappoint! (Photo source: BABBI.jp)

BABBI Roppongi Hills

Minato-ku, Roppongi 6-9-1, Roppongi Hills Keyakizaka Dori 1F

Open 11:00-21:00 Daily

Tel: 03.5775.0070

http://www.babbi.jp/

Creamy and Dreamy

There's a new shop in town. From the great plains of Yakumo, Hokkaido comes Motoyama Milk Bar. It opened this past April at Roppongi Hills, taking over the space that used to be Tofu Cafe. There's a big fat Daisy cow standing in front of some blue and pink doors. You can't miss it. It's the first thing I see going up the escalators every morning. The milk stand opens at 8 am so you can actually buy a bottle of milk on your way to work. I like the coffee milk (320 yen), personally, but what's cool is that they all come in a glass bottle with a paper tab lid. Just like the old days! (well, old days like for our parents... I'm sure we all had paper and plastic in our generation). 

After lunch, you can grab yourself a softserve ice cream (480 yen) too that is just pure heaven. Creamy AND dreamy! And when you see a group of grown men in suits sitting at a table eating ice cream, you can't help but smile. I have yet to actually go inside the place (I just settle for the window stand) but they apparently serve more elaborate things for eat-in guests, like parfaits, pancakes, and even curries and gratins. I bet they're good too. Motoyama even has online shopping so if feel like it, I can have them deliver milk (and coffee milk!) to my door for up to 6 months! Awesome. The only thing is though, I try very hard to stick to nonfat milk every day, so I'll have to pass on the delivery thing. I've gained too many pounds because of rich milk sold and served in Japan. Any more and I won't be able to moooove. (Photo source: Motoyama Milk Bar)

Motoyama Milk Bar

Minato-ku, Roppongi 6-4-1, Roppongi Hills Metrohat 1F, Tokyo

Open 8:00-22:00

Tel: 03.6273.2248

http://www.motoyamamilkbar.jp/

The best cakes in Tokyo

Patissier Toshi Yoroizuka is a cake god. 

After training in Austria, Paris and Belgium, refining his skills at 3 star Michelin restaurants, and advising multiple brands and department stores, Chef Yoroizuka opened up shop in Ebisu 3 years ago. And last year, with the opening of Tokyo Midtown, he unleashed his second store to the delight of many eager fans. 

Toshi Yoroizuka is definitely in the class of "celebrity chefs." Just like you have your Marios, Wolfgangs, and Bobbys in the U.S., we have our long list of celebrity kitchen gods as well. Yoroizuka used to be more of a local favorite when he only had a shop in Ebisu, but once he opened in Midtown... no, wait... once actress Naomi Kawashima (48) announced last year that she finally got engaged to none other than the most promising patissiers in Japan, Toshihiko Yoroizuka (42), his brand exploded onto the gourmet scene and secured him onto everyone's cake map. Naomi Kawashima is one lucky gal. She scares me and her miniature dachshunds also scare me, but it's nice that she finally found a guy to meet her sky high expectations. At a press conference last year, she announced her engagement wearing a candied ring he made for her. How sweet. It's sexy when a guy knows how to cook. But it's a dream if he knows how to bake a kick ass cake. 

There are always long lines outside of Yoroizuka. The salon is packed everyday and the take-out line spills out of the door. There is even an attendant outside to organize the lines. I like to call him the bouncer, cuz this place is really happenin'. I wish that all the tourists would just go away, though. The shop is mentioned in almost every guide book and gourmet magazine now, so it's really annoying. It's frustrating when "locals" like myself just want to buy her choux paysanne as a 3 pm snack to accompany her nonfat latte. Haha! what a bratty little remark, right? But you know what I'm talking about. You'd say the same if 20 grammas with failing vision were in line in front of you. (Photo source: Yoroizuka)

My favorites: 

Choux Paysanne (What they're famous for. The ultimate cream puff)

Mont Blanc (Marron creme at its finest)

Saint-Honore Chocolat (Yum. Complex yet delicate)

Tarte Aux Fraises (Strawberries!!!)

Bernard (Pistacchio cake. trust me, it's good)

Profiterole (Cream puff tower. Just saying that is a winner)

Toshi Yoroizuka

Minato-ku, Akasaka 9-7-2, Tokyo Midtown East 1F

Open 11:00-21:00 (Salon open til 22:00), Take-out is closed Tuesdays

Tel: 03.5413.3650

http://www.grand-patissier.info/ToshiYoroizuka/index.php

A little bit of France on Komazawa-Dori

You can get crepes anywhere in Tokyo but I think Shibuya and Harajuku are the hot spots for crepes. Basically, anywhere that teenage girls like to flock after school, you can find crepe stalls. The simple, generic versions are those filled with various fruits and cream. The more intense ones have veggies, barbequed meats or even seafood in them - like a hotpocket, only better.

Crepes were super trendy 10 years ago in Japan, but the fad has died down a bit since then. They were (and still are) for the majority, cheap street food. Wrapped in paper in a cone shape, they're like an on-the-go hot and cold dessert. We've all outgrown them, I think. It's embarrassing to line up at crepe stalls now unless you're 16 and on a date with your high school sweetheart. 

But we still have cravings.

So where should the grown-ups go for grown-up crepes? 

POPHOT in Gohongi. Mature tastebuds will surely appreciate both les galettes sarrasin and les crepes froment here, provided by Chef Yoshida. The chef whom some may know as the original man behind the legendary Au Temps Jadis in Shibuya, where crepes first took off in Japan. Yoshida's POPHOT is a more casual version without the Bourgogne, afternoon tea flair. Conveniently situated along Komazawa-Dori (my jogging route), I think it's a great place to take your date after a nice dinner. Why go to a pretentious bar with moody lights when you can wow your girl with a great dessert place that has fantastic antique interior decor? The service is wonderful, the air is homey, and they're open 'til 10pm. Treat your girl to the pear and caramel crepe topped with vanilla bean ice cream. You'll get a goodnight kiss for sure.

Definitely going back next week to have lunch. 

I hear the Oeuf Fromage Saucisse Champignons (Egg.Cheese.Sausage.Mushrooms) galette is fantastique.

POPHOT - crepe and galette -（ポポット）

Meguro-ku, Gohongi 3-31-6, Tokyo

Open 12:30~17:30, 19:00~22:00 | Closed Wednesdays. 

Tel: 03.3794.6769

http://www.cakepia.info/shop/recommendation/pophot/index.html

For those who want the original and are willing to get out of your sweats and dress up a bit, try Au Temps Jadis. They have a very cute French-inspired garden and open terrace. A great place for a girls-day-out!

AU TEMPS JADIS Creperie（オタンジャディス）

Shibuya-ku, Jinnan 1-5-4, Royal Palace Harajuku 102

Tel: 03.3770.2458

http://www.many.co.jp/jadis/salon.html