PIZZERIA 1830

The first Pizzeria opened in Naples, Italy in 1830 and being a true Pizzeria, 1830 in Nogizaka has taken it’s name from that date.

We have often walked past 1830 and smelt the delcious smell of wood-oven pizza wafting out onto the street, finally on Friday night we went in and placed an order.  So glad we did.  Not knowing what to eat we settled on the Calamari Arrabbiata (which was served cold), a simple green salad and their Rosso Pizza Corner (smoked ham, asparagus, gorgonzola cheese and petite tomato).  Wonderful.  We could have had two, but we decided to leave room for a bottle of wine and a cheese plate at Dance (which is located not far up the road).

If you haven’t been to 1830, go.  And if you know of an even better Pizzeria, let me know – as I am officially hooked!!!

Turning Japanese

Last night, for the first time possibly, I cooked Japanese!!  I have made nabe, yakitori and okonomiyaki etc before, but I've never tried to cook something with a shoyu/mirin flavour.  I am always worried about getting the flavours right, but last night I decided to give it a go.  The shoyu/mirin taste is very Japanese to my way of thinking and although it's very easy I have always avoided it.  Last night my "ぶたしょうがやき" (grilled pork in ginger) was a success. 

After the meal we had a bottle of Coriole 2005 Racked Chenin Blanc, which was sweet and delicious!!

 

Cafe Dance

Café Dance   7-8-4 Roppongi Minato-ku Tokyo  Ph: 03-3478-7177

We had long been looking at the wine list on Café Dance’s website and longing to go.  It’s funny how you can plan to go somewhere for so long and just never get there… luckily we made it to Café Dance last night.

Roppongi is a place I usually avoid at all costs.  It doesn’t feel like Tokyo and there are so many nicer places to spend time.  That being said, Café Dance was worth the trip. The wine list is excellent and varied.  They import a number of wines not available anywhere else and their prices are very reasonable.

Having already been the Australian Wine Tasting event prior, we were already pretty “socially lubricated” and so decided to stick with just wine by the glass.  The owner (who was so friendly and accommodating) allowed us to taste a couple of the glass wines before we made our selection, which was an added bonus.  I had a glass of Best’s Late Harvest Riesling which was subtle and not too sweet and then I followed this up with a delicious glass of Joseph Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot.  Joseph (Primo Estate) is only available at Café Dance. 

Food wise we mainly picked at Hors D'oeuvres: prawn and avocado salad, some cheese, prawn and basil wantons, pickles and then I had the veal in port vinegar sauce and my friend had the grilled scallops.  The food was simple and not overly priced, but clearly the wine is the main event.

Café Dance obviously has a lot of regular customers and we could see why.  The service is relaxed, attentive and friendly.  We’ll certainly be going back!

Wine Australia Tasting 2006

Radisson Miyako Hotel Tokyo (Friday May 12^th 2006)

Last night I attended an Australian wine tasting event at the Radisson Miyako Hotel.  It was a great event and amazing to see the amount of people interested in Australian wine.  There were a great number of wineries that already have distribution in Japan, but also a large number of wineries looking for distributors. 

Some of the highlights for me were; Sally’s Paddock, Skillogalee Wines, Bass Phillip Wine, King Island Cheese, Wild Duck Creek, Cullen, Leeuwin Estate and Wynns Coonawarra Estate.  I also lucked out at a stall serving Maggie Beer Quince Paste, I was telling some Japanese people what a wonderful product it was and the rep gave me a free Quince Paste for my “excellent sales pitch”.  Little bit of wine and I’m gushing I guess.

It was interesting for me to see the wines looking for representation and the number of people interested in (and aware of) Australian wine.  I have long been interested in starting an Australian wine shop (with tasting bar) or an Australian food purveyor here in Tokyo.  If I won the lottery tomorrow it would be my business of choice, so it was interesting to see that it could be quite successful.

If you missed this year’s event, then I suggest you keep an eye on the Australian Wine Office site and hope that they run the event next year too.  It was a great event and enjoyable for amateurs (like me) as well as connoisseurs.

Wines That I’ve Enjoyed

Here is a list that I'll continue to update as it grows.

I have a number of favourite wines, but this is a list of wines that I've enjoyed recently (in no particular order).

And the wines are…

Delatite Dead Man's Hill Gewurztraminer 2004

Giaconda Nantua les Deux 2000

Bowen Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2000

Dalwinnie Moonambel Shiraz 2000

Annie's Lane Coppertrail Shiraz 2000

Penfolds St.Henri Shiraz 1998/01

 Coonawarra,
originally uploaded by eattokyo.

Underground Mr. Zoogunzoo

Australian Wine Bar & Seafood Restaurant

http://www.unitedf.com/zoogunzoo

AoyamaCity Bld. B1F  2-9-11 Shibuya-ku Tokyo 150-0002

Tel & Fax: 03-3400-1496

Open: 18:00 – Midnight.  Closed Sundays and Public Holidays

Underground Mr. Zoogunzoo has been a favourite restaurant/wine bar of mine since I stumbled onto it a few years ago, however I hadn't been there for quite some time.  Last night we ventured back and had an average meal, but some excellent wine.  From memory the food was better the last time we were there, so I don't want to say that it's not a good place to eat, but I will say this: Zoogunzoo is a place to go and drink Australian wine.  The food is secondary to the wine and the portions reflect this.  Arossa (also in Shibuya) has a better menu, but I love the atmosphere at Zoogunzoo.  The wine list has also decreased dramatically from when I was last there, but they had some good wines and the staff was very helpful and attentive.

Last night we both had a glass of white wine to start.  I had the Shaw & Smith 2001 Adelaide Hills Chardonnay (which was excellent) and my friend had a Turkeyflat Semillon.  My friend had the Tai Carpaccio and I had a duck confit in salad.  I followed my salad with penne gorgonzola and we shared a plate of olives and pickles.  The penne was wonderfully rich and there was enough on the plate for both of us to share.  We then ordered a bottle of Elderton Barossa 2002 Shiraz which was well priced and full-bodied.  For the mains I had the grilled lamb (which was small and not as good as I had hoped) and my friend had the Duck confit (a much better portion size, but unfortunately rather salty).  For dessert we had the Honey ice-cream with a shot of espresso and the chocolate terrine.  Both were excellent and the rich chocolate terrine went wonderfully with the Pfeiffer Rutherglen Tokay.

Not a cheap meal by any standards, but it was enjoyable.  I suggest going for the wine and just having a dish or two to compliment the wine, rather then going there famished like we did.

Underground Mr. Zoogunzoo has the feeling like a cave.  The walls have been rendered in a cracked mud like finish and the lighting works well to create a feeling of being underground.  The BGM was subtle and the staff was attentive and knowledgeable on their wines. 

Zoogunzoo lists itself as an Australia Wine Bar & Seafood Restaurant.  I suggest you think of it more as a wine bar.  It’s a wonderful haven to stop off at for a glass of wine and you’ll find them only too happy to have you.  Not pretentious or flashy, Zoogunzoo is a place I’ll be returning to – not to eat dinner, but to have a little food alongside a few glasses of delicious Australian wine.

The owner also has a restaurant in Ebisu specializing in New Zealand wine: Aotea Rangi http://www.unitedf.com/aotea_rangi