Tempura Uchitsu, Tokyo

One of the meals I was most looking forward to in Japan was tempura.  It’s a truly elegant experience that bears almost no resemblance to the usual tempura platter of mixed vegetables and 2 shrimp.

A true tempura restaurant is very similar to a sushi restaurant, where the chef works behind a counter and serves each piece one at a time to your plate in a choreographed progression.  I like it even better than sushi, I think, because there’s so much more variety to the ingredients – fish of course, but also seasonal vegetables and wild mountain plants, plus small dishes from sashimi to soup and salad.

There are quite a few fine options in Tokyo; I settled on Tempura Uchitsu, partly because I was enchanted by its wide window that opens onto a beautifully lit small garden.

We ordered a bottle of Nuits St George 1er cru (Domaine Alain Michelot 2015) that was highlighted with a full page writeup on the restaurant wine list, and relaxed into our seats to watch the chef and his assistant prepare each course in an unhurried rhythm.

To start, small dishes: a few tempura shiro ebi (small shrimp, fried whole) and a the head and legs of a larger shrimp (which would be eaten next), tofu with uni, delicately stringy seaweed in vinegar, sashimi bonito with sesame dressing.

The main tempura sequence began with the rest of that large shrimp, then a bitter mountain plant paired with green beans, then a dainty slab of corn kernels.

Seasonal ayu (sweetfish) is always fried in a swimming pose – we had the same in Osaka a few years ago.

D and I both particularly liked the uni wrapped in shiso, fried quickly enough that the uni was still cool and creamy inside.

We had an intermission of sorts with tempura hamaguri (clam) in a delicious clam broth, followed by sashimi (cured tuna with grated shallot, and squid).

Back to tempura with fava beans, asparagus, mantis shrimp fat with roe, swordfish, and mackerel, followed by a salad of raw baby eggplant, tomato, white asparagus, and abalone.

The last tempura piece was sweet potato, so delicious.

Amazingly, at this point a tempura dish called kakiage is offered – a mixed seafood fritter served over rice or noodles to fill up any possible remaining space in one’s stomach.  D and I declined (as our dining in Japan must be approached like a marathon!), but there were plenty of other takers!

We finished up with a modestly sized scoop of salted milk ice cream, along with the traditional green tea.

A beautiful meal and such a fun experience.  On our next trip, I think we’ll have two tempura dinners!

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A note on restaurant reservations

While planning this trip, I found a service called Tableall that enables online bookings for a selection of restaurants in Japan.  It’s pricey (4000 Yen per seat surcharge) but very easy to reserve and pre-pay.  The best part is the detailed information on each restaurant, including lots of photos, descriptions of everything from the food and wine to the dishes, and chef biographies.  I booked Tempura Uchitsu through them since the site was so helpful in deciding which restaurant to choose; this is not an ad and I’ve never spoken to anyone there, but I appreciate their efforts and wanted to mention.