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Winter Melon Manju

For a light, fluffy sauce, we add well-drained tofu.

Chilled Golden-Wave Soup; Crystal Ise Lobster

One egg to two go of stock is too soft; just under two go works better, served warm or chilled. For crystal Ise lobster, we pick apart the meat, bind…

Small Eggplant Jelly

We slowly steep the grilled eggplant in a broth with a touch of consommé added, until it becomes soft and infused with flavor.

Mock eel raft, snow crab grilled with a grated daikon glaze, coin-shaped salmon and corned beef cheese, five-color potato sushi in a twisted rein shape, petit tomato stuffed and grilled

This is the appetizer course. For the damselfish chimaki-zushi (sushi shaped like a bamboo-leaf-wrapped dumpling), the sushi rice is mixed with a…

Summer Duck Steamed with Sake

We sear the aigamo duck's skin to medium-rare, then steam it with sake. Into a center cut we tuck mustard and shiraga-negi, fine white scallion…

Beltfish meunière, onion stuffed and grilled with crab cream

This is the fried course. When preparing a white-fleshed fish meunière-style, as with the beltfish meunière, the fish is filleted, seasoned with salt…

Threeline grunt grilled with mountain butterbur, tiger prawn golden egg-yolk grill, mallard duck steamed with grilled-leek sauce

This is the grilled course. The isaki with mountain butterbur grill and the tiger prawn yamabuki-yaki are a bit of wordplay. For the small clam…

Beef Sirloin Saikyo-Zuke

Pricier, but wagyu sirloin marinated in saikyo-zuke (miso marinade) and grilled.

Rolled Nishiki Vegetables

The sesame jelly: season sesame ponzu with olive oil and yuzu-kosho, set with gelatin, then pound firm enough for chopsticks.

Kamo eggplant and beef, miso-glazed grilled skewers

This is the simmered course, Kamo eggplant with simmered beef miso. My workplace is centred on Japanese cuisine, but many guests prefer standing…

Unagi Kabayaki, Hakata-Style

Mixed with ground shrimp paste, lightly salted, with a touch of added umami.

Salmon Ominaeshi

Styled after ominaeshi (patrinia), a July flower.

Small Taro and Rock-Textured Tofu

Beef rolled with white taro stalk

Winter Melon Steamed in Soup

Color mattered for the soup-bowl version, not here. A slice of ginger and scallion in light suppon (softshell turtle) broth, steamed about an hour…

Mallet-shaped roll

This is the vinegared dish, kinuta-maki. As mentioned earlier with the five-color theme, here it is rolled with seven colors instead.

Baby abalone daisen-ni

This is the appetizer course. For the baby abalone ofuna-ni, the abalone is scrubbed clean, salted, topped with a round slice of daikon, and steamed…

Suppon Tofu

As soft as Takigawa-dofu (tofu set with agar in waterfall-like strands). More tofu is tastier, but set it firm enough or the turtle meat won't cut…

Hamo, Seared and Blanched

The ume paste: mash umeboshi with wasabi and bonito flakes, sieve it, add a little soy sauce for a mellow, easy flavor.

Rolled Carp in Miso Broth

The clear soup course, being May, is rolled carp in miso broth. The carp is bone-scored, wrapped individually in kyogi (thin wood-shaving wrapping…