Food Diary - La Paix, Tokyo

So, after our visit to Tokyo Tower on our last day in Tokyo, we trotted off to Nihonbashi-Muromachi, where we had a dinner appointment at La Paix (ラぺ), a French restaurant helmed by Chef Matsumoto Ippei.

La Paix, Tokyo.

"La Paix" means "the peace" in French, and the restaurant's chef, Matsumoto Ippei seeks to create classic French dishes with Japanese seasonal flavour and ingredients. Like many Japanese who went abroad to train in French cuisine, he returned and re-discovered that his birth country is full of wonderful ingredients. And from there, he decided that he wanted to learn more about the ingredients and the culture of his birth country. I'm not making this up - it's all in La Paix's webpage on Chef Matsumoto (in Japanese).

Dinner at La Paix began with 2 amuse bouche, both based on ankimo (鮟肝), monkfish liver. As mentioned in the Sushi Masuda post, ankimo is one of Japan's chinmi, and is an autumn/winter delicacy. The first amuse bouche was a delightful ankimo monaka (鮟肝最中), velvety smooth but light monkfish liver pâté in a Japanese wafer.

Amuse bouche: ankimo monaka. La Paix, Tokyo.

The second amuse bouche was a bubbly cracker dotted with monkfish liver (ankimo, 鮟肝), sprinkled with chives and young red shiso leaves. The cracker had a texture just like our keropok. If I understood our waiter correctly, the cracker was made using tapioca flour and fish paste made from monkfish flesh. 

Amuse bouche: ankimo crackers. La Paix, Tokyo.

Both amuse bouche were delicious, but my personal favourite would have to be the ankimo monaka. Think the both of them have surpassed the expectation that Sushi Nakamura's ankimo set for me on for this trip. (Though Nakamura-san's ankimo was also to-die-for delicious.)

We were served kawahagi (カワハギ), threadsail filefish, for the 1st appetiser. The flesh was cubed, marinated and served sashimi-style under a creamy mousse, which was made using the liver.

Kawahagi (threadsail filefish). La Paix, Tokyo.

Our attentive waiter explained (in Japanese, so I only caught about 50%) that the threadsail filefish is enjoyed in 2 different seasons in Japan - summer and autumn/winter - and that the liver is a delicacy that is best enjoyed in autumn.

So... About that whole Japanese thing... It seems the waitstaff thought I was part Japanese or fluent in Japanese. At the start, they handed me the drinks menu in Japanese. I didn't even know they had handed Hubby the English version until I flipped mine over and asked Hubby if he wanted to ask for an English one too. Boy you should've seen him smirk at me. (；¬＿¬)  Throughout dinner, they also kept speaking to me in Japanese, with the expectant expressions that clearly indicate that they think I will translate to Hubby. Hubby was so highly amused that he just silently laughed at me every time a dish was introduced, and he still smirks whenever he talks about this meal to our friends. (|| ˃ᆺ˂) I have decided that our time at La Paix is a sign that's telling me to go take it up formally and in a systematic fashion.

Next was the sawara (鰆), Spanish mackerel, just lightly poached and covered beneath thinly sliced turnip (kabu) and young red shiso sprouts, called mejiso in Japan (芽ジソ). All classic Japanese ingredients, prepared with classic French techniques.

Poached sawara (Spanish mackerel). La Paix, Tokyo.

Then the oyster and persimmon.... Okay, first, I love the name they gave the dish: kaki to kaki (牡蛎と柿) -- the Japanese words for oyster (kaki, 牡蛎) and persimmon (kaki, 柿) are homophones. In times like this, I think of xiang sheng (相声), the Chinese comedic art known as cross-talk where homophones are often used to create humorous puns and allusions.

The dish is an oyster and spinach terrine, accompanied by fresh persimmon, crisp wafers and micro herbs.

Kaki to kaki; oyster and persimmon. La Paix, Tokyo.

I thought it looked pretty. The colours of the dish were quite contrasting. The green of the terrine came from the spinach (hōrensō, 菠薐草). Sweet, bitter, briny. Also a mix of textures - soft terrine, the persimmon that blend of soft crunch when ripe, the crisp wafers.

Next course was originally the shirako course. But I'd informed our attentive manager, Tanaka-san, that I would like to replace the shirako, so Chef Matsumoto came up with this substitute: La Paix's specialty, a foie gras terrine sandwiched between coffee gaufre, and glazed kumquat stuffed with walnut and cream cheese. It came elaborately presented - a furoshiki wrapped tin box, and sitting on a nest of shredded washi paper. 

Foie gras pate, coffee gaufre, glazed kumquat, walnuts, cheese. La Paix, Tokyo.

My first thought at the first bite was "chewing pure coffee grounds". The gaufre was so bitter, like a full-frontal assault of bitter black coffee. But as I chewed, the flavour of the bitter black coffee was mellowed by the foie gras pate, which was velvet smooth and rich, savoury, a little sweet, a little creamy. After that every bite was pure heaven. The bitterness was great with the richness of the pate. The kumquat added a hint of sweet and sour, and the cheese added more depth. I think the flavours brought to mind a rich, robust, fragrant coffee with a hint of cane sugar and cream.

A second look at the delicious foie gras pate filled coffee gaufre. La Paix, Tokyo.

My thoughts as I swallowed the last bite of the foie gras pate gaufre..... Forget everything else I've eaten. THIS IS THE BEST DISH I HAVE EATEN ON THIS TRIP. All the elements of this goddamn foie gras wafer were perfectly matched. CAN I HAVE A WHOLE TIN OF THIS PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSEEEEE?! (;*△*;)

Shirako, ankimo sauce, yuzu espuma, white truffle. La Paix, Tokyo.

Hubby stayed with the shirako (白子). So, as mentioned in the Sushi Taku post, shirako is the soft roe of the male cod, i.e. cod milt, and is considered a chinmi in Japan. It arrived deep-fried, ankimo sauce, yuzu espuma and grated white truffle. Hubby took one bite and declared he was in culinary heaven. He said the outside was golden brown and crispy, but the inside was creamy and soft.

(Yes, so I've read that deep-frying is one of the best ways to enjoy shirako and ingredients of similar texture, namely lamb/pork brains. I think I may have mentioned this to him during the meal, and he may have made a pun on something about the "best brains". *Eye roll*)

Hakodate soi, poêle, seikogani bisque sauce. La Paix, Tokyo.

Next was our 1st main: a delicious Hakodate soi (曽以), black rockfish or Korean rockfish, cooked poêle style. Perfectly pan-fried, crispy skin, moist flesh. The crispy skin was covered with finely grated Parmesan cheese. The bisque is made using seikogani (せいこがに), the female snow crab. Seikogani is an autumn/winter delicacy; the best parts being the nou-miso and roe. Both male and female snow crabs are called zuwaigani (ズワイガニ) in Japanese, and the males are called Echizengani (越前ガニ) or matsubagani (松葉ガニ).

The 2nd main, Ezo-shika (蝦夷鹿) venison, a sub-species of the Japanese sika deer. Can't help remembering that we've seen its close relatives wandering free on our Nara trip and Miyajima trip.... The venison was served rare, with a rich deglazed sauce, radicchio, silvers of king oyster mushroom (eryngii), and sweet potato crisps. I'm usually quite queasy about meat cooked rare, but this one was delicious and tender - easier to down smothered in sauce!

Ezo-shika venison, radicchio, sweet potato crisps. La Paix, Tokyo.

After the venison was something of a pre-dessert, palate cleanser - a very unique dish - dattan soba cha (韃靼蕎麦茶) blancmange. As mentioned, this was the 2nd standout dish for me this trip.

The dattan soba-cha blancmange was wobbly soft like great handmade silken tofu or pannacotta, mildly sweet and milky. The salt ice cream was the perfect balance of salty and sweet. The olive oil was buttery, a little nutty, a little floral, a little fruity, a peppery hint. The dish was also all about contrasts - sweet and salty, warm and cold, and different kinds of softness and smoothness.

(Update: We revisited La Paix in mid-2017 with our bestie, DT, and he declared the dattan soba-cha blancmange as his favourite. He was very taken with the combination of flavours and textures, and the uniqueness of the dish, both conceptually and flavour-wise.)

Dattan soba-cha blancmange, salt ice cream, olive oil. La Paix, Tokyo.

The unique and delicious pre-dessert was followed by dessert - a choice of orange crème brûlée or Japanese pear and vanilla.

My choice was the crème brûlée, which came with shards of bitter salted caramel and fresh orange segments. Mmmmmmm. So good..... I.have.no.wordsto.describe. Another great combination of flavours and textures that just leaves me wanting more.

Orange crème brûlée, salted caramel, and orange

A dedicated non-fan of crème brûlée, Hubby picked the Japanese pear (which we also call nashi at home) and vanilla. He must have found the pear dessert delicious because I didn't hear him utter a single word of complaint the whole time we savoured (devoured!) dessert. And before I could even ask for a bite, he had finished it all! And his plate returned to the kitchen scraped clean!

Vanilla, chocolate nibs, Japanese pear. La Paix, Tokyo.

Finally, we were served a little shot glass of something to end the meal. I confess I forgot what it was because some time has passed since our La Paix dinner and my writing this post, and I didn't keep notes on this one. Oops.

I do remember a delicious combination of berry/cherry tomato compote, covered with a very light and smooth cream, topped with toasted crisps. I remember it was very good, a delicious and refreshing way to end our meal, something light, and tangy, a kind of perky refresh. Sadly, I am not able to remember much more, as it was truly overshadowed by many other so-delicious-it-can-be-my-last-meal dishes that came before. Sorry little meal-ender...I know I'm not doing you the justice you deserve. You deserve to be remembered more than just as a very good meal-ender, that much I know.

After-dinner shot to round up a wonderful dinner at La Paix, Tokyo.

Would've loved to linger over coffee, but we had a plane to catch!

If I haven't said it already.... Dinner at La Paix was easily the best meal I had in Tokyo this entire trip. Definitely worth a revisit. Hear that my smirky Hubby?

******* 

More on Elizabeth's Japanese Autumn 2016

- I. Yokohama & the Miho Museum - 

Chinatown (Heichinrou, Yokohama Mazu Temple) ● Yamashita Park ● Zou-no-Hana ● Osanbashi Pier ● Yokohama Red Brick Warehouses ● Miho Museum

- II. Kyoto -

Tofukuji ● Kiyomizudera ● Sohonzan Komyoji ● Eikando Zenrinji ● Manshuin Monzeki ● Iwakura Jissoin Monzeki ● Nanzenji, Nanzenin & Tenjuan ● Kitano Tenmangu ● Shugakuin Imperial Villa ● Sento Imperial Palace ● Kyoto Imperial Palace

- III. Tokyo -

Tokyo University ● Rikugien ● Tokyo Imperial Palace & the East Gardens ● Kotonoha no Niwa trip to at Shinjuku Gyoen ● Italian at Salvatore Cuomo Bros., XEX Tokyo ● Sushi Masuda ● Nishiazabu Taku (aka Sushi Taku) ● Sushi Nakamura (1st taste of Juyondai) ● Sushi Tokami (1st taste of tossaki) ● molecular gastronomy at Tapas Molecular Bar ● French-Japanese at La Paix, Nihonbashi

- IV: Fuji Five Lakes -

Part 1 (Bessho Sasa, revisited) ● Part 2 (Fuji Subaru 5th Station, Motosuko & Koyodai) ● Part 3 (Fujisansaku Park, Motosuko, Shojiko, Saiko, Kawaguchiko)

*******