[mitchells]

Tonight I had one of my best meals ever and I have no idea where I was. We entered through an unmarked door in the very undescript neighborhood of Osaki. Through a curtain and down a flight of stairs, off with the shoes and into a warm tatami room. The the fun then started. It is cherry blossom season in Tokyo so many of the dishes had some sort of cherry blossom garnish. First the tiniest squid I have ever seen in a teriyaki type sauce with an edible flower. Then sashimi which included tuna, toro, some sort of white fish and a scallop with uni. All great. Then soup with fish, some type of rice dumpling and and cherry blossom leaves. Salmon with assorted japanese pickles came out next. While all this was going on, an endless procession of Kirin and Shochu. The Shabu Shabu pots were lit and out came platters of beef that were incredibly marbled. Also, several platters of vegetables. We were encouraged to try the beef raw while the broth was heating up. Unbelievable texture and flavor that put every carpaccio and tartare I have ever had to shame. Finally, we dipped the beef into the broth for no more than 10 seconds and dipped it in either a sesame sauce, a vinegar sauce or a garlic sauce. All delicious. When finished, or so we thought, out came a few bowls of noodles that were put in the remaining broth. Just fantastice with amazing beef flavor. A few desserts, a ceremonial tea service, regular tea and finally we were done. Somewhere around 4 hours of great tradition, great food and lots of alcohol.

I have no idea what the name of this place was but I'll remember it forever.

[omnivorette]

Or at least until your hangover dissipates.

[mitchells]

The two Armagnac's post dinner aren't going to help much. Just popped two Tylenol PM's. Keeping my fingers crossed.

If I do wake up with a headache, it will be hard to determine if the cause was the drinking or the math on the Terroir thread.

[flushboing]

Do you have a business card, chopstick wrapper, or anything with the restaurant's name? If so, if you upload a photo, I can figure it out for you. Was this a "private" restaurant? Where patrons need to be "introduced" to the owner/chef by a known patron to be served? Was this a prearranged meal, or with reservations, or were you walk-ins?

[dekay]

Funny, I had an extraordinary meal in Tokyo last night also at a place called Yukimura. In Roppongi.
Enjoy your trip!