DINNER AT KAISHOKU MICHIBA, TOKIO

“Iron Chef Japan” is one of my all time favourite cooking show that was first broadcast in Australia back in 2002.  This show is not for the faint hearted nor could you really learn any useful tips and tricks that you can then incorporate into your everyday cooking.  This show is rather, a theatrical performance on a great scale, where the produce is sourced from all over the world, where the truffles and black caviar are used in huge quantities without as much as a blink, the serving plates are of exquisite beauty and any challenger who wins over one of Iron Chefs will get fame forever.

I loved this show so much that when we decided to travel to Japan and were mapping our route, my husband suggested that we should try and book dinners at the restaurants owned by the Iron Chefs. After prolonged deliberation and hours of Googling, we made our final selection – we would sample the food of Iron Chef of Japanese cuisine – Rokusaburo Michiba and Iron Chef of French cuisine – Hiroyuki Sakai both situated in Tokyo.

What delights me the most in Japanese cuisine is no matter how big or small, cheap or expensive, plain or elaborate the restaurant happens to be, they all have one thing in common – every dish that is placed in front of you is served on an exquisite hand-made china clay plate or a bowl with other elements cut precisely into small one-bite delicate pieces and artfully arranged around the main ingredient. 

In Japanese culture the presentation of the food is paramount and it seems that every Japanese chef possesses the key knowledge of the principles and elements of design in terms of colours, textures, balance and size.  With great excitement and anticipation we stepped inside the Kaishoku Michiba restaurant, situated in fashionable Ginza district and owned by Rokusaburo Michiba.  “Kaishoku”, in the sense of being unforgettable, having its roots in the basic Japanese culinary arts, is how Michiba describes his own cuisine, calling it his culinary soul.

Sesame tofu served with sweet soy sauce and fragrant wasabi

Grilled whole tomato filled with tripe, whelk, shrimp and mushroom 

Fresh sea urchin served with fragrant pepper leaves, pike conger and yuzu zest

Deep fried aubergine, scallop, shrimp, fish, ginko nuts and okra 

served with thickened bonito broth

Grilled cheeswe aged in miso and sake leaves

A serving plate

A selection of porcelain sake cups