Friday, May 5, 2023

Tori Shiki

 3月の帰省時には、iSO さんのアレンジでディナーにも出かけてきました。


まずは iSO さんのお宅にお邪魔して、そこから目黒にあるお店まで御一緒していただきました。
東武のデラックスロマンスカーです。普通の各停を待っていたら、こんなのが通過しました。
なんとな~く、小田急のロマンスカーに似ていなくもないですが、色だけでしょうか?

浅草で営団銀座線に乗り換えて、始発から終点まで全部乗り通して、着いたら… どこここ!?
なんだか近未来の駅。帝都高速度交通営団の澁谷駅はこんなになってしまいました…。
ホームがこんなに未来っぽいのに、なぜか電車はみんなレトロ。(笑)

澁谷から目黑までは国電の山手線で移動しましたが、國鐵の驛もホームが広くなっていました。

もう、澁谷は進化が激しすぎ。怖くて近寄れません。

で… 無事目黒駅に着いたけど、予約まで時間を持てあましたようなので、途中で一杯。
「フラット」という名前のスカした居酒屋さんで、泡を一杯いただきました。

おつまみにレバーペーストをもらったけど、いけてます。今度ここに来るだけでも嬉しいかも。

以上のようにさっくり引っかけてから、さらに徒歩2分ほどで目的地へ到達。事実上目黒駅前です。
焼き鳥屋さんの「鳥しき」は、こんなたたずまいでした。

店内に入ったら、こんなです。
まだ若い店長さん?が見事に仕切っていらっしゃいました。

カウンター席に陣取ると、なんだか高級な鮨の店みたい…。

清潔な店内は、焼き鳥屋さんなのに煙がこもっていないし、煤も全くついていません。
ダウンライトの照明が少し線を引くあたりで、微かに煙が存在しているのが判ります。
壁の穴の活け花… ああいうのって、なんだか高級旅館とか値の張るリゾートホテルで見たような覚えが。

とても上等な鮨を食べさせられるかと勘違いしそうですが、献立札を見れば納得できます。
儂、あんまり焼き鳥には詳しくないんです。なので、ちょっとググって調べてみました。

ちょうちん = 卵巣と輸卵管 これは知らなんだ…。組織名にするとキモい…。
白   玉 = ウズラの玉子 これも知らなんだ。ぜんざいに入ってる奴だと確信。
か っ ぱ = 竜骨突起の先端 胡瓜だと確信していたのに、これも鳥の組織だ。
ぼ   ん = ぼんぢり?  ここは尻の周りだから知ってる♪ (爆)
・     = 波状に刺した皮 知らなんだが、鶏の皮は脂が乗ってて好きです。 
は   つ = 心筋     知ってた。組織として思い出すから苦手。
砂   肝 = 砂嚢     知ってた。組織として苦手だし、歯ごたえも苦手。
血   肝 = 肝臓だよね? レバー… 私の好きな組織です♪
か し わ = 大腿筋    英語だと datrk meat 部分ですが、一番好きな部位。
つ く ね = ミートボールはさすがに知ってます。もちろん好きです。

う~ん、こうやって列記すると、半分も知らなかった(爆)

実際は、店長さんの「おまかせコース」で、みんなが美味しく驚く手筈のようでした。

iSO さんとお食事する時は、ほぼほぼワインです。鶏なのでピノ・ノワールだよね?って…
ジョセフ・ドルーアンのピノ。いかに~もボーヌで穫れたピノっぽい風味。

ここんちはオレゴンにも醸造所を持っていますが、ドルーアンのピノはブルゴーニュでもオレゴンでも同じように黒胡椒のようなヒントがあります。どうやったらそうなるのかが不思議ですが、美味しいからいいです。

もう、この後は、焼き鳥が続いても解説できませんから…。

アミューズ(と呼んでいいのか?)は… メキシカンってなんでこんなに美味しいんだろう!
なんと、タコスです。(注:Tacos は複数形。単数は Taco タコ)

タコなので、ちゃんとトルティーヤをたたんで、それっぽくしてもうワンカット。
見た目がタコっぽいですが、トルティーヤがそんなに玉蜀黍粉の香りが強くない。

中に入った具のためにこういう皮を用意したんでしょう。日本人には食べ易いです。
儂はメキシカンだらけの場所に棲んでいるから、もっと本格的でも平気♪ てか、それが好き。

最初の串が届きました。大将(店長)が味付けしてくれて出てきますが、ほぼタレです。
いい塩梅の焦げ目と、柔らかな焼き上がりで、どれも美味しい。

口直しの大根おろしはカラッポにすると、どんどん足してくれ「わんこだいこん」状態でした。

お漬物も出てきました…。
これは儂には無理なので、iSO さんに退治していただきました。

「ガイジンだから漬物はダメ~(泣)とか言ってたら、隣席のお姉様達のアンテナに引っかかりました。最後には「ゲーム会社の米国子会社にいた」とかまでバラして、話し込んできました。こうやって友達が増えます。(笑)

もちろん、ゾーンを外しているので、妙齢の御嬢様達とは深いお知り合いになりませんでした。(爆)

次はこんなの。だったと思います。メニューでいったら、波?
これはタレが少ない。薄い味付けで仕上げているか、もしかしたら塩だったのかも。

塩味の焼き鳥はあんまり好きくないんですが、その「好きくない」センサーに引っかかる串は出ませんでした。

マッシュポテト… の中に、鶏が潜んでいます。
刻んだような鶏肉と滑らかなポテトで、とてもクリエイティヴな一品です。

芽キャベツ… 出てきて、ちょっと引いた。
普通の芽キャベツは好きくないですが、これは焦げとタレの風味のおかげで美味しくいただけました。

銀杏は好き♪
これはタレでなく、塩がまっとうです。ホクホクした食感と風味がたまりません。

ただ、これ食べ過ぎると鼻血が出るよね…。

サンマテオ佛教会の横に生えてる街路樹がメスのイチョウで、晩秋になると凄い事になってます。踏み潰されたエグい状態の中から天神様を集めて廻ろうと思っても、毎年他の人に先を越されます。さすが日系人が多い場所。(爆)

ここで、汁麺が出てきました。
鶏スープと、中太のうどんっぽい麺。

柚子の香りで鶏の臭みを抑えているんでしょうが、もう酔って鼻は馬鹿になってますから無駄です。(笑)
見た目あっさりでも、鶏のうまみと脂でしっかりコッテリのスープが絶妙でした。

さらに鶏ざんまいは続きます…。
かしわ? 食いでのある串も出てきました。

これは、つくね
つくねには、みたらしっぽい甘辛のしっかりしたタレがからんでいて、幸せでした。

息抜きに、焼き豆腐。
これも鶏の仕掛けがあったはずだけど… すいません、酔ってて忘れました。

手羽先です。
とてもバランスのいい風味。さすがに骨は残しましたが、後を引いて、いっぱい食べたくなる味です。

キーマカレーです。と出てきたのが、これです。
鶏そぼろ御飯という趣ですが、カレーっぽい味がします。それもしっかり辛い。

御飯物がカレーだったという軽い驚きの後、シメは鶏スープ
白湯みたいなスープに、葱や白胡麻が入ってます。

これにて終了。

最後にデザートとか水菓子とかが出てこないのは拍子抜けですが、ここんちは美味しい。
なかなか予約の入らないお店に連れてきてくださった iSO さんに感謝感激です!!

鳥しき Torishiki
2 Chome-14-12 Kamiosaki, Shinagawa City, Tokyo 141-0021, Japan
+81 3 3440 7656
ge24900.gorp.jp

目黒駅前でデザート?とか探しましたが、めぼしい店も無くて、iSOさんと駅で別れました。
山手線を品川まで乗ってきたら、総武横須賀線の快速に乗り換えです。

神奈川からの乗客が新橋・東京で降りるので、千葉方面への座席は簡単に見つかります。

車内販売のコーヒーをすすりながら… あ、シン東京タワーだ♪
この晩は紫色のライトアップでした。
その後、津田沼に着いたら京成バスで実家へ戻りました…。

東京ネタはこんなところでしょうか。後はイスタンブールで撮った写真かなぁ。

14 comments:

  1. By the way, weren't you planning to go to Spain soon? Please be careful if you do.

    I haven't seen iSO-san in a long time, but I hope he’s doing well. In my mind, "iSO-san's arrangement" equals "a dinner with a twist" (in a good way, of course). I think we went to a "coriander-packed restaurant" in Shibuya with iSO-san quite a while ago, if I recall correctly.

    I see, your base of operations in Japan is near Tsudanuma, so it makes sense that you visited iSO'-sans place and went together to the restaurant in Meguro. In my mind, Shibuya is a town for young people, while Meguro is a town with places like Ebisu Garden Place and the Westin Tokyo (maybe a biased view?).

    No, you're right, it's not a yakitori restaurant, but a high-end sushi restaurant with a Michelin star if you only see the interior images, I might think so. If the menu has items like "toro," "hamachi," "ebi," or "market price(時価)" written on it... hahaha.
    By the way, it's a bit disappointing that my favorite menu item, "chicken skin(鶏皮)," isn't available. I didn't even know half of the menu items you listed. I would definitely entrust myself to the chef's "omakase course," just like you. And speaking of which, the amuse-bouche for that course is none other than tacos! As expected of iSO-san's choice of restaurant (lol).

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      Yes, I will be visiting Barcelona from next Tuesday for a week, then visiting Okayama after that..

      iSO-san is doing fine. Every time when I visit my mom, I see iSO-san as well. Sensei, if you can come to New Sanno on June first, you can see him, Shonan Senir-san and his wife-san.

      I personally feel Meguro is just a limbo position because the place is adjacent to Yamanote but simultaneously it used to be connected to Kamata by Mekama Line. Tokyu thought connecting Meguro and Kamata is incorrect; it will be contaminated by the filth from Kamata, so they disconnected the services. (lol)

      This ‘yakitori bar’ is a very special place, I thought. And no wonder Campbell(F)-san knew this restaurant… if she knows the name, it’s a good restaurant for sure.
      The skin of chicken was served as “波” and it tasted very gentle – I can’t identify whether it’s tasted with salt or soy sauce… because I am taste blind and strongly contaminated with soy sauce as Chiban.

      Don’t forget your driver’s license if you decided to come to Tokyo on 6-1-23.

      Delete
  2. By the way, if the flavor of the head chef of this restaurant is mostly sauce, then personally, it might be a bit disappointing for me. I like salt-grilled dishes. What? You don't like salt-grilled yakitori? Nevertheless, all the skewers have a nice char and a tender texture, and they all look delicious.

    If you were saying something like "I'm a foreigner, so I can't eat pickles" and caught the attention of the older ladies at the next table, it seems that you're making friends like this as well (lol). Of course, I also know that they're quite far from the zone favored by you, so I don't think you'll ever become close acquaintances.

    I also like ginkgo nuts♪ As expected, it's better to use salt instead of sauce. The fluffy texture and flavor come through even from the images. What? If we eat too much, we'll get a nosebleed? I didn't know that until now. Next time, I'll try to eat enough to get a nosebleed... (lol)

    Oh~ I'm drawn to the chicken soup and the medium-thick, udon-like noodles served in the middle of the yakitori skewers. The soup looks light, but the combination of the rich and flavorful chicken soup and fat creates a perfect balance.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      As you can see on the fifth picture, there are three pots in front of the chef. Those are the sauces, lus some oil or salty-water pots are lining up therefore the flavors are not so simple but complicated, that’s why I couldn’t detect salt-only chicken skewer… the skin skewer maybe applied with salty water or least soy sauce based one, I guess.
      Ginkgo nuts are obviously salted, and I agree it can’t work with tare-style sauce.

      In my childhood, adults around me prohibited me to take too many ginkgo nuts because it causes nosebleed, they said… So I briefly Googled about it and found – ginkgo nuts have some ingredient which is molecularly close to vitamin B6, our brain misrecognize it and potentially causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea… these symptoms match to your specialized field, isn’t it? (lol)

      This chicken soup noodles was really good. In America, mothers make chicken soup when kids got sick, cold or flu. My better-half-san returned from China but got food poisoned by street foods in Hong Kong as always, so I served chicken noodle soup… although mine is not as good as Tori Shiki’s one, but spiced with love♥. (LOL)

      Delete
  3. I see, "波" refers to chicken skin pierced in a wavy pattern. I get it now. So, the reason why you prefer sauce over salt is because your DNA as a Chiba prefecture resident strongly craves soy sauce (lol).

    So, you'll be visiting Barcelona from next Tuesday for a week. Now that you mention it, you've been in San Mateo for about a month. That's quite a long time for you to be away from going abroad. And then you're coming to Okayama.

    That means you'll be enjoying gourmet food in an international city famous for its art and architecture, followed by staying at the Crowne Plaza in a nondescript provincial city in Japan, where you'll have to take meager meals on May 25. The next day, you'll be attacked with upper and lower gastrointestinal endoscopy at an unknown small clinic... This is what it means to go from heaven to hell (lol). Let's do our best to dream of lean meat after the examination!

    I'm relieved to hear that iSO-san is doing well. A birthday party for me at New Sanno on June 1st... it sounds very tempting, but it's a weekday, isn't it? It seems a bit tough.

    For example, if that's okay with you guys on June 3rd (Sat), and if I arrange a schedule like;

    ANA652 Okayama 7:05 → Haneda 8:20
    and then;
    ANA319 Haneda 16:45 → Toyama 17:45 or ANA321 Haneda 19:35 → Toyama 20:35

    I might be able to come to Tokyo for a little while. However, I don't have the courage to ask everyone to change their busy schedules just for me, so please consider my proposal as just a suggestion.

    By the way, regarding the meager meals on May 25th, if you find it difficult to decide on the menu you should have, how about sending you a day's worth of examination food in advance to your home? Alternatively, if it's just for one meal for dinner on May 25th, I could bring the examination food to the Crowne Plaza Okayama if that's okay with you? Please let me know your preference.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      Now I fed kitties and better-half-san, took eszopiclone, waterpiked and applied stannous fluoride for teeth, gum and tong so I’m ready to lay down and sleep…

      Believe or not, my gramma’s Oden is very brown… before heating, the ingredients had their own colors, but once it’s hearten and cooked, everything is brown, very soy-sauce colored. So when I started living in Tokyo and the first time stopped by an Oden kiosk, I thought everything is still undercooked, seriously. This experience is somewhat similar to the udon bowl in Kansai… Chibans are really addicted with soy sauce.

      In Barcelona, I don’t follow Antoni Gaudí… I have visited the buildings, hospital, park and a church already. Instead I will keep eating arroz negro, drinking xocolata calenta. Then those 6 days in heaven, I will take ANA7 to NRT, stay a night in Narashino then heading to Okayama by ShInk.
      So… on 25th I can only have kibi-dango and being a dog, monkey or pheasant… the torture starts from one day prior to the real ones!

      I am so sorry I secured our table on the first of June at Wellington’s, and other guests have their schedules already, I guess… at least I have a friends’ reunion on 3rd and another dinner with iSO-san on 4th. I am terribly sorry I can’t follow your request.

      It would be great if I can see you at Crowne Plaza on 25th then we go to a restaurant, you eat and I watch it. (lol) But seriously, it’ll be just after the next day of the arrival in Japan so I will be under jet-lag, no severe starves would be feeling… I hope.

      Delete
  4. In the fifth picture, what caught my attention besides the three containers lined up in front of the chef, was the expression of the woman who appeared in the background, with whom you had a friendly chat with after taking the photo (or maybe you intentionally included her?). Not in a strange way, but I can tell from her expression that the atmosphere of this restaurant is very pleasant and relaxing.

    I see, so if your search results are correct, consuming an excessive amount of ginkgo nuts, which contain a compound similar in molecular structure to vitamin B6, can cause symptoms similar to food poisoning, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, before nosebleeds occur. Well, I don't think I want to experience nosebleeds that badly, so I'll give it up (lol).

    Before that, if a patient with symptoms of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea comes to our clinic (which is quite common in our clinic), maybe we should ask them, "Didn’t you eat too many ginkgo nuts yesterday?"
    Starting that homeless person, you seem to be continuing to give some medical advice to me.

    Oh, in America, mothers make chicken soup when their children are sick. It seems medically reasonable to me. By the way, I just realized that your better half got food poisoning from street food in Hong Kong. Didn’t he eat some suspicious ginkgo nuts? If chicken soup can be effective for such a special type of food poisoning... I might try to give some medical advice about using this chicken soup to patients for my everyday medical practice in the future.

    “Risk of overeating ginkgo nuts” and “treating with chicken soup”... I may have become a slightly better doctor today than yesterday.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      I am getting sleepier so apologize in advance if I didn’t follow all the topics you wrote…

      When I was in Tori Shiki, I didn’t ask the profession of the ladies next to us, but I briefly listening their conversation… they supposedly in charge of marketing and/or advertisement. And that’s why they came to Tori Shiki for satisfying their desire – now we ate at the famous restaurant where it’s very hard to secure seats. In any cases, they looked very happy having the same course we had. (Tori Shiki serves only Omakase at that night)

      No I don’t give any suggestions or advice to you but I need it opposite way! The myth of gingko nuts is very common in Futtsu when I lived there… there are typical taboos “don’t eat nuts too many” around the world, I think… I even prohibited having too many pecans when I was with better-half’s family. So I learned nuts causes nosebleed as well as chicken soup is the Jewish mom’s typical recipe for curing their kids.

      Better half-san told me there was a superb sushi restaurant in Hong Kong so I thought the food poisoning came from sushi… but it was incorrect. After sushi she ate something on the street, as always, and it was a filthy one. Amen…

      The gingko nuts is a myth in south Chiba, but chicken soups are stereotypical American drugs for children, if it’s chicken noodle soup, it’s typical in Jewish or Caucasian families.
      Oh, I also heard from CEO of Sega China that they got gifted soy sauce braised mice embryos from their neighbor as a drug for children under flu or cold… I am glad I wasn’t born and raised in China!

      Delete
  5. I've heard that "nuts can cause nosebleeds." This may be similar to the difference in how soy sauce is used between East and West Japan that we have discussed many times before. This is because when I was a child, my grandmother used to tell me that "chocolate can cause nosebleeds." Though, she may have said the same thing about nuts as well. This is also because both are included in "Glico Almond Chocolate," which I loved, but was not allowed to eat often, and even when I was allowed to, I could only have a small amount.

    I haven't been to Hong Kong in a long time, but for me, it's a fascinating city that has a hint of British flavor even though it's in China. But now it is under strict control and probably filled with a scent of China.

    Shanghai is also a fun city, but when I saw the locals happily eating a bright red soup made from the fresh blood of a large snake and a salad made from its skin that was bright green in color at a Chinese restaurant I visited, I wanted to run away. Even if it was delicious, to me, it was just something that was simply disgusting... So when I heard that you were given soy sauce braised mouse embryos as medicine from the CEO of Sega China, I could only agree with the idea that it is something that could happen in China.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      I thought the myth of “nuts and nosebleeds” is a common sense… nobody pointed out it’s not heard of, until sensei said. Chocolates, nuts, oysters… whatever if it’s a good thing with high fats and/or calories, it causes nose bleeding. Again in T-gakuen, when we neutered male pigs for tender meats, one of my colleague asked professor if he can bring those balls with him, and the professor approved. He also harvested some Shungiku from pilot farm and then started inviting friends to have “Pig balls pot party” in his condo… I didn’t attend because I don’t like Shungiku, but the next day, most of guys joined that pig balls party couldn’t come to the class – what I heard was they got severe nosebleeds and stay calm in bed or floor. (lol)
      So, some of the foods vitalize someone for sure, but the most possible side effect is nose bleeding.

      My favorite “nuts in chocolate” now is Glico Macadamia chocolate. I always buy several boxes at Japanese supermarket and this is one of my bad behaviors cause higher glucose and triglyceride… (sob) What I learned so far is; if it tastes better it must be worse for our body.

      In Hong Kong, my better-half-san always, almost every time, receives food poisoned. I recommended to keep eating at McDonald’s or KFC, but it happens always… sigh

      In mainland China, the situations are more sensational… it is true “Except tables and chairs, Chinese eat anything if it has for legs.” When we visited our contracted and outsourced factory, where is in 常州, about three hours car riding or two ours train ride, I saw ‘private butcher’ is selling meats on the street. But the size of the animal was… way smaller than cows or pigs, and bigger than chicken and it was a red meat with bones. I expected any species of animals in such size and the popularity in human civilization, I expected those are d o g s…
      If Chinese people stop eating wild lives such as raccoons, foxes, camels, armadillos or bats, those severe diseases by animal-origin viruses i.e. SARS, MERS or SARS-Cov-2 won’t happen.

      Delete
  6. この前お見せしましたが、予約は「無理、ぜったい!」だったので、
    前日でも予約可能なお弁当をオーダーして、品川のホテルで食べたことを思い出します。
    お弁当でも美味しかったので、実際のカウンターでの焼きたては一度は食べてみたい!
    ちなみにこちら、コロナ前にNYにもお店出したんですよ。
    NYだったら予約取れそうだったので、去年の2月に行ったときに予約しようと思いましたが
    焼き鳥のコースで$180.00くらいしたのでやめちゃいましたw

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    1. 悪い事は言わんが、今は食べ物のことは考えない方がいいと思う。まぢで。

      で、ここんち… 焼き鳥屋としては若干息苦しいです。
      なんだか数寄屋橋の次郎寿司に近いものがあります。

      浜松町のガード下の焼き鳥を超えるものにまだ出逢っていません。

      Delete
    2. いろいろご心配おかけします・・・
      はい、とりあえず、おとなしくしております。

      浜松町のガード下・・・あぁ、素敵な響き♪

      Delete
  7. I'm sorry, but I have to admit that what I thought was "common sense" often turns out to be just "my own common sense." It seems like "potatoes as an ingredient for Oden" is also one of those cases. I believed that potatoes are essential for Oden, but it seems that neither Dr. Doi nor you add potatoes to Oden, as I learned from our conversation in Azabu the other day. I used to link anything that was different from "my common sense" to the cultural difference between East and West Japan, but that's not right. It seems that I'm the odd one out even here in West Japan. It's a bit of a shock for me.

    I do like soft roe. The testicles of various fish such as pufferfish, cod, anglerfish, salmon, snapper and Spanish mackerel, especially mature ones, are good in taste and go well with vinegar dishes, soup dishes, hot pots, grilled dishes, and so on. But a "Pig Ball Hot Pot Party," really? I understand that many people at T Academy come from relatively good families, but they seem to have such unexpected adventures. Unlike you, I like Shungiku, but your dislike of Shungiku saved you from a crisis. We never know what might be a blessing in life.

    Midori-san also loves macadamia nuts and pistachios. So, she seems to have fallen in love with the pistachio sweets you gave us the other day. Indeed, I agree with you that the more delicious things are, the worse they are for our bodies. McDonald's once tried to sell high-priced items with a strange health-conscious approach, but sales dropped and they shifted their strategy back to "low-priced items that are bad for the body but popular with the general public," and sales recovered. It seems that no one wanted to eat a "healthy McDonald's."

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