Chez Tomo, Shirokane レストラン シェ・トモ 白金

I recently bought an hypnosis CD to try to help me lose weight. Under a spacey trance it very sensibly tells me to stop eating when I am pleasantly full. However I don't think it was designed for when a) you are dining at your local Michelin starred French restaurant and b) your company is a mini foodies' summit comprising none other than myself, Jon and Terry - of Eating Out In Tokyo with (insert name) fame!

I'd been trying to get a booking at Chez Tomo for a long time, but somehow managed to lock them in for our little gathering. Terry warned me to bring a jacket, so I did. It never touched my back either inside or outside the restaurant but armed with this fabric talisman I had evidently met the requirement for respectability and was allowed entry upon arrival.

I think Jon has pretty much comprehensively summed up the experience and I endorse most of his comments and observations. The basic menu at around 6,000 yen is surprisingly reasonable, but it's uphill from there if you want something as luxurious as oysters or pork or herb tea. So while not a total bait and switch it's not really indicative of how much you could end up paying.

The quality of the food is good. The most interesting dish for me was actually the amuse of sea urchin and cheese bisque served in its little spiny exoskeleton. After that I ordered the oyster, cabbage and morel mushroom soup which was best described as creamy - I didn't really catch the character of the morels under all that cream. The next course was a beautifully presented plate of all sorts of vegetables - raw, cooked, sauced, plain etc. Following this was a carrot soup which I thought was rather bland although Terry, with his more sensitive palate, thought it quite praiseworthy.

My main was a duck roll which I found a little bit on the bland side - kind of a classy meatloaf. This was followed by some delicious cheeses and, for dessert, a flaming lime souffle which was, again, a little on the bland side. Dinner was capped off with a herb tea and some very soft caramels.

We had a couple of very nice wines but I shall leave it to Terry's post to detail what we actually drank as I don't remember!

The service is polished and attentive so I give credit where it's due. The food is good but to be brutally frank, apart from the sea urchin, I feel it lacks character. Jon beat me to questioning the Michelin Star, but I agree with him. Nonetheless Chez Tomo is well worth checking out and I would be happy to return at some point in the future to see how they have developed.

http://www.chez-tomo.com/
03-3287-0021