berabera べらべら blahblah

Last Friday, we went for dinner to 欧風屋 (“Oohuuya”), a restaurant in Kanda. They offer a menu consisting of European-style food, more specifically Mediterranean-style.

Caesar salad Raw ham & grapefruit White fish & curry sauce Grilled beef & blue cheese
As starters, we ate caesar salad, and raw ham with grapefruit which was original and very good. As main meals, we ate grilled beef with blue cheese sauce, and grilled fish and shells with white wine sauce and curry. Sorry, I can't give more details or the actual names of the meals, since the menu was only in Japanese. (^_^) The meat was little cooked, as is usual in Japan. However, the meals were really excellent, and did fit well with the wine.

Since Kanda is usually an area for “salary men” to eat and drink, customers usually expect restaurants in this area to be cheap. That is why the menu at Oohuuya is surprisingly cheap compared to other European-style restaurants, e.g., at Iidabashi. Meals are typically around 800¥. They also propose special sets for lunch, but I have not yet tried them. Wine bottles start at around 2,000¥, which is expensive but usual in Japan. The wine menu consists only of French wine, and seems very correct.

This restaurant is new (it started in August 2006), and the atmosphere is nice. The owner is a Japanese business man who started this restaurant as a second job, and plans to work only in the restaurant in the future. He speak English and is very friendly. The cook also is nice. He is Japanese, but he learnt cooking from a cook who worked in France. The fish meal that we ate was a special meal that he proposed exclusively to us. It was an excellent surprise! Don't hesitate to challenge him! (^_^) Also, don't hesitate to ask for cheese for dessert, even if it is not on the menu.

If you are looking for a cheap, and excellent - slightly Japanized - European-style food, this restaurant is a good choice. Beware that the restaurant is closed during the week-end.