Specialty Dishes Served by Long-Established Restaurant Loved by Great Novelists
14:14 JST, September 17, 2024
Shiseido Parlour Restaurant, with over 120 years of history, serves Western specialty dishes and pursues aesthetics in every detail of tableware, decor and customer service. It is the meat croquette, on its traditional menu, that has raised the restaurant’s fame. I savored the dish that many great cultural figures have loved and written about in their novels and essays.
The meat croquettes I ordered, priced at ¥3,100 including tax, were brought to my table on a plate with great care. The two oval-shaped croquettes were placed side by side in the rich tomato sauce, which was spread in a beautiful circular pattern.
As soon as I bit into one, a rich bechamel sauce oozed from the crispy batter, harmonizing perfectly with the sweet and sour tomato sauce. The veal and ham inside added to the mouthfeel and flavor.
The recipe was developed in the early Showa era after the restaurant’s third executive chef marveled at a croquette served at a luncheon. Toshio Kawashima, 44, the current executive chef, said: “We make the sauce from scratch and shape the meat into a cube. The recipe has remained unchanged since it was first created.”
Shiseido Co. began as a Western-style dispensing pharmacy in Ginza in the early Meiji era. The restaurant originated from Japan’s first soda fountain, modeled after those in the United States, which opened in the pharmacy in 1902. It offered soda and ice cream, which was rare in Japan at the time, as well as a bottle of face lotion as a prize with each soda, which contributed to the soda fountain becoming a popular spot in Ginza. Orange and chocolate syrup were listed on the menu for mixing with soda.
It began serving authentic Western cuisine in 1928. The restaurant was mentioned in the books of many famous novelists such as Ogai Mori, Osamu Dazai and Shotaro Ikenami. Hideko Takamine, a great actress of the Showa era, also loved the croquette. The restaurant workers carry food on a silver plate and serve it to the customers. Because the workers frequently polish the silverware by hand, it retains its beautiful luster.
Atsuo Akutsu, 56, in charge of public relations, said: “We have taken great care of our quality items and continued to use them. One of the charms of this restaurant is that it has preserved the memories of the good old days.”
***
Shiseido Parlour Restaurant
Address: Tokyo Ginza Shiseido Building 8-8-3 Ginza, Chuo Ward, Tokyo
Access: A five-minute walk from Shimbashi Station and a seven-minute walk from Ginza Station
Hours: The restaurant is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. The store is open from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
"Features" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Neko Pitcher
-
Nighttime Summer Festival to Be Held at Tokyo Museum; 6 Nights of Traditional Fun Include Access to Museum
-
Traditional Owara Kaze no Bon Festival Begins in Toyama; Elegant Dance Attracts Visitors
-
Tottori: Ferry Link to South Korea Resumes Services; Ocean Voyage to Donghae Takes 15 Hours One Way
-
Local Strawberry Varieties Crop Up in Succession; New Technology Creates Possibilities for Country’s Favorite Fruit
JN ACCESS RANKING
- Philippines Steps Up Defense of Northernmost Province with Eye on Possible Contingency Involving Taiwan
- Tokyo Companies Prepare for Ashfall From Mt. Fuji Eruption; Disposal Of Ash, Possibly at Sea, A Major Challenge
- Shizuoka Pref. City Offers Foreigners Free Japanese Language Classes; Aims to Raise Non-Natives to Daily Conversation Level
- Strong Typhoon Shanshan Predicted to Approach Western, Eastern Japan Earliest on Wednesday
- Mobile Suit Gundam in New York; Bandai Promotes Popular Anime Series with 2-Meter-High Statue in 14 U.S. Locations