[Gourmet #16] Ginza Shinohara | June (Chuo Ward, Tokyo)

Hello, I'm An-chan!

This time, I will introduce "Ginza Shinohara", located in Ginza, Chuo Ward, Tokyo!

When I visited for the first time in March, I made my next reservation, so this was my second visit. I felt more relaxed than last time and enjoyed the delicious food with ease.

The dishes were once again full of seasonal flair, so I would be happy if you could take a look at the photos until the end!

👇 Click here for the article on my first visit 👇

Information at the time of visit

I made the next reservation when paying last time. They accept reservations up to three months in advance, so I visited for my boyfriend's birthday this time. (Even with this timing, only late-night slots were available for dinner.)

Course start!

This time, we drank sake from the beginning and ordered two additional dishes, but the total was slightly cheaper than last time.

(I am writing this article relying on my unreliable memory, so there might be mistakes in the details of the dishes, etc. Please understand.)

Kousen-cha (fragrant roasted tea)

Just like last time, this Kousen-cha was served as soon as we were seated.

Abalone with dashi jelly

The first dish appeared with a cool look, topped with hydrangeas.

The glass bowl contained abalone, sea urchin, tomato, and more, topped with dashi jelly. It was refreshing and felt like a dish that let us experience summer a little early.

Shrimp fried bread

Next is this fried bread. Inside is minced tiger prawn.

We eat this by taking a big bite with our hands. It was small but packed with umami, and it was so delicious.

Soup

Next is the soup course. The bowl itself is wonderful, and I am completely captivated by it.

When I opened the lid, inside were conger eel, Japanese tiger prawn, and eggplant. The delicately seasoned broth soaked right into my body.

Hand-rolled sushi

Next is hand-rolled sushi. They hand it to us like this as soon as it is ready.

The ingredients are eel, egg, Japanese pepper leaves, and four types of herbs.

It felt like I was eating a very luxurious umaki (eel omelet), and the aroma of the Japanese pepper was refreshing.

Deep-fried soft-shelled turtle

Next is deep-fried soft-shelled turtle and gelatinous turtle skin (engawa) in aspic.

It was probably my first time eating soft-shelled turtle, so I was a bit nervous, but it was incredibly delicious! I even finished off the meat between the bones (lol).

Young sweetfish

Next is skewered young sweetfish. It is seasoned with uruka (salted sweetfish innards) soy sauce.

They handed me the grilled sweetfish on the skewer just like this.

I took a big bite just like this. I was able to eat the whole thing from head to tail.

Sweetfish nigiri

Continuing with another dish using sweetfish. They neatly removed the bones and innards of the sweetfish grilled right in front of us and made it into nigiri sushi.

It was handed to me, and I popped it right into my mouth! It was my first time having sweetfish nigiri, so it was a strange sensation, but it went very well with the vinegared rice and was delicious.

Foie gras monaka

Next is the specialty, foie gras monaka. This time it contained mango and passion fruit.

Pair the foie gras monaka with a drink. It was a sake from Akita Prefecture called 'Ine to Ringo'.

Actually, when I traveled to Akita in May, I visited this brewery. I had tasted this series there, so I was excited to see a sake I recognized. (I showed the chef and his team photos from my trip, and we had a nice little chat about it.)

Hassun

Next up is the highly anticipated hassun. Watching it being prepared, I was excited to see what kind of hassun would appear.

Once everything was ready, the lights were dimmed, and it was brought to each seat.

The hassun, arriving with sakaki branches and an ice pillar, looked very refreshing. (I was impressed by how they smoothed the surface of the ice pillar at the grill area in front of us.)

Apparently, there are shrines that enshrine ice pillars during this hot season, and it also carries the meaning of preventing summer fatigue. (If I recall correctly.)

After the chef finished his explanation, it was moved to the tray in front of us to make it easier to eat.

The contents of the hassun were something like this. (My memory is a bit hazy.)

• Kohada (gizzard shad) and smoked salmon (glass dish on the front right)

• Cream cheese, nanban-zuke (marinated) small ayu, duck loin, and cucumber (dish in the back)

• Conger eel fish somen (dish in the front center)

• Green plum (glass in the front left)

Next, as part of the same hassun, warm dishes were also served. (My memory is hazy on this as well.)

From the left,

• Fu (wheat gluten) dengaku

• Grilled sea bass

• Chimaki sushi

Deep-fried puffer fish (additional dish)

Next up, we had the additional dish of deep-fried pufferfish.

We had it on our last visit too, but my boyfriend wanted it again, so we decided to add it. There are two pieces per serving, but they served them to us one by one.

Bear Hot Pot

Next is the hot pot dish. They place an earthenware pot on the counter and finish preparing it right there.

The ingredients are Asian black bear, watercress, bean mochi, and water shield. It was my first time eating bear meat, but it didn't have much of a gamey flavor and was easy to eat without any strong aftertaste.

Hida Beef Fillet Steak (Additional Dish)

Next is the other additional dish, the steak.

A single serving was about 3 to 4 slices, but the chef said, "Since it's your birthday!" and generously piled on the extra portions, making it a huge heap. Thanks to that, we were both able to eat plenty.

Takikomi Gohan (Seasoned Rice)

Next is the seasoned rice. This time it was hairy crab croquettes and plenty of fresh ginger.

They served it for us, and we enjoyed it with a clam-based thickened sauce poured over it. They also served pickled eggplant on the side. (I'm not a fan of eggplant, so I had my boyfriend, who loves it, eat mine...)

Dessert

Next is the dessert. It features melon, cherries, and blueberries topped with a jelly made from Cointreau liqueur.

It had a refreshing taste and was absolutely delicious.

We also had mizuyokan (chilled sweet bean jelly) and matcha. We thoroughly enjoyed every last bit until the very end.

The Sake We Ordered

Last time, we drank beer and plum wine before ordering sake, but this time we started with sake from the beginning. Thanks to that, we were able to try many different kinds. (The overseas guest next to us was drinking about 900ml by himself, and my boyfriend looked like he wanted to compete, so I desperately stopped him, haha.)

At this restaurant, you can enjoy sake using two types of vessels: an ochoko (small cup) and a sakewan (sake bowl). Maybe I was nervous last time, but I didn't really notice the difference, but when I tasted it carefully this time, the sakewan made the flavor feel gentler, and I found it easier to drink from the sakewan.

I heard that the sake with the restaurant's name on it is specially made for them at a brewery in Ibaraki Prefecture. Since it's local sake, it made me feel happy somehow◎

A wonderful gift

As we were relaxing and drinking matcha after the meal, the chef gave my boyfriend a wonderful gift!

Wishing him a "nori-nori" (exciting/energetic) year, we received some roasted seaweed (nori). It even had a handwritten message on it, and it has become a precious treasure◎ (It seemed like a few other guests were also celebrating birthdays, and they received seaweed as well.)

Since this was our second time, I was able to spend a fun time without being as nervous as I was last time. (Our seats were also a little closer to the chef, so even though it was only our second time, I felt like a regular lol)

This time, too, the dishes were full of seasonal flair, and I was moved, thinking, "It really is fascinating!" I want to visit over the course of several years and see a full year's worth of dishes that capture the seasons.

And this time, I made sure to book our next visit. I invited my boyfriend's parents for the next one, so we plan to enjoy it all together.

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