Hello. This is Kakurai from the Creative Department.
This time, we will introduce "BISTOR KRI-KRI", a restaurant that has been run by a husband and wife for many years.
Before I begin the introductions, please note that by the time this article is published, the stores I am about to introduce will most likely be closed.
The owner of the restaurant expressed concern that although the restaurant had been recommended to him, it was currently closed and he felt sorry for anyone who had wanted to visit after reading this article.
However, I have a strong attachment to this store and I am grateful that you agreed to my request to write about it.
Normally, Kurikuri serves wine and food mainly in the evenings, but today my goal is to have a very rare lunch, which is only available on Sundays, so I stride over to the restaurant with a bit more gusto than usual.
4 minutes walk from Monosus towards Sannomiyabashi Station.
If you walk along the west approach to Meiji Shrine, you will see the shop on your left, on the corner of the intersection.
The red window frames stand out against the black walls.
The windows feature green, orange, and yellow stained glass as well as colorful paintings of cows and chickens, making the colorful shop look like something out of a storybook.
A painting of a cow greets you at the entrance. It is the master's work. He also painted the walls himself.
It's difficult to categorize the restaurant as serving food from a particular country, and although it has a Mediterranean atmosphere, it's hard to call it Italian or French. Originally a Middle Eastern restaurant, it retained the atmosphere while also serving a different cuisine, making it a strange place even in terms of the food.
The day's menu is handwritten on a signboard in front of the shop.
<Today's meal>
Pasta with vegetables and bacon
Pizza hamburger
Flan duck steak
Page sauteed beef cutlet
Each person will have soup, salad, rice or bread.
A delicious cup of coffee costs 100 yen
"Mmmmm. I want to try them all."
There is no fixed lunch menu as it changes depending on the season of the ingredients and what is available, and different menus are served each season.
The only thing I can say is that they are all absolutely delicious.
Although I was worried, my heart was fluttering as I put my hand on the pink door.
"Welcome," he said.
The owner's wife, Eri, welcomes you with a warm voice and a smile.
"Is a seat by the window okay?"
When there is an empty seat, Eri lets me choose it, and whether she knows that I like windows or not, she naturally escorts me to a window seat.
Ken, the owner, is hard at work in the kitchen at the heart of the restaurant.
The business has been in business for 50 years and the owner is the second generation owner.
The interior of the store is wrapped in a calming dark wood that is different from the exterior, and the orange light from the stained glass shines in beautifully.
The stained glass seat at the back.
There are old wooden tables, black tables with red legs, and chairs of all different designs, but the atmosphere is unified. A folk art-style chest of drawers is quietly placed in one corner of the floor, and under the counter are Middle Eastern vases, chests, and large copper plates.
The owner, a mountaineer who has climbed parts of the Alps, personally collected these ethnic items during a stopover in Syria.
The stained glass lamps on the counter are also irresistible. The miscellaneous goods scattered around the shop exude a variety of country smells, from the Orient to Northern Europe and the Middle East.
The most striking feature is the large Mizuya chest of drawers located in the kitchen.
It is an antique from the Taisho period and apparently does not use any nails.
The sight of the wine glasses neatly and neatly arranged in the heavy chest of drawers is sure to evoke a sense of time and romance.
Not only the food, but even the interior design is a mix of completely different cultures, and the master's sense of fusion is amazing.
Master from 10 years ago.
There is also a portrait of the master on display at the entrance.
The red apron that he wears today was apparently painted 10 years ago.
This portrait, which can be seen in various places such as on the website and on billboards, was actually drawn by "Mr. Isoda", who was the teacher of Monosasu Editor-in-Chief Nakani when he was attending Kuwasawa Design School, and I can't help but think that this is also a wonderful connection.
Professor Isoda, a regular on KuriKuri, often appears in the columns published on the site.
Mr. Isoda, who goes by the affectionate nickname "Iso-san," is a more powerful person than you might imagine from his illustrations, and Eri herself shared countless stories about her and Mr. Isoda.
Everything you see, even the forks and cups lined up on the table, is enveloped in the love of the owner and Eri, and the furniture exists so dignifiedly in this space that you naturally feel a sense of joy at being there.
Once we sat down and our minds and bodies were immersed in the world of relaxation, Eri brought us salad and soup.
The first thing that surprised me was the wide variety of vegetables in the salad.
As I eat tomatoes, cucumbers, sprouts, cabbage, carrots, red onions, apples, etc., I find myself looking for this and that.
There's an apple hidden in the back. The French dressing goes naturally well with the fruit.
In the foreground are two cut Kyoho grapes.
"By cutting it, you can eat the delicious skin along with the pods, and it's easy to tell at a glance that they are seedless," says Eri, and this is her own clever idea.
By the way, Kyoho grapes are not always included in the salad. Apparently, he just picked up some grapes because they were very dark in color and looked delicious, and added them to the salad.
They were certainly sweet! And just as Eri had planned, she gobbled down the Kyoho grapes, which she usually peels before eating.
In fact, some of the vegetables served are grown by the couple themselves.
He has the Kurikuri Farm in Yamanashi, where he grows eggplants, tomatoes, and pure berries without pesticides, and on his days off he travels to Yamanashi every week to care for the vegetables.
"All the vegetables lined up at the supermarket have beautiful shapes.
However, vegetables grown on normal farms tend to be all unevenly shaped, so it's normal for cucumbers to be crooked like this. So when I buy cucumbers, I always end up buying crooked ones.
He explained to me by making his hands into the shapes of different vegetables, saying that this is because it is a natural shape.
The mug, large enough to hold in both hands, contains shiitake mushroom and mitsuba consommé soup.
It has a low salt content and the gentle taste of vegetables fills your mouth when you drink it.
The soup I drank while holding it in both hands warmed my core and my palms.
Recently, some customers have been asking if they could add more salt and pepper, to which Eri replied, "I think that with so many additives and synthetic seasonings becoming so common, people are feeling like the food isn't satisfying enough."
However, she laughed mischievously and said, "I like cup ramen and eat it sometimes."
And now the long-awaited main event.
After some deliberation, I decided on the "Flan Duck Steak" and "Homemade Bread".
The duck is topped with the chef's homemade berry sauce.
The unique aroma of the duck and the refined acidity and sweetness of these berries are addictive.
The berry sauce was rich and carefully simmered, even though the shape of the berries was still intact. The meat was also exquisitely tender, with the duck's elasticity and yet not tough, resulting in a satisfying dish.
Flan duck steak.
Some of you may have noticed by looking at the side dishes that none of the vegetables in the salad so far are overlapping, except for the carrots.
The cooking skills are truly impressive... He is adept at using a wide variety of vegetables, and I never get bored of it.
Homemade bread has long been a beloved staple.
The crust is firm and crispy, while the inside is chewy.
This is a masterpiece with a subtle aroma of butter and salt that gives you a direct taste of the sweetness of glucose, a carbohydrate.
I usually prefer rice, so I have never tried bread, but from now on I think I will order bread at Kurikuri.
Two homemade breads.
"Phew," you say, feeling comfortably full from being 90% full, your shoulders relax and you let out a sigh of happiness, and as if he has heard your inner voice saying, "I want some coffee," a cup of coffee is gently placed in front of you.
To be honest, I don't know much about what makes coffee taste good or bad, but I'm sure most people would say this coffee is delicious.
After all, the food and each piece of furniture are filled with the couple's love.
Every single coffee bean and every drop poured into a cup may contain the precious time and feelings that the couple has cultivated together at the shop.
The couple's personalities also made me fall in love with this restaurant.
However, as I wrote at the beginning, unfortunately, the restaurant will be closed for a while from January 2017.
The duration has not been decided yet, and it is unclear whether it will be three months or six months.
If you really want to experience the mysterious world of Kurikuri, check out the book below.
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" The Story of Nishi-Osando Bistro Kurikuri "
(Author) Eri Kuroda
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This book was written by Eli, including the illustrations.
And if you happen to pass by the store in a few months and see that Kurikuri is open, be sure to stop by.
You're sure to have a wonderful time.
BISTOR KRI-KRI
3-38-12 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Tel: 03-5388-9376
http://www.terra.dti.ne.jp/~hayate-7/index.html
KAKURAI Hiromi
I love my own kid. I do 'oshi-katsu' every day.