A note on the words: ajillo is the Spanish dish of something simmered in garlic and olive oil; fritto is the Italian word for something fried in batter; otoshi is the small dish an izakaya brings unbidden and charges for as a seat fee; pate de campagne is a coarse country pork terrine; and diavola and Bismarck are the two classic pizzas here, the first spiced with salami and chilli, the second crowned with a soft egg. Prices are as of this writing (August 2026).
QUAND L’APPETIT VA TOUT VA ! on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Drinkers, thank you for waiting. It is Hangover Meshi time.
Daytime drinking again today. When you say “let us drink in Azabu-juban from the afternoon”, I always feel the choices are rather thin. Somewhere you can drink properly, and where a private room lets you take your time — that is the thing. And good food, obviously. The place that grants all of those selfish wishes is, after all, this one: “QUAND L’APPETIT VA TOUT VA !”, and this is my second visit. The first was good, so I am back.
One minute on foot from Azabu-juban Station. A bistro with a big U-shaped counter seating twelve at the centre of the room. The name is French for “when the appetite goes well, everything goes well”, apparently. Stylish. The cooking is French at its base with Spanish, Italian and Indian elements worked in, and it is delicious.
I rang ahead and was told a private room was free, so off I went. Lift to the 4th floor!
Right then, let us start drinking.
Beer while the sun is still high — deliciousssss!
The otoshi — canapes! (Otoshi is the small dish an izakaya brings unbidden, charged as a seat fee.)
To begin with, I took the starter platter.
Dim sum somewhere between a momo and a shoronpo, plus carrot rapee, pate de campagne, carpaccio and more. With that many things on one plate you can keep drinking on this alone for a good while. I was pleased to find something properly Indian or Nepalese in among them.
Today’s ajillo star was broccoli. The chopped garlic seems to be heated slowly in the olive oil before being tossed through, because the heat has reached right into the stalks: bite in and they crumble away, that soft.
There seem to be herbs worked into the batter, and from inside that fragrant crust the squid springs back at the tooth. The sweetness spreads the longer you chew, and a squeeze of lemon lightens the finish in one go. Fried squid is often served with aioli, but here it is built to be finished cleanly with lemon instead.
This calls for a little wine, surely? So I added a red.
Mutton curry. A gravy that looks to have had onion and tomato reduced patiently into it, with plenty of coriander lending its scent, so that the spices rise the moment the bowl reaches the table. And on tasting: this is good! From behind the richness the savour of the mutton comes after you, gently, so that the depth registers before the heat does. The curry here is seriously the real thing. Remarkable.
The dough, baked in the oven, puffs up plump at the rim with fragrant charring: crisp outside, chewy within. The heat gives it its accent, but the mellowness of the cheese wraps that heat and makes it easy going. As a pizza to drink alongside, the balance feels exactly right.
This one was the Bismarck, I think? The star is the soft-cooked egg dropped in the centre, dusted lightly with grated cheese and black pepper. Put a knife through it and the yolk floods out, tangling with the tomato sauce and the cheese. Delicious.
Thoroughly satisfied!
A fair amount of drinking from the afternoon, and a good deal of eating too. Beginning with French and running through Indian and Italian — being able to eat across that many genres is a pleasure. There really is nowhere else that lets you drink this properly at this hour. If you find yourself near Azabu-juban wanting to drink from the afternoon, do call this place to mind.
May you meet something good to eat today too.
QUAND L’APPETIT VA TOUT VA ! (bistro / Azabu-juban Station, Akabanebashi Station, Roppongi Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★★☆ 4.0
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
