A note on the words: ikura is salmon roe, the glistening orange beads you’ll see in the starter. Nameko is a small, slippery Japanese mushroom more often found in miso soup, here served raw alongside the ikura. Karasumi is cured, dried mullet roe — Japan’s answer to bottarga — shaved thin over cold pasta for a briny hit of umami.
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Azabu Asai on Tabelog (English) — opening hours, payment details and the Japanese address are kept up to date there, not here.
Hangover Meshi here. This time I made my way to Nishi-Azabu for a creative Japanese restaurant I’d been wanting to try for ages: “Azabu Asai.” I checked on a whim whether I could get a lunch reservation, and it turned out I could! It’s somewhere near Thermae-yu, tucked down a side street just off Roppongi-dori — the kind of hideaway spot you’d never stumble on by accident. Once inside, we were shown to a private room, probably because of our party size. Lucky seat.
Weekday-only lunch course — 7,260 yen
Chef’s choice lunch course — 10,890 yen
Chef’s choice full lunch course — 14,520 yen
Owner’s choice course — 19,360 yen
This is a proper destination restaurant, and the prices show it. This time I went with the weekday-only lunch course!
I ordered a cold oolong tea and settled in for a bit of conversation.
Just look at this lol. Right out of the gate, a dish where the ikura (salmon roe) pops beautifully against a gorgeous bowl.
Such a pretty plate. It’s ikura, spinach, and nameko (a small Japanese mushroom), with walnuts folded in for a bit of crunch. The nameko are the big, meaty kind with deep flavor, and the ikura works so well with the wasabi.
Another beautifully plated dish: a sea bream soup.
The saucer, by the way, was Hermès ^^ It looks gorgeous, and it tastes just as good — the best of both worlds.
Such a gentle, delicate flavor. I think I might love this one.
A one-bite cold pasta with karasumi (cured mullet roe, Japan’s answer to bottarga).
The umami is huge, and the noodles are wonderfully chewy with real bite. There’s something distinctly Japanese about the flavor — maybe there’s some kind of dashi worked in. Served cold, it slides down easily and is very easy to eat.
Grilled pork.
Tender, juicy, and delicious, cooked just right. The crispy fried leek on top adds great texture, and it pairs beautifully with the wasabi. Now that I think of it, is this ginkgo nut season? It’s been a while since I’ve had one, but it’s good.
Last up, there was a choice between the Ise lobster dashi curry and something else, but come on, everyone wants the Ise lobster dashi curry! So that’s what I picked, and it really does carry a strong Ise lobster flavor — delicious. The spices are there, but they don’t take over; it reads more like a gentle Western-style curry with Ise lobster dashi folded in, giving it a Japanese-leaning taste that’s easy to eat. Really good. The rakkyo pickles on the side, by the way, were mild and lovely too ^^
And another beautiful dessert: a cheesecake dressed up with red flowers plus green and yellow accents that all come together beautifully.
There was chocolate on the side too, which was delicious.
On the whole, this was food you can enjoy with your eyes as much as your palate — carefully made, beautiful, delicious. Every dish had a gentle seasoning with a Japanese thread running through it, the kind of food that really suits a Japanese palate. I’d love to come back and pair it with some drinks sometime. It’ll probably surprise you, so I’d recommend starting with lunch to experience it for yourself!
Azabu Asai (Creative Cuisine / Roppongi Station, Nogizaka Station)
Tabelog lunch rating ★★★☆☆ 3.7
I ate here and paid for it myself. Nothing on this site is a comped meal.
One more for the road?
