Where to Dine - Tokyo - page 157

Yebisu Garden Place, 1-13-1 Mita. & 03/5424-1338. www.joel-robuchon.com. Reservations recom-
mended. La Table set dinners ¥7,800-¥13,800; set lunches ¥2,950-¥5,250. AE, DC, MC, V. Daily 11:30am-
2:30pm and 6-10pm (last order). Station: Ebisu (6 min.).

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MODERATE
ViVi La Verde ITALIAN There are a dozen or so restaurants that comprise the Top
of Yebisu on the 38th and 39th floors of this high-rise in Yebisu Garden Place, but few
can boast the views of this restaurant. Sleekly decorated with black furniture and an open
kitchen, it occupies a corner of the building, with views toward Roppongi, Shinagawa,
Odaiba, Haneda, and even Yokohama on clear days, with many tables windowside. For
dinner, main dishes range from roasted swordfish with marinated tomato to sautéed pork
with a salad of white kidney beans, and, of course, there are plenty of Italian wines to
wash it all down. Set dinners allow you to choose your main dish from the a la carte
menu, with more expensive meals adding more side dishes. Set lunches are described in
Japanese only, with the cheapest set lunch offering a pasta, salad, and coffee.
Yebisu Garden Place Tower, 39th floor, 4-20-3 Ebisu. & 03/3444-3225. Main dishes ¥2,000-¥2,500; set
dinners ¥4,800-¥8,000; set lunches ¥1,000-¥3,500. Mon-Fri, ¥2,000-¥3,000 Sat-Sun and holidays. AE,
DC, V. Mon-Fri 11:30am-2:30pm and 5:30-10pm; Sat-Sun and holidays 11:30am-3pm and 5:30-10pm.
Station: Ebisu (6 min.).

INEXPENSIVE
In addition to the choices here, there's Monsoon, 4-4-6 Ebisu ( & 03/5789-3811 ),
serving Southeast Asian food daily from 11am to 3:30am (p. 135), and Kohmen, 1-9-5
Ebisu ( & 03/5475-0185 ), offering ramen and gyoza daily from 11am to 5am (p. 164).
s Ippudo GYOZA/RAMEN An English-language menu, energetic young staff,
and background jazz music make this a good choice for a meal, but it's the food that
makes it great. I can't resist the gyoza here, tender and juicy, though the ramen, available
in three different sizes, is what made the restaurant famous (there's even a branch in New
York). Sit down at one of the long wooden tables wherever you find an empty space
(you'll probably have to share), help yourself to the extra garlic available at every table,
and watch the action in the bustling open kitchen.
1-3-13 Hiroo. & 03/5420-2225. Ramen ¥850-¥1,150; set lunches ¥850-¥1,250. No credit cards. Daily
11am-4am. Station: Ebisu (5 min.). From the West exit, turn right on Komozawa Dori and cross Meiji Dori
via the pedestrian bridge. It's on Meiji Dori (in the direction of Hiroo), on the left side; look for its red lit
signboard and glass windows.

6

Zest Cantina MEXICAN You can probably find better Mexican restaurants at home,
but this will do for a quick fix, especially once the margaritas kick in. A huge, multilevel
restaurant decorated cantina-style with corrugated sheet metal on the outside and wood
and brick on the inside, Zest offers chicken and cheese burritos, enchiladas, tacos, fajitas,
and other Tex-Mex fare, as well as steaks, buffalo wings, hamburgers, and very good
salads from its English-language menu. Service can be slow. If you're wearing stiletto
heels, beware: I saw several lasses snared by the wide-planked flooring, which made for
an interesting sideshow.
You'll find other Zest Cantinas in the Ginza at 1-2-3 Ginza ( & 03/5524-3621 ), in
Shibuya at 1-6-8 Jinnan ( & 03/5489-3332 ), and on the fourth floor of Mediage on
Odaiba ( & 03/3599-4803 ).
1-22-19 Ebisu. & 03/5475-6291. www.zest-cantina.jp. Main dishes ¥750-¥2,600; set lunches ¥850-
¥2,200 (not available Sun). AE, DC, MC, V. Daily 11:30am-5am. Station: Ebisu (east exit, 8 min.). Follow the
signs for 1-chome Ebisu, and then take the street that runs btw. Kinko's and Mizuho bank; it will be on
the left.