Where to Dine - Tokyo - page 162

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chicken, and fish of the day, and the ¥200 dinner table charge includes bread. The only
problem is finding the place—stop at the police station at Roppongi Crossing to look at
the map or ask for directions. And once you get there, be sure to take the stairs on the
right side of the building to the second-floor restaurant unless you want a cheap thrill—
the elevator deposits you directly into the kitchen.
4-5-2 Roppongi. & 03/3470-5678. Reservations a must for dinner. Main dishes ¥2,500-¥3,000; set din-
ners ¥4,000-¥5,500; pasta set lunches ¥1,050. AE, DC, MC, V. Mon-Fri 11:30am-2pm and 5:30-10pm; Sat
5:30-10pm (last order). Closed holidays. Station: Roppongi (3 min.). From Roppongi Crossing, head away
from Tokyo Tower on Gaien-Higashi Dori and take the last right just before Midtown and then the 2nd
right; it will be on the right, up a flight of stairs.
Sabatini Roppongi ITALIAN There are so many Sabatini restaurants in Tokyo
(some with no relationship to each other) that they're hard to keep apart. This one, on
the 13th floor of the Ibis Hotel, is the least expensive of them all, with good food and
thoughtful service. Offering panoramic views over Roppongi and dominated by a huge
floral arrangement in the center of the restaurant, it offers various pasta dishes along with
Roman favorites, including rolled swordfish, chicken cacciatore, and saltimbocca (veal
with sage and ham).
Ibis Hotel, 13th floor, 7-14-4 Roppongi. & 03/5411-2975. Pasta ¥1,575-¥2,520; main dishes ¥1,995-
¥5,250; set dinners ¥5,000-¥8,925; set lunches ¥1,350-¥2,600. AE, DC, MC, V. Daily 11:30am-2:30pm and
5:30-11pm. Station: Roppongi (1 min.). From Roppongi Crossing, walk away from Tokyo Tower on Gaien-
Higashi Dori; Hotel Ibis is on your left.

6

INEXPENSIVE
In addition to the recommendations below, La Boheme (p. 134), at 4-11-13 Roppongi
( & 03/3478-0222; Mon-Sat 11am-5am; Sun 5pm-3:30am) and 2-25-18 Nishi
Azabu ( & 03/3407-1363; daily 11am-5pm), serves pizza and pasta, while Monsoon,
2-10-1 Nishi Azabu ( & 03/5467-5221 ), offers a wide variety of Asian standards daily
from 11am to 5am (p. 135). Gyu-Kaku, 5-1-2 Roppongi ( & 03/5414-5129 ), is a
Korean barbecue restaurant, open Monday to Saturday from 5pm to 5am and Sunday
and holidays from 5pm to midnight (p. 169).
w Ganchan YAKITORI This is one of my favorite yakitori-ya. Small and inti-
mate, it's owned by a friendly and entertaining man who can't speak English worth a darn
but keeps trying with the help of a worn-out Japanese-English dictionary he keeps behind
the counter. His staff is young and fun-loving. There's an eclectic cassette collection—
I never know whether to expect Japanese pop tunes or American oldies. Seating is along a
single counter with room for only a dozen or so people. Though there's an English-language
menu, it's easiest to order the yakitori seto, a set course that comes with salad and soup and
eight skewers of such items as chicken, beef, meatballs, green peppers, and asparagus rolled
with bacon. There's a table charge of ¥600 per person, but it includes an appetizer.
6-8-23 Roppongi. & 03/3478-0092. Yakitori skewers ¥315-¥735; yakitori set course ¥2,625. AE, MC, V.
Daily 5:30pm-1:30am. Station: Roppongi (7 min.). From Roppongi Crossing, take the small street going
downhill to the left of the Almond coffee shop; Ganchan is at the bottom of the hill on the right.

Gonpachi VARIED JAPANESE/YAKITORI Housed in a re-created kura
(traditional Japanese warehouse) with a high ceiling, three-tiered seating, and a central,
open kitchen, this is one of Tokyo's most imaginative inexpensive Japanese restaurants
(it's said to have served as the inspiration for the restaurant scene in the movie Kill Bill ).
It offers a wide variety of dishes, including yakitori (such as duck breast with wasabi), fish
(such as miso-glazed black cod), sushi (on the third floor), noodles, tempura, and more.