bento.com news
New restaurant reviews, plus a calendar of food and restaurant-related events in Tokyo, including wine tastings, guest chefs, and restaurant openings. Also includes Brews News, a newsletter on microbrew beers in Japan.



Article - Chic Hotel Bars If you're looking for a change of scene, a bird's-eye view of the city, or a Bond-worthy martini at 3pm, Tokyo's design-savvy luxury hotels are just the ticket. Forget brass-studded Naugahyde chairs and watered-down highballs. These days, the hotel bar experience is more fun than merely funny. Internationally acclaimed designers have injected the stodgy hotel bar with real style, and skilled bartenders have revived the art of the properly mixed cocktail.


Article - Akasaka Biz Tower It's been in the works for years, but the new TBS complex is finally open for biz.


Article - Hamasite Gourmet Up until now the biggest restaurant complex in Hamamatsucho has been the aging, early-closing basement of the World Trade Center Building, which has served local office workers for decades now. This new venture adds a bit of fresh life to the neighborhood, with some gorgeously decorated restaurants and drinking spots and a couple of late-night options (at least on Thursday and Friday nights). There are several more restaurants also worth checking out, but here are a few notable highlights.


Review - Tanyu Kurumaya: Shiodome Cochin - the free-range chicken that's the pride of Nagoya - is the bird of choice at this friendly yakitori shop, but there's plenty more here to attract the discerning diner. Explore the menu and you'll be rewarded with great little regional dishes from around the country. Oysters from Miyajima, kiritampo stew (made with mushrooms and grilled rice) from Akita, Berkshire pork from Kyushu, and some excellent oden, one of Tokyo's own specialties. There are nice udon noodles, kamameshi rice, and premium filet of beef grilled right at the table. Plus beautifully fresh and flavorful sashimi to start things off, and some well-chosen regional sake to wash it all down....


Sake labels Learn how to decipher the Japanese labels on sake bottles.


05/10-05/11, 10am-8pm. Two-day Thai food festival. This enormously popular outdoor event is now in its ninth year, as over 90 participating Tokyo-area restaurants showcase their culinary specialties, and Thai food shops sell imported ingredients....


05/12, 2:30-4:30pm, 6-8pm. Spring ginjo sake tasting in Yurakucho. The Japan Ginjo Sake Association, the organizers of Tokyo's big annual autumn ginjo sake tasting, will also be holding a spring tasting this year, showcasing the season's new sake from dozens of breweries...


05/12-20. Colombian guest chef at the Westin. Chef Leonor Espinosa, the owner-chef of one of Bogota's top restaurants - Leo Cocina y Cava - will be bringing her innovative modern Colombian cuisine to Tokyo when she guest-chefs at Victor's restaurant...


05/23-06/01. Hibiya Oktoberfest 2008 in Hibiya Park. No, it's not October yet, but this big ten-day festival will feature plenty of imported German beers, German, German wines, plus live musical entertainment from German bands....


06/11, 4-8pm. Sake festival in Ikebukuro Nihonshu Fair 2008 promises to be the world's largest sake tasting event, offering fans the chance to try 500 award-winning premium brews (ginjoshu) and sake from every region in Japan....