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Image 1: Nested in an upscaled shopping centre Roppongi Hills, this Robuchon's Michelin 2-Star L'Atelier is one of a few Michelin starred restaurants in the area. We have decided to go for lunch to sample their lunch menu.
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The restaurant can be hard to find. Just walk into the main entrance and head towards the "West Walk" area. Take the esclator down and you'll see it.
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www.joel-robuchon.com
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Quite unique about this L'Atelier is their bakery and take-away section! We have a friend in Tokyo who has Robuchon's sandwich everyday!
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Of course, the same set up as other L'Atelier -- the kitchen is in the centre where everyone can see.
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This place is packed with Japanese housewives, so reservation for lunch is advised!
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We were here for a simple 3-course lunch. Meat from pork rib on crispy baguette as amuse bouche. Nothing too special.
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And then the bread basket arrived! But the selection is not comparable to the Robuchon at MGM Vegas!
Image 9: First Course was a martini glass of tomato jelly with crab and avocado puree at the bottom. Working our way down through the layers, the sweet and tangy jelly contrasted nicely with the avocado puree along with a soft and fluffy crab texture in between!
Image 10: Next was a grilled foie gras resting on a bed of parmesan risotto. Cheese and foie gras? Unusual combination, but the two went well together, partly attributed to the touch of shallots and vinegar chives which added a hint of acidity to make the dish feel light!
Image 11: Then the main course, this dish had kind of an east-meet-west feel. Filet of lamb topped with buttered enoki mushroom accompanied by wasabi flavoured spinach underneath. Not the kind of flavour we were expecting from a French restaurant!
Image 12: Dessert: Mousse of Arabica coffee with chocolate biscuit at the bottom garnished with a Macadamian nuts on top.
Image 13: They displayed a few of these special coffee beans on the plate with a picture card. This specie of coffee has caffeine level significantly less than normal coffee but it tasted the same.
Image 14: Overall, we were expecting a truely French experience from L'Atelier here, but some of the dishes have Japanese influence, which is nice in some way. However, if you are looking for authentic French cuisine, you probably won't get it here.
