L’effervesence, Tokyo – 3* Michelin, #51 50Best Asia
L’effervesence, Tokyo – 3* Michelin, #51 50Best Asia
by brooklynite
8 Comments
brooklynite
A thoroughly enjoyable, beautiful, thoughtful meal of French-infused Japanese cooking that has quickly become my favorite cultural pairing. Interesting day to share this meal when I saw such a poor review earlier (will address that).
I dined as a solo diner at L’effervesence for lunch and was immediately escorted to a beautiful seat by the restaurant’s long window. The service was very high-touch, friendly and went into depth on ingredients, techniques and any other matters I wanted to discuss.
This did not feel like a more traditional French progression – it was lighter, a few less courses than one might expect but a sum total that was greater than its parts. The unique presentations mixed among traditional courses – cocktails, bread, tea – were all welcomed. A number of courses had tableside presentations which were lovely.
The meal itself was more muted in flavor by comparison to SEZANNE, where I had dined the night before, but allowed certain ingredients to truly shine and felt lighter overall on the palette.
The risotto was extraordinary, a culinary victory, combining luxurious ingredients in a way where none overshadowed the other. The 59 component salad was simply a fun adventure – finding different types of produce and the varied cooking techniques. Fish had the best flavor profile of any course to me – lots of acid, some sweet and a very savory fish. Duck was exceptionally prepared with perfect sauce. I enjoyed the cheese course and especially the mignardises.
I did have a few service issues – choosing your knife is wonderful, it was not replaced between courses. English was poor on some servers – the dining room should have paired me with those who could best explain the dishes. One server had a very runny nose, wasn’t pleasant to watch him sniff through illness. Otherwise I found it attentive with no major issues.
Would recommend, especially for the cost vs. experience and value.
I have a lunch there next month. I’ve been favoring the long lunches versus dinners lately. Maybe I’m getting old.
Someone else just posted on here that they didn’t enjoy their dinner.
reformingindividual
Matcha does look pretty big lol
ilovecheeze
I need to take issue with your point about English. This is Japan, you’re a guest, no one has any obligation to cater to your language. You should appreciate they speak any English at all
East-Win7450
I staged here way back in 2017 and the meal I had was lovely upon my exit. I think the food doesn’t always look super exciting from the outside but the meal comes together very nicely I will definitely be back once I’m in Tokyo.
creeperatx
Awesome writeup, thank you!
Infamous_Lab7531
Nice, report! I thought about posting my own pictures after seeing the negative review earlier today, but since I had pretty much the same meal that isn’t necessary anymore. I agree with most of your points, though I don’t think I have ever or will ever care about things like changing knifes after every course. I thought the food was excellent and very much worthy of three Michelin stars (which btw do not have anything to do with service and are purely a reflection of the quality of the food).
My favorite dishes were the duck (best I’ve ever had), the salad, and the petit fours. I feel like the dishes were less “authentically French” and more a Japanese adaptation of French cuisine. The amount of food was a little more than what I would consider to be perfect. Value for money is exceptional at ¥36,000 for the dinner menu.
monumentclub
I still think about that salad. I had a great experience there this summer.
8 Comments
A thoroughly enjoyable, beautiful, thoughtful meal of French-infused Japanese cooking that has quickly become my favorite cultural pairing. Interesting day to share this meal when I saw such a poor review earlier (will address that).
I dined as a solo diner at L’effervesence for lunch and was immediately escorted to a beautiful seat by the restaurant’s long window. The service was very high-touch, friendly and went into depth on ingredients, techniques and any other matters I wanted to discuss.
This did not feel like a more traditional French progression – it was lighter, a few less courses than one might expect but a sum total that was greater than its parts. The unique presentations mixed among traditional courses – cocktails, bread, tea – were all welcomed. A number of courses had tableside presentations which were lovely.
The meal itself was more muted in flavor by comparison to SEZANNE, where I had dined the night before, but allowed certain ingredients to truly shine and felt lighter overall on the palette.
The risotto was extraordinary, a culinary victory, combining luxurious ingredients in a way where none overshadowed the other. The 59 component salad was simply a fun adventure – finding different types of produce and the varied cooking techniques. Fish had the best flavor profile of any course to me – lots of acid, some sweet and a very savory fish. Duck was exceptionally prepared with perfect sauce. I enjoyed the cheese course and especially the mignardises.
I did have a few service issues – choosing your knife is wonderful, it was not replaced between courses. English was poor on some servers – the dining room should have paired me with those who could best explain the dishes. One server had a very runny nose, wasn’t pleasant to watch him sniff through illness. Otherwise I found it attentive with no major issues.
Would recommend, especially for the cost vs. experience and value.
Full album of the meal: [https://imgur.com/a/leffervesence-hCEQn3R](https://imgur.com/a/leffervesence-hCEQn3R)
I have a lunch there next month. I’ve been favoring the long lunches versus dinners lately. Maybe I’m getting old.
Someone else just posted on here that they didn’t enjoy their dinner.
Matcha does look pretty big lol
I need to take issue with your point about English. This is Japan, you’re a guest, no one has any obligation to cater to your language. You should appreciate they speak any English at all
I staged here way back in 2017 and the meal I had was lovely upon my exit. I think the food doesn’t always look super exciting from the outside but the meal comes together very nicely I will definitely be back once I’m in Tokyo.
Awesome writeup, thank you!
Nice, report! I thought about posting my own pictures after seeing the negative review earlier today, but since I had pretty much the same meal that isn’t necessary anymore. I agree with most of your points, though I don’t think I have ever or will ever care about things like changing knifes after every course. I thought the food was excellent and very much worthy of three Michelin stars (which btw do not have anything to do with service and are purely a reflection of the quality of the food).
My favorite dishes were the duck (best I’ve ever had), the salad, and the petit fours. I feel like the dishes were less “authentically French” and more a Japanese adaptation of French cuisine. The amount of food was a little more than what I would consider to be perfect. Value for money is exceptional at ¥36,000 for the dinner menu.
I still think about that salad. I had a great experience there this summer.