Wasabiya

Discover the specialties of Shizuoka in Daikanyama

Photos by Kensaku Shioya

A restaurant dedicated to the pleasures of wasabi sounds like a culinary adventure too far, which is why we are pleased to report that Wasabiya is not that restaurant. Instead, this cozy eatery located half way between Ebisu and Daikanyama is better described as a superlative izakaya that uses only the finest ingredients, one of which is wasabi.

Like the majority of the ingredients used here, the wasabi comes from Shizuoka, the home prefecture of owner Shigeki Kobayashi, who runs three other restaurants in Shizuoka City and, like wasabi farmer Shigeo Iida (see p33), looks a decade younger than his 41 years. (Now there’s a scientific study waiting to happen.) Kobayashi is the personification of majime (a Japanese adjective that is almost impossible to translate, a blend of seriousness, meticulousness and hard work), and his staff at Wasabiya, dressed in marvelous traditional festival costumes, have a similar ethic of kindness and professionalism.

Every customer at Wasabiya—mostly local businessmen on our recent visit—is presented with his or her own stick of fresh wasabi and a mini grater. Using a circular motion, you grate your wasabi

into a paste as needed and add it to any dish you like. To appreciate the wasabi to the full, we were told, dip your pinkie into the freshly grated paste and take a raw hit, and do not dilute the flavor with soy sauce for, say, sashimi, but add both separately, or forget about the soy all together.

We chose to mix and match with our selection of uniformly excellent dishes, highlights of which included the sweet and creamy yuba (tofu skin, ¥580), succulent grilled tuna kashira (meat from the fish head, often considered the best, ¥780), deep-fried bakudan (“bomb”) of mountain potatoes, shrimp and vegetables (¥850), and boiled chicken shoulders with mushrooms (¥850). The moriawase sashimi selection (¥1,880) featured astonishingly fresh shiroebi (white shrimp), isaki (chicken grunt fish) and namadako (the purest form of raw octopus).

We accompanied these delights with selections from Wasabiya’s excellent sake list. The prices are high, but so is the quality, including Bijoubu junmaiginjo from Kochi (¥980), and the stunning Denshu tokubetsu-junmaishu from Aomori (¥1,200). Better value is the kikizake tasting set of three types of sake, for which we chose Azumaichi from Saga, Joukigen from Yamagata and Isojiman from Shizuoka, all rated junmaiginjo or higher and a bargain at ¥1,200.

Wasabiya is a modest place, decorated in a rustic style. It’s a simple backdrop against which superlative food and service shine. Grating your own wasabi is a nice touch that serves to remind customers of the artisanal nature of good Japanese cuisine, and such attention to detail is a sign of somewhere very special.

Echo Daikanyama, 1-30-14 Ebisu Nishi, Shibuya-ku. Tel: 03-5489-0328. Open Mon-Wed 6pm-2am, Thu-Fri 6pm-4am, Sat 6pm-midnight, closed Sun. Nearest stn: Daikanyama or Ebisu. Menu in Japanese. Reservations accepted. Smoking unrestricted. www.zai.jp

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