| Restaurant Review |
By Karryn Cartelle
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Nefertiti
Find genuine Egyptian cuisine tucked away in Meguro
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| Photos courtesy of Nefertiti |
When dining out in Tokyo, “authentic” is a word to be suspicious of. It’s not uncommon to find staple Japanese foods creeping their way back onto the menus of supposedly foreign restaurants. Nefertiti, though, is as about authentic as it gets. When owner Emad Kawamoto was unable to find a “real” Egyptian restaurant in Tokyo, he decided to take matters into his own hands and open one.
On first entering Nefertiti, you may find it more reminiscent of
an Aladdin theme restaurant rather than a traditional Egyptian one. However, here you’ll be greeted by professional waiters in suits rather than belly dancers asking you to rub their magic lamp (although belly dancers do perform twice a week). Disney tunes have been replaced by traditional Egyptian songs.
Each table provides a cozy haven away from the streets of Meguro. With soft, draping curtains separating each setting and billowing cloth hanging from the ceiling above, you feel secluded in your own personal tent. Persian rugs and cushions surround low tables at the back of the restaurant, where patrons can stretch out, relax and enjoy a meal or a water pipe (¥1,000).
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Nefertiti offers a broad selection of cuisine that is friendly to both meat-lovers and vegetarians. The creamy hummus (¥680) has a rich sesame tang and is best mopped up with slices of fresh pita. However, don’t finish it all off before ordering the Egyptian falafel (¥680) and making your own version of Egypt’s healthy alternative to the Big Mac by coating each pita with hummus and wrapping the falafel inside. The mulukhiya soup (¥980) isn’t the most appetizing-looking dish on the menu, but it is one of their healthiest. Renowned for its beauty benefits, the soup, made from the leaves of the jute plant, has distinct garlic and coriander flavors. The musa’ah (¥980), a sizzling hotpot of eggplant, hearty chunks of potato and green peppers in a thick tomato-garlic sauce, has a strong cumin aroma.
Meat-lovers have a wide range of options, including well-known favorites like shish kebabs (¥1,600) and batt fil forn, which is roasted duck breast in a ginger sauce (¥1,800). Despite many of their dishes drawing heavily upon coriander, saffron, garlic and cumin, these seasonings don’t overwhelm each other, and every dish retains its distinct taste.
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Nefertiti’s original cocktail list is also worth a try, with options like the Belly Dancer, (¥850) a blend of rum, chili, rosewater and lime.
To finish off the evening, mint and hibiscus teas (¥500) make the perfect accompaniment to baklava (¥480), a dessert of phyllo pastry layers stuffed with nuts and cinnamon and drizzled with honey.
Nefertiti offers plentiful dinner course options ranging from ¥3,800 to ¥7,300 per person. If you plan a visit on Wednesday or Friday night, get ready for some live entertainment with two belly dance shows throughout the evening.
2F Mito Building, 2-17-4, Kamiosaki, Shinagawa-ku. Tel: 03-5719-5455. Open Mon-Fri 11:30am-2pm and 5pm-11:30, Sat-Sun 5-11:30pm (closed first and third Monday of the month). English menu available. www.nefertititokyo.com
When popular restaurant Roti closed its Harumi Triton Square branch in March, there were a lot of sad diners. Fortunately, a new and exciting restaurant and wine bar has opened to take its place… or perhaps we should say “dramatic,” since that is how Garden Bay describes itself. Garden Bay offers modern Italian cuisine in a casual style at reasonable prices. The dinner menu is quite extensive. For starters, you can pick from carpaccio, tomato and basil salad, pancetta, terrine, or bacon and egg salad, for ¥680 to ¥1,380. For entrees, Garden Bay offers lots of grilled meats, seafood, pasta, rice dishes and some vegetarian fare. No entree item costs more than ¥2,400, and there is an ample selection of red and white wines from Italy, Spain, France, Argentina and Australia to go with your dinner.
The restaurant is also popular with the lunchtime crowd.
Sets, which change daily, include pasta, a rice dish and a one-plate combination of salad, rice and meat. Of course, no meal is complete without dessert, and Garden Bay offers the likes of tiramisu, gateau chocolate cake and fruit tart. The restaurant is available for parties as well, starting at ¥2,400 per person for a two-hour period. Having just opened, Garden Bay doesn’t yet have an English menu, but the staff are friendly and floor manager Kanako Uehara is more than happy to help with any inquiries.
Harumi Triton Square 1F, Harumi 1-8-16, Chuo-ku 104-0053. Tel: 03-5547-0561. Open daily 11:30am-11pm. Nearest stn: Kachidoki. www.gardenbay.jp CB
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