Vento Bar and Grill
Head to Shinagawa for a taste of Italy (and New York)

Photos courtesy of Vento

We always knew Shinagawa was a busy transportation hub, but we never realized that we could step out of the station and end up in another country.

Vento Bar and Grill bills itself as a “New York-style Italian” kind of place. The “Italian” part is easy to understand—the menu features standard pasta and pizza. The Big Apple bit, however, comes through a little more subtly in the drinks menu (with a section devoted to martinis) and in some of the desserts, like homemade apple pie (¥850) and, of course, New York cheesecake (¥750).

Vento offers plenty of seating options. In the summer, you can head out to the spacious outdoor patio, which may not afford much of a view (it’s located in the space between two sections of the Wing Takanawa shopping center) but is a great spot for an evening cocktail. Inside, we enjoyed the chic black and white decor with tropical foliage as its centerpiece.

We started one recent visit with a cranberry royal (¥980), a perfectly blended mix of sparkling wine, cassis and cranberry that was tart, sweet and fizzy—the perfect pre-dinner cocktail. Next, we chose Mango A-Go-Go (¥780) from the list of “New York-style Martinis.” This tropical concoction, served in a sumo-sized martini glass, consisted of vodka, Passoa liqueur and mango juice. The drinks menu has a little bit of everything, with wines by the glass and bottle (from ¥750/glass), Heartland (¥750) and Nastro Azzuro (¥780) beer, and a lip-smacking selection of soft drinks, including flavored teas and juices.

The food menu consists mainly of pizza, pasta, and grilled meat and fish. There’s also a selection of salads and appetizers. We had the “7G Salad” (¥1,000), which contains seven types of vegetables: broccoli, celery, green beans and various other greens. The basil dressing was a bit salty, so we recommend asking for it on the side. We liked the fact that any of the salads could be customized with a choice of toppings, ranging from avocado to Gorgonzola blue cheese.

For our main dish, we chose a delightful seasonal selection of grilled isaki (a whitemeat fish) with champagne sauce (¥2,700). The dressing was rich and creamy, the ideal accompaniment to the grilled vegetables and mashed potatoes it was served with. Not a drop remained on our plates afterwards. The spaghetti with eggplant and mozzarella cheese in tomato sauce (¥1,350) was hearty and satisfying, but not so much so that we couldn’t spare a little room for dessert. The tiramisu (¥700) and berry tart with blueberry gelato (¥750) provided the perfect end to the meal.

So were we in New York? Rome? Tokyo? By the end of the evening, we stopped asking and decided to simply enjoy.

1F Wing Takanawa West, 4-10-18 Takanawa, Minato-ku. Tel: 03-3441-7952. Open Mon-Sat 11am-11:30pm, Sun & hols 11am-11pm. Nearest stn: Shinagawa, Takanawa exit. www.wondertable.com

Got something to say about this article? Send a letter to the editor at letters@metropolis.co.jp.

Listen to the Metropolis Podcast, the coolest guide to what goes on this week in Tokyo.

Looking for international friends? Check Japan, Inc. Friends now - it's 100% free!