Among the new additions to the Tokyo Station area this month are boutique French restaurants, a reinvention of the classic highball, summer festivals, summer sweets and a home-theater hotel staycation. Check out the highlights below.
New Restaurants Opening at the Four Seasons Tokyo
Contemporary and elegant French interior designed by André Fu © Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo
“We’re very excited to bring a new addition to the incredible gastronomic scene of Tokyo and particularly Marunouchi,” says General Manager Charles Fisher of the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo, which sits a stone’s throw from Tokyo Station. Fisher was referencing the hotel’s two new high-end French restaurants run by Michelin-star chef Daniel Calvert.
The cool-as-a-cucumber French bistro Maison Marunouchi opened on June 1. Among its signature dishes are succulent steak frites and tandoori-spiced frogs’ legs. Sézanne, debuting on July 1, boasts plush pastel interior and an open kitchen framed by lamplight at the restaurant’s fore. Expect elegant dishes such as Tsar Imperial Ossetra Caviar and a white asparagus soup. Reservations for both restaurants can be made online.
When: From June 1 and July 1, respectively
Where: 1-11-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku
Read more about the new restaurants here.
Tokyo Station Hotel Introduces the Low-Alcohol Highball
When bars and restaurants across Tokyo were asked to refrain from serving alcohol, the mixologists at Camellia in the Tokyo Station Hotel came up with an alternative for the highball-loving populace. Blending acidity, sweeteners and spices with a corn tea base, the “slightly alcoholic highball” (only about 0.3—0.5 percent alcohol content) is perfect for a time when low-alcohol beers and mocktails are soaring in popularity. The minor kick in the drink comes from flambéed whiskey which also imbues it with a taste and aroma familiar to fans of the classic highball.
When: Available from June through the rest of 2021
Where: 1-9-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku
Join the ECO EDO 2021 Celebrations in Nihonbashi
In Nihonbashi, the most important center of old Edo, traditions are nurtured as well as modernized. ECO EDO is one such event. It’s a goldfish extravaganza in the summer with many takeout stalls, as well as established shops, selling foodstuffs in the likeness of one of Japan’s classic summer animals: the goldfish. There will also be a “Yukata de Nihonbashi Sampo Mapu,” which will guide yukata-clad amblers around the “cool” sites of Nihonbashi. Plus, selected shops around the neighborhood will offer discounts to guests dressed in traditional Japanese garb.
When: Jul 16—Sep 12
Limited-Time-Only Home Theater Suite at Ginza Grand Hotel
The folks at the Ginza Grand Hotel have prepared the ultimate rainy-season staycation plan, where guests can recline and bust out the popcorn in their very own 55-square-meter home-theater suite. It’s equipped with a twin bedroom and living room as well as a private cinema space with a 100-inch screen. The screen’s high-resolution display and powerful sound system enable a pseudo movie-theater experience without having to brace the drizzly outdoors or indoor cinema crowds.
When: Jun 14—Jul 21
Where: 8-6-15 Ginza, Chuo-ku
Ginza Cozy Corner Summer Collection
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The popular dessert chain Ginza Cozy Corner has unveiled its new summer sweets collection. Among the refreshing assortment of confectionaries are fruit jellies, madeleines, silky smooth kuzukiri sweet noodles and mizuka (fruits in jelly). The collection’s available at the flagship store (an eight-minute walk from Tokyo Station) and other Cozy Corner locations. Selected sweets are available from the online store.
When: Throughout summer 2021 (unless sold out)
Where: Select Ginza Cozy Corner Stores
Here is what else is new:
