Address - Tokyo-to, Musashino-shi, Kichi Joji Honmachi 2-18-8 Opening hours 11:30 to 15:00 and 18:00 to 22:00 on weekdays; 12:00 to 15:00 and 17:30 to 22:00 on weekdays Map - Yes Telephone - 0422 21 1249 Menu - In French and Japanese CC - OK Site - Yes
Right above Daizuya, Toque Blanche is a small restaurant with no more than eight tables recommended by Tom Boatman in his review of Daizuya. I rarely take a train to eat French, because the excellent restaurant Brin de Muguet is just a few minute walk from my house in Ogikubo, but I liked the idea of having an alternative to it, so I went.
Although casual, hospitable and unpretentious as it befits a Kichi Joji restaurant, TB manages nonetheless to be elegant (see the picture at their site). The place is very relaxing even when full, and the uniformed girls offer excellent service, so that even when they burned our bread to a crisp they managed to deliver it with great grace and a such a smile of complicity that I couldn't help smiling myself.
The menu is populated with classics, from Terrine Maison to Confit de Canard and Fillet de Boeuf, but there's a blackboard full of extra stuff (alas, in Japanese) that gives more scope to variations. A good selection, albeit free of great surprises. There are two sets, one for 3500 and another for 5000, and we opted for the smallest of the two: given that it includes three dishes, dessert and coffee, and that portions on neighboring tables looked generous, we figured it would be more than plenty. And it was. The two ladies I was with, unlike me, like wine and ordered a bottle of red from TB's long list (see their site. Link above), which includes white and red varieties from all over France.
I had Terrine Maison (I know it's a banal choice, but if I see it, I can't resist), green pie soup, and lamb ribs. My better half had a salmon salad, an unidentified soup, and fish fillet. I forgot to write down what the third lady had. I must say that we all agreed that the food, although good, cannot compete in depth with Brin de Muguet's, but it's good, and the atmosphere alone is worth not one, but several visits.
At dessert time, the girls brought to our table everything they had, and we got to choose three different things. Together with a Chartreuse, mine were a splendidly decadent end to a very pleasant dinner gained at very reasonable cost: 5000 apiece including the wine. If you want to eat in Kichi Joji, don't overlook Toque Blanche.
One last thing: if you can read Japanese, visit their well-made site. It contains their full menu and wine list, plus every possible information you might need.
