Address: 1-9-1 Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato (inside the Conrad Hotel on the 28th floor)
Website: http://www.conradtokyo.co.jp/collage
Type of Meal: Dinner
Located on
the 28th floor of the Conrad Hotel, Collage offers soaring windows
with an amazing view of Tokyo. Occupying the space of a former Gordon Ramsay
restaurant, it also serves French creations but with a Japanese twist on
account of Chef Shinya Maeda’s inspirations.
The interior dining
space is a conservative mix of dark wood and cream linens with large but
simplistic light fixtures. After settling into our plush chairs we decided on
the “saison” tasting menu (¥15,000), the only one I’ve had that offers a
bread pairing with each main dish. I
apologize as didn’t realize this happens until the third dish so didn’t take
any pictures of the bread. As a carb lover I was in heaven - pretzel bread with
the ballotine and tortellini, a fluffy squash water bread with the tilefish and
a cocoa bun with the duck! What an interesting concept that I encourage other
restaurants to adopt.
To begin a hot crunchy cheese croquette adorned with a
cold dollop of smooth tangy ricotta. I love the beautiful dill imprinted into
it and foreshadows the dishes to come – each carefully built to be a beautiful
presentation.
Having had quite a bit of mackerel while visiting Japan,
I wasn’t surprised to see a seared mackerel sashimi presented next.
Disappointingly, it had a very fishy taste that could only be masked when eaten
with the pickled peas (?) at the bottom. Luckily, it was a very small piece so
with a couple of bites it was done.
After finishing the meal I’ve come to realize Chef Maeda
likes to add a crunchy element to his dishes. Normally, I’m quite happy about
this as the contrasting texture can work very well. But, as with all things,
sometime it works and sometimes things should just be left alone. The king crab
ballontine is an example of where I felt it didn’t work. Imagine… a succulent
piece of crab wrapped in a delicate braised leek but then ruined with various
crunchy bits that really add nothing to the dish. All the delicious natural
sweetness of the crab and freshness in the leek gets lost when simplicity might
have been better.
Luckily, the tortellini was an improvement and affirms
why Collage earned a Michelin star to begin with. The braised shredded lamb
inside was spot on and wonderfully tender and flavourful. Although the pasta
was a touch hard, after letting it sit in the au jus for a bit the dough soften
up. But, it was the humble eggplant in the middle topped with crème fraiche
that tied everything together so well, really brightening up what could have
been a heavy dish.
Up next was the cône de pin (translates into pinecone)
tilefish, where the fish scales were crisped up to resemble a pinecone. The
fish was cooked splendidly, flaking apart and tender, contrasting nicely with
the crunchy fish scales. A thick red pepper bouillabaisse-like sauce added a
great flavour to everything. The crunchy element in this dish was dried pieces
of chorizo which I didn’t particularly like; but, at least it was on the side
of the plate so could easily be left off depending on your preference.
The following dish had a lot of elements to it, all
highlighting an ingredient I love – duck! Firstly, a perfectly cooked skinless
duck breast topped with some undecipherable crunchy bits. In between were
miniature duck confit tornado rolls, a rich take on spring rolls with a more
gamey flavour. All this rests on a light and smooth foie gras sauce which went
well with the meat. Some grains of barley sat around the dish as well soaking
up all the delicious duck juices. Only the turnip sauce threw me off as I found
some bites bitter and off putting.
Before dessert, a palate cleanser of sweet raspberry or
pomegranate sorbet with pieces of a champagne (?) ice. It was nice and
refreshing, especially after the heavier duck dish.
The first dessert was a beautifully risen chocolate soufflé
and side of chestnut ice cream rolled in walnuts. The cake was perfectly fluffy
with the edge toasted to let cocoa flavours out. Meanwhile, the ice cream was
very cold and took a long time to melt enough so that my spoon could cut
through it; personally, I prefer this as would rather the dessert not turn to
mush as soon as the ice cream is placed into the soufflé. But, the best part
was the chocolate pop rocks on the bottom of the ice cream which crackled as
they melted in your mouth. I absolutely loved this dessert.
In my view, I would have been perfectly happy ending on
the soufflé high. Surprisingly, another
dessert arrived, this time a fruitier nougat parfait. Simply put, it was a
creamy custard log covered with crunchy graham cracker bits. On top were some
dots of bitter orange reduction which with the sweet custard wasn’t too bad.
Beside the “nougat” was a delicious smooth cinnamon ice cream with thin meringue
bits to contrast. All in all, a good dessert but nothing compared to the soufflé.
Although the
food wasn’t spectacular, it was nonetheless delicious and satisfying. I love
the chic environment and traditional linen and silver service you’d expect from
a French restaurant. Collage is a great venue for a long meal (ours lasted two
and a half hours) with some special guests. Of course, its convenient location
and spectacular views could also warrant a visit as well.
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Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
