Address: 2-1-8 Yurakucho, Hibiya
Baden
Baden is literally off the beaten path housed under the east side Yurakucho
Station train tracks. Located in Ginza by the Imperial Hotel, it's hard to
imagine that beneath the tracks there would be such a cozy restaurant serving
up German classics. And yes, you can hear the light rumbling of the train as it
goes by, but it’s not disruptive or annoying.
We had to
admit, after seeing the row of restaurants built into the tracks, we were
intrigued – after all how big could they possibly be with their limited real
estate? So, we decided to stop and check one out. Baden Baden isn’t large by
any standard, but surprisingly still seats quite a few people. At first, only
expecting to get some drinks, we ended up trying some food after seeing
tempting pretzel and goulash on the menu.
The
pretzel (¥431) was freshly made, arriving hot and doughy soft. It’s less dense
and chewy compared to the ones I’ve had in malls and sporting events, but its
lightness is fitting when you’re also downing pints of beer. Although I’m a big
fan of savoury foods, it would have been nice if the salt coating it was toned
down a bit and instead a dipping sauce accompany it as well since it was a tad
dry.
After
having bowls of goulash while on a Contiki trip, the memories of the thick
flavourful stew still haunts me. Whenever it’s on a menu, I generally end up
ordering it in hopes of being reunited with the flavours I enjoyed at roadside
stops across Austria. Baden Baden’s goulash (¥1,565) had a thick stew consistency
filled with tender cubes of beef that had some tendon attached to it so there was
some gumminess to it – I know this sounds strange, but it’s something I enjoy.
The flavours could have been a bit more spicy but the addition of diced sweet
peppers brighten up an otherwise simple dish. If only the pretzel arrived with
it, the sauce would have made an excellent dip for the pretzel. Alas, we had
polished that off too quickly.
The
restaurant, although not hidden, may be hard to find as you do need to find the
right part of the tracks. So, I’ve enclosed pictures of their business card
below in case it helps you locate it. Cheers and good luck with your journey,
this unique little place is worth a stop.
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