ENEKO Tokyo — Restaurant in Tokyo

Massively overrated. Did not meet 3 stars on the night.

(note: it may be great for weddings but I am rating this on a 2 seats dinner).

I went there to have the best basque experience with a business friend and hoped to introduce all the classics. The restaurant looks great as you would expect. The little picnic intro was amusing. Textures and presentation of dishes were asyou would expect.

Here are my complaints.

The service was amateurish. We had 3 foreign waitresses and none could speak English well at all, and I suspect Japanese neither but we did not dare asking to switch. There was constant hesitancy on the dishes explanation and on one instance, the waitress had no idea on the dish, blaming her colleagues for a change of menu. For the reputation of this restaurant, this is unforgiveable. Service otherwise was adequate.

Next, this is a little personal since I am native from near the Basque area. But overall, it is not much of a basque cooking. The dishes are quite over-complicated, it could have been branded any cuisine moderne and still would work. I expected to feel the terroir much more.

Which leads me to a my last (and perhaps subjective point). Every dish is a daring combination of improbable ingredients, textures and tastes. For example, foie gras and orange, strawberry and rose. While I admire the chef's creativity on that point, we are often left with mixtures that overpower or cancel each other. I would-be happy with authentic basque farm foie gras. As aresult, 2 of the amuse-bouche were bland. The truffle egg looked great but was unbalanced.

On the plus side: The Japanese waiter were very good. She came to inject a soft egg with truffle using a serynge and did a steady job.

Textures and craft are the parts that stood out for me but you would expect no less from a 3 stars restaurant.

Wine selection as good as you would expect also.

Given the 45,000 yens bill on the cheapest menu for two, I give it 2. It did not deliver...

Went for lunch and had a beautiful course. Note: even lunch can be a 3+ hour experience, so budget time accordingly so you don’t miss out.

The space itself is lovely, spanning out between two floors. We waited in the downstairs bar/lounge area for everyone to arrive before being escorted to a kind of showroom where we were presented with the picnic basket h’orderves. Then, we were taken upstairs and down a long hallway to the dining room. Each course was beautifully prepared, and it was a serene space where you could easily enjoy conversation.

A couple tips: Definitely get the truffle egg add-on If you get the choice between fish, duck, and beef, get the duck or beef. The people who got the tuna were the only ones who had any disappointment during the meal Try the house...

I had guests from overseas and I really wanted this to be good but unfortunately both the food and the experience were disappointing.

It was the first time in Japan I felt I didn't want to finish the food because it tasted bad. For example, there was a bitterness in the mousse inside a yuzu skin shell, an oily taste in the deep-fried items, and a raw, fishy taste in the cod tempura and eel puff which shouldn't be there.

The non-Japanese staff tried very hard but their English was abominable when it came to explaining about the dishes so there were often awkward silences.

I can see why it was very easy to book and the place was not even half full on a Friday afternoon. It really is a shame because the venue is stunning. I do hope they...