Kaiseki

Last night, my beloved friends Poto and Ms. J. treated me to an early birthday dinner at Kaygetsu in Menlo Park. Kaygetsu specializes in the Japanese dining style known as kaiseki, which features a formal succession of dishes of various types. Kaiseki menus are very seasonal; the theme last night was definitely cherry blossoms.

I’m new to this food blogger thing, so I started on my first dish before I remembered to take a photo. It came stacked neatly in a tower.

Sakizuke (starter): seared hokkaido scallop and asparagus salad, broccoli rabe, daikon radish and egg yolk vinaigrette There was a dashi gelatin/broth that we mixed it all in with.

Sashimi. We had octopus tentacle, shima aji, and something else delicious (the white fish in front) whose name I’ve forgotten. I love the giant shell it came on.

Takiawase (slow-cooked dish): bamboo shoot, fresh wakame seaweed, minced shrimp, cooked in clear fish broth The bamboo shoot was a fresh one, still retaining it’s vegetal shape.

This is the big one. Hassun (assortment of flavors): egg omelet, smoked salmon and marinated celery in skewer; duck sushi with yuzu pepper and ginger; potato wrapped with nori seaweed and deep fried, topped with sea urchin and wasabi; watercress, avocado and wheat gluten mixed with tofu sauce; salted fava beans The egg omelet was more of a sponge-cake. The smoked salmon skewer with the celery had a wonderfully clear flavor from a dashi marinade.

Somehow I missed photographing the agemono course, which was kinki fish, wrapped with a cherry leaf and fried tempura style. This saddens me, because it came with tempura cherry blossom as a garnish!!

Nabe mono (hot pot): kurobuta pork, bean sprouts, green onion, cabbage and carrots, cooked in miso sauce The pork was a long, thin ribbon, and the broth was rich and delicious. I thought the hammered mini-woks looked like Jiffi-pop containers when I saw them on other tables, but they were really quite substantial and attractive. Ms. J. says the writing on the base seemed to tell a story.

Noodles: hot somen noodle soup with tai snapper, thin egg strips, mitsuba green, shiitake mushroom, ginger and kinome Again, a delicious clear broth, with perfectly-cooked fish.

House-made original desserts: tofu-strawberry cheese cake, saikyo miso cookie The cheesecake had a firm, smooth texture, and a very fresh strawberry flavor. The cookies were soft, and the miso gave an effect very similar to a peanut butter cookie.

My dining companions are among those least likely to sing Happy Birthday in restaurants, but they did so in low voices, just because they love me so much.

Everything was delicious, cooked and presented with exquisite care. Our server was the Best Waitress Evar, replacing our tea cups mid-meal, so we didn’t build up green tea sludge at the bottom, and even noticing when she should place cutlery for a left-hander. I loved the seasonality of the menu, and the high proportion of vegetables. I’m also a sucker for little serving dishes, and there was a bewildering assortment.

And then, after abusing me about my cheap knives, Poto gave me a beautiful set of Japanese knives as a gift. (Poto never gives gifts, so this was something extraordinary.) I love the grain on the metal.

Now I’m off to use my new knives to cook some lamb shanks.