For now it seems that we will be spending more time at home in order to prevent COVID-19 infection. Under such circumstances, what is attracting attention along with the takeout food of restaurants is delivery gourmet food that makes you feel as if you are traveling while staying at home. Therefore, this month's special feature introduces gourmet foods representing Minato-ku, Tokyo. We have chosen gems carefully selected by the Minato-ku Tourism Association, from the well-established tastes founded in the Edo period to the excellent food of top-class hotels. Why don't you order something special from Minato-ku and add a little change to your everyday life? Also, please consider it an option when choosing gifts such as mid-year gifts!

Since opening the Hotel Okura Tokyo in 1962 (currently The Okura Tokyo), the Hotel Okura Group has been operating Japanese, French, and Chinese restaurants directly, and has welcomed guests from all over the world as the "Gourmet Okura."

We convey the specific taste that has been passed down at the hotel group both in Japan and overseas, and we also offer that traditional taste even when ordering gourmet food.

The most popular gourmet food is the "Gratin Doria Assortment". A set containing 2 of each of shrimp gratin, beef doria, potato gratin and chicken doria. You can readily enjoy the traditional white sauce and demiglace sauce recipes.

The second most popular is the Chinese “Assortment of Side Dishes (A)” by Toh-Ka-Lin. This is a set of 2 packs of each of shrimp chili sauce, steamed pork belly and shark fin soup. You can enjoy the Chinese cuisine tailored to Japanese tastes of Toh-Ka-Lin, Japan's first Cantonese restaurant.

In addition, we have a variety of gourmet foods that you can enjoy with your family such the "Retort Curry Assortment" where you can enjoy three types of curry, and "Premium Jelly" that is full of fruits from famous regions such as Yamagata prefecture's La France region.

Hotel Okura OEC-Shop.com
http://www.oec-shop.com

Founded in Higashi Azabu, where the current Azabu Iikura main restaurant is located, during the Kansei era of the Edo period, “Nodaiwa” has a history of more than 200 years. You can enjoy the eel of one of the most famous restaurants in Tokyo at home.

The current Azabu Iikura main restaurant is a traditional Japanese house relocated from Hida so it has a nostalgic appearance. At the time of founding, this neighborhood was adjacent to both the samurai estates and the downtown area, so the taste of Nodaiwa has been loved by both samurai and merchants.

Backed by a tradition that has continued for five generations, "Kabayaki" has a graceful Kanto style, and we use eels from Shizuoka prefecture for the delivery product. The unglazed grilled eel is softened through steaming, marinated in a sauce containing only soy sauce and mirin, and finished as carefully as grilling on charcoal.

You can simply warm it in the microwave or in hot water and experience the taste of the famous restaurant, fragrant on the outside and fluffy inside. Sun-dried Hida Japanese peppers are another one of the secrets of the long-established restaurant. This luxurious meal is a rank-up from the usual, and it will definitely increase your energy and tension!

If you want to have it with sake, we recommend "Shirayaki". You can enjoy it with sake, but pairing it with wine and wasabi is the Noda Iwa way of enjoying it.

We also have thin cuts that can be arranged into various dishes, and the long-established restaurant’s eel that everyone knows is perfect as a gift. Enjoy the traditional taste at home!

Nodaiwa Home Page
http://www.nodaiwa.co.jp/index2.html

Shimbashi Tamakiya is a long-established restaurant that has been making tsukudani, a traditional food originating in Edo, since 1782. Currently, we offer a variety of rice dishes such as furikake and ochazuke, and most of the items can be ordered.

Traditional “Tsukudani” is available in several assortments, from 4 type to 9 type assortments. Among the many kinds, the small shrimp "Ami" is one of the classic items. Tamakiya's Tsukudani is characterized by its original blend of soy sauce and rich flavor without the use of any preservatives.

When it comes to tsukudani, clams, shrimps, and seaweed are common, but Tamakiya offers a variety of other products such as cod roe, scallops, and eel. Thinly cut seaweed seems to be the gem that the genius Einstein liked and sought out when he stayed in Japan. It's good to have it as it is with rice, in rice balls, or as ochazuke. Just thinking about it makes one want to have rice.

There are also products that match various tastes and generations, such as "Shiratsukudani" with a light taste, "Grape Tsukudani" boiled with Grape Sansho from Wakayama Prefecture. In addition, sweetfish and horse mackerel boiled whole, and the same wrapped in seaweed are also great for gifts.

Check out the "the furikake of the world". It is new creation from the long-established 300-year-old restaurant that reproduces world-famous dishes such as "Italian tomato", "tom yum goong" and "Szechuan style mapo tofu". Daily meals may make you feel as if you are traveling abroad?!

Shimbashi Tamakiya
http://www.tamakiya.co.jp

Tokyo Kaikan was founded in 1922 in the area in front of the Imperial Palace, where the current main restaurant is located. The spot, which was created as a “world-class social hub”, has had a glamorous history not only in modern times, but it has also continued to attract women throughout the years as a wedding venue. In addition to the Marunouchi main restaurant in the World Trade Center building in Minato-ku, the Hamamatsucho Tokyo Kaikan also protects the long tradition of Tokyo Kaikan.

The traditional taste of Tokyo Kaikan can also be enjoyed as delivery gourmet. In particular, "petits fours" and "petits gateaux" are assortments of Western confectionery that convey the unique French cuisine style that Tokyo Kaikan has built.

"Petits fours" is a set of semi-raw type cakes and soft cookies made by pastry chefs. Tokyo Kaikan’s spirit truly shines with the gems gateaux anana made from pound cake with pineapple boiled so softly the fibers cannot be felt and topped with refined chocolate, and the praline cream sandwich soft cookies.

"Petits gateaux" is a set of cookies like a jewelry box. It is an assortment of up to 20 kinds of cookies with made from different materials, preparation methods and shapes such as Amande chocolat, mixed berries, Earl Gray, Mikazuki, etc. Not only the appearance but also the taste are outstanding. It's a cute package, so it's also popular as a gift.

The "pound cake" is also recommended for those who want to thoroughly enjoy the pastry chef's taste.

We also have retort products that you can easily prepare and enjoy special Western dishes such as Japanese black wagyu curry and hashed beef.

Tokyo Kaikan Online Shop
http://www.tokyokaikan-shop.jp

"Shinshodoh Confectionery" is a Japanese confectionery store founded in 1912. Even if you don't know the name of the shop, there are many people who have heard of seppuku-monaka.

Shinshodoh develops ideas for products based on the history of "Chushingura" because it is located in the site of the Tamura estate where Asano Takumi no Kami, the ruler of the Ako clan era in the Edo period, committed seppuku (ritual suicide). The seppuku-monaka, with bean paste containing mochi coming out of the monaka wafers, is now a synonym for the shop.

In addition, "Jindaiko Dorayaki" is based on the battle drum struck by Oishi Kuranosuke before the raid of Ako the ronin, "Gishi Yokan" has the figures of the 47 warriors drawn on the packages, and the cream sandwich “Shusse no Kaidan” is reminiscent of the stone steps of Atago Shrine. The dora-yaki "Shin-Tora do-ra" commemorating the opening of Shin-Tora-dori is only available at the store. With this lineup you can really feel the Minato-ku love.

With the two letters of "seppuku" written on the package of each monaka, they are a popular apology gift among office workers. On the other hand for wishing a return to profitability there is a bean paste product that uses brown sugar called "Economic Boom" so if you are looking for an auspicious gift or a gift to apologize, this store has a good selection of souvenirs.

The shop owner's ideas captured in the unique sweets can be used as the topic of conversations while having tea.

Confectionery Shinshodoh
https://shinshodoh.shop-pro.jp