Chef and restaurateur René Redzepi has temporarily relocated himself and his entire staff to Japan. The highly acclaimed Noma restaurant has kicked off a two-month residency as Noma Japan and are serving diners from the 37th floor of the Mandarin Oriental in Tokyo. Now, if was eating at a restaurant and there were ants on my food I would try not to shriek but I would definitely walk out, not pay and never eat there again. However, at Noma you pay for ants on your food. The first dish that’s served is shrimp with “flavors of the Nagano forest.” And we’re not talking leaves or tree bark. Food writer Robbie Swinnerton explains:
The magic kicks in from the very first course, jumbo shrimp served atop a platter of ice. They are superb, premium sashimi quality and so fresh they’re still dancing their final quivers. But it is the seasoning — “flavors of the Nagano forest” the menu calls it — that defines this dish. A dozen tiny wild black ants are carefully arranged on the shrimp, their little pinpricks of sharp acidity acting as a perfect accent for the sweet, pink flesh.
January 22, 2015 at 11:27 pm
OMG eeeek! I’d scream if I were to have this. I love Japan, but sometimes the eccentricities scare me a little.
http://www.coquettishmish.com
January 24, 2015 at 1:06 am
Michelle, the dish is nothing to do with what you patronisingly call “Japan’s eccentricities” other than the fact that the dish is being served in a very up-market restaurant located there.
For a start, Redzepi is Danish. And you can find outre dishes like this in similar restaurants all over the world.
February 7, 2015 at 9:03 am
Hey Johnny,
Thanks for the shout-out. The link to my Japan Times review does’t seem to be working right now. Here you go:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2015/01/20/food/nomas-take-on-a-japanese-menu-is-bold/#.VNYMNlZhLLQ
And on my blog it’s here:
http://foodfile.typepad.com/blog/2015/01/noma-japan.html
cheers!
February 7, 2015 at 10:44 pm
Robbie – oops! Sorry, the link was broken. It’s been fixed now 🙂
February 9, 2015 at 5:41 pm
If “Ants” appeared on a plate of food that I was actually paying for it would go straight back into the kitchen…Through the air.
Seriously… Redzepi is taking the piss and customers are actually paying for this crap….Ants , what next ?