NEXUS HOTEL Ebisu

The restaurant has had a new chef since 2026. The interior, kitted out like an English manor house, is the reason for the name ‘Manoir’. Eager that guests should relax as if in their own homes, the owner/sommelier serves guests himself. The chef’s aim is to serve light French cuisine. The sweetness and tartness of fruit are overlaid with the umami of fermentation and salt-pickling. Game is delivered by hunters from Hokkaido and other places throughout Japan. Enjoy the wild flavours of game cuisine, with a glass of French wine.

With the joy of choice at its heart, this restaurant offers an à la carte selection alongside a curated list of aged wines. Foie gras is served as confit; seafood and meat dressed in sauces redolent with wine. Classical techniques are honoured. Crab baked in pastry is filled with scrambled egg to lend a note of familiarity. Classic cuisine meets aged sake in harmonious union. The very essence cultivated through the history of French gastronomy.

Insatiable curiosity about all things tempura is this restaurant’s driving force. The chef blazes his own trail, unencumbered by convention. In a one-of-a-kind technique, the chef prepares his batter using two types of water as well as liquid nitrogen. One menu item features chilled sea urchin on deep-fried perilla leaf, creating a contrast of cold and hot. Inventive dishes are slipped in between menu items, varying the pace. The chef takes pride in offering an extensive range of tempura pieces, letting his imagination run free.

The omakase set menu provides an impressive variety, beginning with side dishes. After sashimi and bar snacks, vegetarian fare follows to change the pace and to signal the transition from snacks to nigiri. Sushi toppings showcase the chef’s craftsmanship, honed over many years, as well as a few of his novel touches. The first piece is tuna, the measure by which a sushi shop is judged. Unique choices include botan shrimp and shiitake mushrooms from Minamiuonuma. Eggs are rolled into Japanese-style omelettes, light and gentle in flavour.

With ‘Old Sichuan’ as its guiding principle, the restaurant reinterprets and refines the flavours of Sichuan’s past. Each course draws inspiration from Chinese history and its notable figures. Dish names are written in two kanji characters, inviting guests to imagine their flavours. ‘Furong’ takes its cue from the hibiscus, the official flower of Chengdu, while ‘Guifei’ incorporates the wine favoured by the famed Tang-era beauty Yang Guifei. The chef’s passion is thoughtfully conveyed through the manager’s explanations.

Tomoya Kawada sees cooking as a reconciliation between nature and humanity. He names his approach Sazenka, which literally means ‘tea-Zen-Chinese’, out of a desire to create Chinese fare that mediates between the worlds of tea and Zen. His cuisine harmoniously combines the techniques he learned in China with the soul and spiritual features of Japan – ‘wakon-kansai’ is the theme. Japanese ingredients in season are used in spring-roll fillings and Sichuan stir-fries, lending a seasonal dimension to Chinese cuisine.

The chef trained in Italy’s regional cuisine, respecting the handling and pairing of locally rooted ingredients. His commitment to this philosophy is evident in his handmade pasta. Without a fixed recipe, he relies on experience to balance flour and eggs. The menu features specialities from his training grounds, such as tagliatelle with ragù and tajarin with truffle. Having honed his skills inland, he focuses exclusively on meat dishes for the main course.