Hotel Aura Daito (Adult Only)

Chef Ueda came up with creative skewers to make use of his experience in both Japanese and Western cuisine. The honekiri-treated hamo requiring very precise cuts is where his Japanese culinary skills shine. The croque monsieur is a French recipe. The menu starts with Western appetisers and incorporates surinagashi, gazpacho and other soups. The free-wheeling culinary ideas on display in the menu have you looking forward to what’s coming.

A house that would not seem out of place in the French countryside. The white-walled interior is furnished with antiques, swaddled in rustic warmth. The chef polished his culinary skills in the south of France. Dishes are prepared in time-honoured ways and plated simply. Great skill with flame control is seen with the meat preparations, while sauces make lavish use of butter and wine. Enjoy French cuisine prepared the traditional way.

This house, surrounded by bamboo, welcomes only one party per day. The refined gate, elegant room and tasteful garden are all the work of the proprietor. Devotion is paid to every aspect of cuisine and service in the spirit that each meal is a once-in-a-lifetime encounter. Meals incorporate seasonal flavours from across Japan. To convey the proprietor’s feelings for the food directly, ingredients are brought to the table and sometimes even prepared before guests’ eyes. Western ingredients are also used, charming diners with creativity beyond Japanese cuisine.

The chef here is a culinary master who never sways from his devotion to his craft. His daughters lend their strengths to his efforts, providing gracious service as a family. Bringing the true flavours of ingredients to the fore is the restaurant’s forte. Simple dishes such as boiled vegetables topped with bonito-flavoured soy sauce and vegetables reflect the family’s sincere devotion, embodying the chef’s adage that ‘cuisine reveals the person’. Heartfelt fare that is a true testament of the chef’s nature.

Intent on catering to guests’ every preference, the house restricts service to one party per lunch and one per dinner. For drinkers, there’s a surfeit of bar snacks; for diners, dishes of generous proportions. The chef assembles his omakase set menus with each diner’s preferences in mind. The name “Koikiryori” means ‘chic cuisine’, declaring a free and easy style of cooking. Some dishes incorporate elements of Western cuisine, showing a playful side. Immerse yourself in a once-in-a-lifetime experience, courtesy of a true veteran of the culinary world.

The owner-chef apprenticed at an unagi restaurant in Osaka after becoming enamoured of the world of unagi artisans. He took the name of his teacher’s restaurant out of gratitude and grills plump ‘aote’ unagi, Kansai-style, over bincho charcoal. There is a saying that when it comes to learning unagi, skewering technique takes three years, dressing it takes eight years and grilling it takes a lifetime to master. As such, he has devoted himself to unagi.

In tonkatsu, the chef expresses the knowledge and passion for pork he cultivated in French cuisine. The blackboard-decorated interior creates a bistro vibe. Sauces feature red wine; the batter is flavoured with vanilla. Recalling his days as a high school baseball player, the chef’s cooking wear is in the style of a baseball uniform. ‘JAPAN’ is inscribed on the sleeve, signalling that this tonkatsu rookie aims to be Japan’s No. 1.