Viva, Part II

Gluttony is one of the seven deadly sins – emphasis on deadly – and, Lord, don’t I know it. When I left you last, I had eaten a plate of delicate sea bass carpaccio with slices of freshly baked bread, four fat stalks of white asparagus with Parmesan, linguine with juicy clams and chiles, and spaghetti in a decadent uni cream sauce. These tasty morsels were savored with a delightful Carpene Malvoti sparkling Rose, which, once finished, was followed by a glass of palate-cleansing white wine before sampling Chef-san’s recommended summer red: a playfully petillant La Monella Barbera del Monferrato.



Brightly effervescent rather than forthrightly fizzy, this wine delivered luscious ripe raspberry and currant flavors but had a dark edge that lent it sophistication. This contrast filled me with a sense of nostalgia for a time that was not my own, an impromptu roadside picnic in the Italian countryside plucked from the loose ends of a Fellini film.

As we sipped our La Monella, we nibbled on crispy slivers of eringi mushrooms lightly fried in olive oil and anticipated the first bite of our lamb chops, which arrived shortly, perched atop a bed of sweet snap peas, glistening with fat and unadorned save a single sprig of rosemary.



The skillful execution of something as simple as a piece of meat is the mark of a true chef. The fewer the ingredients, the less you have to hide behind. It’s all about catching the moment, as Delia Smith would say, and that’s exactly what Chef Hatae did: the beautifully browned meat was a sumptuous pink on the inside, savory and deeply flavorful. In my mind, I could hear the distant voice of my Cuban friend Gigi saying, “It’s good, guhrl, it’s good.”



After the lamb chops, we felt it was only decent to decline the plate of homemade sausage and eggplant the chef offered to make for us. Even though it’s one of our favorite dishes (it’s homemade sausage, hello), we were too stuffed to even contemplate eating it. Our protests didn’t stop Chef-san from bringing out a cheese plate and a special cake she had made for JP’s birthday, a scrumptiously springy sponge cake slathered in silky white icing made with sweet cream and topped with fruit. Imagine pound-cake-meets-panna- cotta and you’ll start to get the idea. All this with fragrant light amber grappa…how lucky could we be?

Forgive me – perdonilo - I wanted to take pictures of dessert, I really did, but I’m afraid I was too drunk to hold the camera straight. Don’t worry, though, I’m sure I’ll be back at Gigilo soon, and I promise to keep my wits about me next time!

Giglio: 6-6-2 Nogata, Nakano-ku, Tokyo (3336.6006)