GINZA 豉 KUKI (ぎんざくき), a Japanese restaurant in Ginza, Chuo Ward, Tokyo, offers monthly-changing courses themed on fermentation and aging. The "Ginza Kuki Special Selection" (銀座豉特選) miso, which brings out the flavor of the ingredients, is also available in several varieties.
The October course opens with an autumn-flavored appetizer: a tender simmered turnip stuffed with shrimp, served with a clear sauce made from the upper layer of miso and garnished with chrysanthemum. The menu continues with dishes made from carefully selected ingredients chosen with attention to where they come from, including a steak of Ozaki beef grilled on a magnolia leaf (hoba) and served with autumn mushrooms, lotus root, and Kujo leek.
Seasonal Course "Kiwami" (極)
- Price: ¥23,650 (tax included; a 10% service charge is added separately)
- Reservations: Required by the previous day
Appetizer (Sakizuke)
- Chrysanthemum-cut turnip stuffed with shrimp and simmered, with a chrysanthemum sauce made from the upper layer of miso
Assorted Small Dishes (Hassun)
- Miso-marinated nodoguro (blackthroat seaperch) tempura
- Kabocha squash chakin with autumn-leaf senbei crackers (maple and ginkgo)
- Mizuna and matsutake mushroom ohitashi with itogaki (shaved bonito)
- Soy-marinated salmon roe with sprinkled yuzu
- Autumn truffle chawanmushi (savory steamed egg custard)
Sashimi (Otsukuri)
- Three kinds of seasonal fresh fish, with garnishes
Clear Soup (Owan-gawari)
- Dobinmushi (steamed in a teapot) with momiji-dai sea bream and matsutake mushroom, with mitsuba, ginkgo nuts, lily bulb, and sudachi citrus
Light Bite (Oshinogi)
- Kawahagi (filefish) nigiri with liver-miso moromi and scallion sprouts
Fried Dish (Agemono)
- Amadai (tilefish) matsukasa-age (pine-cone style), with a clear starch-thickened sauce (gin-an) and wasabi
Main Dish (Shiizakana)
- Hoba-yaki (grilled on a magnolia leaf) Ozaki beef from Miyazaki Prefecture, with makomotake, Daikoku shimeji, bairingu mushrooms, lotus root, and Kujo leek
Vinegared Dish (Sunomono)
- Persimmon and hokkigai (surf clam) in white vinegar dressing, served in a persimmon cup, with shungiku (garland chrysanthemum), awafu (millet gluten), lotus seeds, and two-colored chrysanthemum petals
Rice (Shokuji)
- Sasanishiki rice from Naruko, Miyagi Prefecture, cooked in an earthenware pot, or takikomi gohan (seasoned mixed rice) made with seasonal ingredients and cooked in an earthenware pot
- Assorted rice accompaniments
Diners choose one of the two rice options. The takikomi gohan carries an additional charge.
Miso Soup
- Fried eggplant and Kujo leek, made with "Ginza Kuki Special Selection Zen Aged Red Koji" (銀座豉特選 禅 熟成赤糀) miso
Dessert
- Miso ice cream, chestnut daifuku, and seasonal fruit
Course contents may change depending on the day's ingredient supply.
Restaurant Information
- Name: GINZA 豉 KUKI (ぎんざくき)
- Address: 4F GINZA-A5, 5-9-16 Ginza, Chuo Ward, Tokyo
- Phone: 03-3572-5433 (reservations required)
- Hours: Lunch (Saturday only) 11:30 AM–2:00 PM; Dinner 6:00 PM–10:30 PM
- Closed: 2nd and 4th Mondays, Sundays, and public holidays (also closed during summer, Golden Week, and the year-end and New Year holidays)
- Seats: 20 (6 counter seats, 8 table seats, 6 private room seats)
- Website: https://ginzakuki.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginza_kuki/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ginzakuki/
The restaurant also has a spacious private room.
