takara (mmm++) on the way to a lebanese restaurant...

europaplein 11
1078 gs amsterdam
tel 020- 675 0016

summary:

food: 8/10 (Fresh and delicious)
service: 7.5/10 (Very courteous and friendly)
decor: 7/10 (Plain, clean and comfortable.)

mmms:

mmm++/mmmmm

comments:

We arrived early one evening, anticipating a meal at a nearby Lebanese restaurant that serves excellent meze, but were drawn to the fresh look of this new addition to Europaplein. After glancing at the menu outside of the door we entered and were very graciously ushered to some seats by a friendly waitress.

Takara is a fairly new Japanese restaurant in Rivierenburt, and is located across from the RAI. Still pristine, the interior is uncluttered, clean, and new. There are also a few outside tables just in front of the restaurant.

The menu features both a long a la carte list as well as some very nice set menus. We went for "menu number 16":

• Salad with seaweed and sesame dressing: Very nice. The dressing was savory and subtle, and the seaweed didn't squeak between my teeth. Always a good sign. Nothing amazing but refreshing and a nice beginning to the delicacies that followed.
  
• Sashimi and norimaki: The tuna, salmon and shrimp were really wonderful and tender. Very very yummy. This is the type of fresh fish that convinces you that raw is not a bad thing.
  
• Miso soup: If you like miso soup, great. If not, like my boyfriend, poor you.
  
• Yakitori: Very very nice. Wonderful grilled salmon, tuna, and scallops. Very tender and delicious.
• Tempura: Again, really wonderful and crispy. The shrimp tempura was extremely fresh and good. I love all things tempura... The sweet potato was particularly nice.
  

Yay! I think that this is a new favorite. We had a really lovely meal, with the exception of the noisy toddler at the next table who was hell-bent on throwing plates.

While biting into a wasabi laden piece of norimaki (I love the wasabi rush), I contemplated various means of keeping small children at bay while in a restaurant. I actually invented a new device. It would consist of a pair of headphones and and something stick like thing made of foam with a motion detector. The kid could thump the hell out of the table, and something in the stick thing would make loud thumping noises but only in the headphones. That way, the kid would get the satisfaction of smacking something around, but no one else would have to hear it. You could even do something electrical in the handle that would give the kid a little jolt. I mentioned this idea to my boyfriend who looked over at me and said, "No, I have a better idea. Babysitter."

Can you tell that we are childless? A good thing, I think.

All of this to say, great little restaurant. Wonderful food and very good service.

mmmore:

japan-guide.com