Bella Vista @ Tokyo

Usually I use the 40th floor restaurant for breakfast, but it’s always crowded and I don’t use it for a long time. But today I have a work lunch with a business associate and decided to go up there for a spot of lunch.

Bella Vista offers “Yoshoku”—Western dishes with a Japanese flair—refined by incorporating essences of Japanese, French, and Italian cuisines, and prepared with carefully selected ingredients from Tokyo and various regions around the country.

Located on the 40th floor of the 144m Garden Tower, the elegantly decorated dining room with a breathtaking view of the city is the ideal setting for any special occasion. And as usual, it is very popular with Tokyo housewives who have deep pockets.

Tuna Sashimi Carpaccio with Soy and Balsamic Sauce
鮪のカルバッチョ バルサミコ醤油マリネ

First up, a tuna carpaccio that used Japanese soy sauce as a marinate that reminded me of akami zuke. If not for the use of balsamic vinaigrette and bits of mesclun for decoration, I would have mistaken this for a sashimi course.

Creamy Sea Urchin Spaghettini
ウニのクリームスパゲッティーン

Japanese spaghettis are always surprising with the use of non-conventional ingredients for their sauce. Sea urchin with its overpowering umami always work in a creamy sauce. There’s only two mouthful of pasta in this serving.

And after the pasta, the first bread service was placed promptly prior to the first main course. This was a soft bun that can only be a Japanese baker, really;ly puffy and soft inside with a smooth, chewy skin. Served with whipped Hokkaido butter cream.

Fish of the Day from Sukumo Bay, Kochi Prefecture
高知県宿毛湾直送の本日のお魚料理

Fish of the day 本日のお魚料理 was Tachiuo (Belt fish), battered and lightly deep fried so the crust is crispy and the fish was properly steamed underneath.

The quenelle of green sauce on the side of the fish tasted like an Indian curry roux, which I left alone. The creamy sauce with a touch of lemon was good enough, and the fish was actually nice on its own. Served with sun-dried cherry tomatoes, snap peas and sautéed mushrooms.

The second bread service was a standard Italian panini with regular butter. The crusty bread was wonderful to mop up the sauce on the second main course.

Charcoal-grilled Filet of Domestic Beef and Chicken
国産牛フィレ肉と銘柄鶏のグリル

The second main course featured domestically raised beef and chicken with a side serving of snap peas, sweet potato and bamboo shoot.

The domestic beef 国産牛 from Tochigi was very tender but not Wagyu standard in terms of marbling. Actually I prefer these types of Japanese beef rather than the famous wagyu before I like my beef to be beefy.

A slice of well-grilled chicken thigh teased our palates. You wished for more, but it was just enough for a couple of bites. That pretty much explains why lunch sets are so much cheaper compared to the dinner sets, even when the courses are similar.

Ice Cream Mont-blanc with Japanese Chestnuts and Jersey Milk from Hachijo Island
和栗と八丈島ジャージーミルクジェラートのアイスモンブラン

But the dessert they didn’t skimped, we were served a proper Mont Blanc dessert. A Mont Blanc is a dessert of sweetened chestnut purée in the form of vermicelli, and was created in nineteenth-century Paris. The Japanese perfected this dessert given the super-high quality chestnuts available, as well as the precision they assembled every component of the dessert.

Hachijojima 八丈島, a volcanic island in Japan, is known for its rich, high-quality Jersey milk, which is used to produce various dairy products like ice cream, gelato, cheese, and pudding. I can only describe the creaminess of the ice cream, but you have to try it to believe it.

Coffee or Tea コーヒー 又は 紅茶

When the coffee (or tea) was served, we knew it was the end of lunch. We were the only table left as we were talking and did not realised we have gone past their lunch service. We had a tasting menu and everything was exquisite. Super well presented and prepared, nothing particularly stood up. Once again, I did not manage to enjoy the view as it was a business lunch, and most of the time I was engrossed in the conversation.

Bella Vista @ Hotel New Otani Tokyo Garden Tower
Japan, 〒102-8578 Tokyo, Chiyoda City, Kioicho, 4−1 New Otani Garden Tower,
東京都千代田区紀尾井町4-1 ホテルニューオータニ東京 ガーデンタワー 40F
Tel : +81 (03) 3238 0020 (Reservations)

Visited Mar 2025