What is it like to dine at Sezanne, the best restaurant in Japan?
Ranked No. 2 on this year’s Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list, fine dining juggernaut Sezanne in Tokyo, is the de facto best restaurant in Japan ‒ among some quarters, that is. Chef Daniel Calvert weighs in.
First things first, Daniel Calvert, the British chef of Sezanne, which has been named The Best Restaurant in Japan in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023 list, would like to set the record straight.
“I could never call myself the best in Japan, it is a ridiculous thing to say,” said the 35-year-old culinary maestro helming the uber buzzy Sezanne, which is located at the swanky Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi.
“We do not take it too seriously, there are a lot of great restaurants in Japan.”
Ranked No. 2 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list, behind Le Du in Bangkok, Sezanne is ahead of other Japanese restaurants including Den (No. 4), Florilege (No. 7), La Cime (No. 8) and Narisawa (No.10). The restaurants are all in Tokyo, except La Cime, which is located in Osaka.
“The 50 Best list is based on meals that people have enjoyed and restaurants that have been well talked about in the last 12 months. It does not necessarily mean we are the best in Japan ‒ we just got the most votes this year,” he elaborated.
“To be honest, yes, I think we have been one of the most talked about restaurants this year so if we look at it from that perspective, I am very happy.”
The restaurant also made its debut on the World’s 50 best Restaurants 2023 list at No. 37 and earned a coveted second Michelin star in late 2022 ‒ all achievements which were garnered within two years of its opening.
So, even if one were to take the “Best Restaurant in Japan” accolade with a pinch of salt, it is undeniable that there is something special about Sezanne that has led to it standing out among other culinary giants in a country that many consider to be the pinnacle of dining.
Lovers of gastronomy may have previously experienced Calvert’s culinary genius at Hong Kong’s Parisian-style bistro Belon which earned a Michelin star in 2019, making him the youngest chef in Hong Kong to garner a Michelin award. He has also worked at London’s Pied a Terre, New York’s Per Se and Paris’ Epicure at Le Bristol Hotel.
In 2021, Calvert decided to uproot from Hong Kong to Tokyo to launch fine dining restaurant Sezanne as he wanted to take on “a different challenge”.
“Tokyo really is the Champions League of cooking. Everyone has great products so it is a level playing field and it is the technique and skills of the chef to push things forward in such a highly competitive city. I felt I needed to prove myself here,” he said. “The trick was, how do we get diners to want to eat with us?”
His answer: “We try to give people dishes that they cannot have elsewhere. There are so many European restaurants around the world that if you eat out a lot, you would probably be able to identify some trends. I try to avoid these trends and produce dishes that have meaning to me and make sense for the restaurant in Tokyo. You can only have these dishes here and that is the whole point.”
Indeed, while the restaurant is billed as modern European or neo-French, it would be an oversimplification to label it as such, especially because of how Calvert incorporates Japanese and Asian ingredients and flavours in his food.
When I was hosted for a meal at Sezanne during a business trip to Tokyo last November, I immediately fell in love with the zen-like sculptural quality of the chef’s precision plating. There are also no set menus. Instead, on any given day, the kitchen even whips up different dishes for different tables, depending on diners’ preferences.
To add to it all, the impeccable service team enthralled our table with fascinating tales. For instance the main meat dish was venison procured from a hunter in Hokkaido who, get this, hunts with a bow and arrow. And in a masterful flex of his familiarity with Chinese ingredients after his years in Hong Kong, another showstopper was a Shanghai hairy crab cooked in yellow wine from the Jura region in France. Half a crab’s worth of meat per guest is then mixed with koshihikari rice and served in a delicate tart shell.
It goes without saying that every bite is deliciously complex and yet also allows the natural flavours of these seasonal ingredients to shine - a Japanese philosophy through and through. Before that meal was up, I promised myself I would be back for more, which was exactly what happened in late spring on a spontaneous vacation to the Japanese capital city.
This time, as a repeat diner, my cheerful hostess kicked off the evening by inquiring about my previous dinner at Sezanne. Midway through my meal, I am surprised to be served one of my favourites, the rare Japanese kinki fish, which is prized for its fatty flesh and sweet flavour.
On Calvert’s watch, the fillet is carefully cooked on a hot pan with its skin and scales intact to bring a delightful crunch and textural contrast to the juicy flesh. A saffron sauce with tomatoes and clam jus adds even more depth of flavour.
The spring menu also features a cornucopia of new dishes devised to showcase the range of Japan’s seasonal produce. I love the clean, briney taste profile of a tartlet filled with botan ebi (shrimp) mousse and topped with a generous heap of sought-after shiro ebi prawns that are lightly marinated with celery and lemon juice.
After savouring the light frothiness of a deceptively simple Yamanashi corn soup that is dressed up with drizzles of pepper oil before going into raptures over a Sezanne classic ‒ an avocado served with a heap of Kristal caviar with dashi cream and a squeeze of sudachi citrus for a Japanese twist. I may never be able to eat a regular avo on toast ever again.
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Calvert admits there is certainly pressure to deliver consistently exceptional food at every single service. “The restaurant is full every day, people are spending a lot of money and they come with expectations. It is kind of like doing a concert and you have to perform because that is expected,” he said.
To maintain equanimity, Calvert says he does his best to “focus on one thing at a time”. He said: “For us, it may be another piece of fish but for the guests, it is their piece of fish and you know that they are really excited for it, so there is no excuse really to take your eye off the ball.”
Oenophiles will be pleased to know that as much care and attention is paid to the wine list. There is a champagne bar (you can’t go wrong with Krug) and a sizeable list of tipple that includes obscure finds alongside the tried and tested blockbuster labels.
A standout pairing by the sommelier is an inspired 23-year-old Chateau Musar Gaston Hochar from Lebanon, with sufficiently robust flavours to complement a dish of Hokkaido scallops with buckwheat galette with a rich, creamy uni sauce.
Dessert continues to delight the palate with an ingenious Miyazaki mango served with shortbread Chantilly cream. It looks like a freshly cut slice of fruit but hidden underneath the top layer of flesh is a frozen citrusy meringue that brings a different dimension to this sweet treat.
At this point, I am ready to roll out of the door but I cannot leave without gleaning one more bit of foodie insight from Calvert himself. What are his favourite off-duty food haunts in Tokyo, I ask.
“There is a great place called Kyorakutei in my neighbourhood which makes soba in-house and we eat there maybe two or three times a month. Pizza is also fantastic in Tokyo, the quality is so high even compared to Italy ‒ one of my favourites is Pizza Studio Tamaki.”
You know the drill ‒ add these to your Google Maps right away for future reference the next time you visit Tokyo.