UPDATE: Bistro Ampoule ビストロ・アンブル 022-743-5785

Website:  http://r.gnavi.co.jp/t267400/

If you haven't read about Bistro Ampoule before, please read my original post at:  Bistro Ampoule.

Bistro Ampoule is now one of my FAVORITES!!!  When I first reported on this fabulous restaurant, I listed it under my Recommended list because just after one visit I couldn’t be sure if its greatness was consistent or if it was a one-hit wonder.  But I’ve been back again and again (and again) and I have confirmed its wonderfulness.  It appears that many others agree with me, as every time I venture in there always seems to be a crowd.  

From the “Evening Lunch” menu (this is different from their Lunch and Dinner menus), the “A” set for 1260 yen that I ordered came with an appetizer and a main dish.  It was tough to decide upon which appetizer to go with, as there were thirteen very different choices to choose from.  I was in a meat-eating mood so I chose the salad with homemade sautéed bacon and spicy mustard as the appetizer.   The two thick slices of bacon were amazingly delicious, with the German mustard complimenting them very well.  The fresh salad had a tangy Italian dressing.  This appetizer was absolutely delicious and I loved it!  With the accompanying toasted bread and zesty balsamic sauce, these alone practically filled me up.  As I mentioned before, the bread came with お代わりservice!  How often does that happen in Japan?

実家製ベーコンのソテー粒マスタード添え

Toasted Bread with Balsamic Sauce ... and a touch of house wine.

For the main entrée on this evening I went with the black peppered pork roast with lemon and vegetables, which costs an additional 300 yen.  The veggies consisted of eggplant, red and yellow bell peppers, sweet potato, and a carrot purée, all being served at room temperature making them, as a whole, seem more like ratatouille.  The pork steak was soft, tender, and peppery, with a thin crusty layer on top that added a textural delight to the senses.  This was truly scrumptious!  Although the pork came with the same spicy mustard that accompanies the beef steak they serve, it didn’t go as well with the pork as it did with the beef.  But the pork didn’t need any additional accoutrements to aid in its appreciation, it stood alone.

ロース肉の黒胡椒ステーキ　レモン添え

My wife’s bouillabaisse, with spinach, potatoes, eggplant and 鰈 fish (flounder), along with the  金目鯛  fish platter (1410 yen) appeared too much for her to eat.  Yet she happily obliged and stated that everything tasted just grand.

Seafood Galore!

On yet another outing to Bistro Ampoule we were served a sampling of carrot pottage on the house, which was very delightful.

Carrot pottage

My better half just loved her shrimp pasta and its creamy tomato sauce while I enjoyed the dinner variation of the steak and fries.  The dinner variation, unlike the lunch variation, came with a balsamic sauce topping that was very pleasing.  However, in my opinion, the tanginess of the balsamic topping did not mix well with the spiciness of the German mustard, so I kept those two apart.

Shrimp Pasta

Dinner Steak & Fries with Balsamic Sauce

The masterful chef, だいぞー,conjures up amazing dishes and a plethora of options with ingredients from local farmers.  My wife and I love Bistro Ampoule, and we think you’d love it, too.  

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Bistro Ampoule ビストロ・アンプル 022-743-5785

UPDATE:  Bistro Ampoule has been upgraded to my Favorites listing.  Please read my updated post here: Update-Bistro Ampoule.

Website:  http://r.gnavi.co.jp/t267400/

Address:  宮城県仙台市太白区泉崎１－３３－１０　富沢公園パークマンション１０２.   Located about a three-minute walk from the Sendai Gymnasium or a five-minute walk from Tomizawa Subway Station.  

Lunch:  11:30 am – 2:00 pm. 　　　Dinner:  6:00 pm – 10:30 pm.

Closed Wednesdays.

While flipping the channels this morning we happened upon a local TV program called あらあらかしこ which was currently showcasing businesses near Tomizawa Subway Station.  One of the eateries highlighted was Bistro Ampoule, and the show’s reporters were just raving about the exquisite food.  

We live within walking distance to this restaurant and have driven past it countless times, but it never seemed to catch our attention.  In fact, it’s kind of difficult to tell that there’s a restaurant at that location.  This seemed to reaffirm a theory that I proposed to my wife:  The truly great restaurants in Sendai seem to do the least in attracting attention to themselves, while restaurants with more, shall we say, common fare, tend to go overboard in their displays of “Look at me!  I’m a restaurant!  I have bright colors, big banners, and plaster the side of the building with photos of the food and the prices!  Eat here!  Please!”  びっくりドンキー is an example of this “I’m over here!” type of restaurant.  I actually enjoy driving by Bikkuri Donkeys because each restaurant has a different motif on the outside of the building.  You can spot a Bikkuri Donkey a mile away.  I have nothing against びっくりドンキー.  I’ve eaten there and it was good.  But it was also nothing special.  Conversely, Bistro Ampoule seems to follow the concept taken by such greats as Café de Mieux and Bistro Boeuf d’Or, which almost seem to hide their existence.  Rather than focus on being seen, these restaurants focus on quality.

We strolled over to Bistro Ampoule and at first were turned away due to them hosting a full house (the place only holds about twenty people).  We thought that perhaps others in the neighborhood had seen the same program, as well.  But we gave them our cell phone number and they gave us a call ten minutes later saying they had an opening.  

My wife and I both ordered the “A” set lunch that came with an appetizer, a main dish selection, bread or rice, a drink, and dessert for 1000 yen.  For an additional 500 yen, I went with the steak and fries, the mouthwatering platter they showed on the TV program, while my wife ordered the fish selection, but more on these later.

「牛ロース肉」ステーキフリットビストロ風

First came the focaccia bread and the ratatouille appetizer.  The ratatouille consisted of eggplant, red and yellow bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, mizuna, and zucchini while topped with a light dressing.  This was very good!  The focaccia was light with a slightly crunchy crust that complimented the ratatouille very nicely.

Focaccia

ラタトゥイユ

My wife stated that the fish was tender and delicious, and that the vegetables were fabulous!  The accompanying veggies were as follows:  Chinese cabbage, sweet potatoes, radish, spinach, yellow bell peppers, onion, carrots, eggplant, and green onions.  She said that it seemed to be topped with a delightful a carrot sauce!

舌平目

I’m always a bit concerned when ordering steak in Japan, as I don’t like to see the meat red.  Back in the States I order my steaks medium (or medium rare for prime rib), but in Japan I have to ask for well done just so that it won’t be red in the center.  But this time I forgot to request how I wanted my steak prepared when ordering .   Luckily for me, it was grilled to a perfect medium setting, and like my wife’s fish, this was also tender and delicious, and much to my delight, appeared to be just a bit bigger than what I saw on TV that morning.

We were seated at the counter where I could see the chef preparing our food from our vantage point.   I’m no cook, so I don’t know if this is standard practice or not but it was the first time I had seen this:  the chef held the uncooked steak in one hand away from the stove and sprinkled the salt over it, then the pepper, before he placed it on the grill.  It looked … different, but it also gave me the impression that he was sweating over the details and that he was really putting in a fair amount of effort into our food preparations.  I liked that!

The fries were just the way I like them:  crispy and salted to perfection.  A nice added touch was the spicy mustard on the platter that went well with both the steak and fries.

For dessert, we were brought a wonderful serving of vanilla ice cream to top off the meal, or so I thought.   By the end of our meal, we were the only ones in the joint.   The waitress, having noticed me writing my notes and taking umpteen flash photos asked me, “Do you write a blog?”    I told her I did.  She then brought out the regular menu (we had only seen the lunch menu up until then) and told us a little about the restaurant.  They’ve been open for business for three years now and are proud of their wine lists and their food preparation.  She says that sometimes the menu changes as they set the day’s menu according to the availability of the freshest ingredients.  We noticed that they offer a wine nomihoudai, which is something I’ve never seen advertised before.   

Vanilla Ice Cream

Perhaps they were trying to buy my loyalties as the waitress served us some cherries.  She said that the chef had just returned from his hometown in Yamagata and wanted to share his omiyage with us.   It worked.

Bistro Ampoule does not offer a stamp card but they did give us two 100 Euro tickets, which is good for a 100 yen discount each off our next lunch.  Click on the クーポン tab on the gnavi site for the same discount ahead of time.  Another coupon choice is the 1050 yen two hour house wine nomihoudai.  The website states that they have six parking spaces available.  Since it’s a small establishment you might want to call ahead and make a reservation.

I’m listing Bisro Ampoule in my Recommend listings for the time being, but I have a feeling that after a couple of more visits this restaurant will be moving up to my Favorites.

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Ichigo no Ki Patisserie 苺の樹 022-244-4740

Website:  http://www.sendaishi-town.com/mypage/sd055280/

Address:  宮城県仙台市太白区富沢3-3-52.  Across the street from Tomizawa Jr. High School.

Map:  Scroll down to the bottom.

Open:  8:30 am – 8:00 pm.

This bakery makes the best apple pie I’ve had in Sendai.  They call it アルメットアップルパイ and it’s magnificent!  The crust is delicious and flaky and the apples sweet!  They also sell whole apple pies with the smaller version going for around 1200円, and the larger one for 1600 円.  Actually, I may be way off on the prices of the whole pies because I've only bought them once or twice, but keep in mind that these are Japanese-sized pies and not from Costco.  

The packaged brownies with walnuts are also very good, while my wife loves all of their desserts.    

This store will sometimes set up a stall inside Sendai Station when there is some type of desserts fair, so be on the look out for them.

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