On Monday, November 9th, to celebrate my 47th birthday, my husband and friends reserved the French restaurant "Restaurant L'AGAPE" in Fujieda for me!
For the past few years, celebrating my birthday abroad has become a regular thing, but with the current COVID-19 pandemic making overseas travel, or even long-distance trips outside the prefecture, difficult, this year I've selected one of my favorite restaurants within Shizuoka Prefecture!
Recently, we received a lovely congratulatory flower arrangement from Mr. Takayuki Matsushita of Restaurant Ragap to celebrate the opening of our shop, so I requested to my husband, "I'd love to celebrate my birthday at Ragap!"
It had been quite a while since I last rode a train, and I enjoyed the gentle swaying of the train for about an hour to Fujieda Station. We've all become so accustomed to wearing masks, frequently sanitizing our hands, and maintaining social distancing that it's become second nature. On the train, there seemed to be less conversation and more people were quiet.
Restaurant Lagapp is located in a corner of a tenant building along Aoshima Junior High School Street in Aoba-cho, Fujieda City.
Owner-chef Takayuki Matsushita gained experience at restaurants in Tokyo and Kansai, and also trained in France, before opening his own restaurant in September 2008. Twelve years have passed since then. My husband and I have been visiting this restaurant for over seven years now, and it's become one of our favorites!
The restaurant has a simple, white-based interior and only about 10 seats, giving it a very private feel. Even better, since we have a private reservation this time, we'll have plenty of table space to ourselves! (Thank you!)
The lunch menu offers five courses ranging from a casual A course at 1,800 yen to a special 10,000 yen course featuring seasonal ingredients chosen by the chef. All courses include bread (with pork rillettes), soup, coffee, and dessert. On this day, we will tell Chef Matsushita our preferences and enjoy a blissful time with his chef's choice course paired with our own wine!
My friend Akira Sugiura, who is from Fujieda and joined us for the event, has appeared on lade several times, so some of you may already know him. He was formerly the manager of the opening staff at "Maserati Hamamatsu," and has since become independent, opening his own company, "Garage Sugiura," which sells and services new and used cars!
They provide courteous service regardless of the make or model, from classic and rare cars to standard models, so if you have any problems with your car, feel free to consult them. My mother, who lives in my hometown, has also relied heavily on them, and she says, "Whenever you're in trouble, go to Mr. Sugiura," and he'll come running, so you can leave everything to them with peace of mind!
Now, as a celebratory champagne, let's open a bottle of Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut and raise a toast!
Based on Pinot Noir, the addition of Pinot Meunier gives this wine a fruity, mellow roundness, a full-bodied and complex depth, and a lingering finish, making it a perfect wine to start an elegant course meal!
"Foie gras terrine with caramelization"
If you come here, this appetizer is a must-try!
A foie gras terrine, marinated in Madeira and sherry, is caramelized to a fragrant crisp. Served with toasted brioche and apple puree, each bite of the rich foie gras brings a moment of pure bliss, offering a complex and satisfying flavor that pairs perfectly with champagne!
"Potato crepe wrapped around Hokkaido-produced cod milt"
The crepe batter, made with Inca's Awakening potatoes, eggs, milk, flour, and butter, is filled with cod milt and then baked.
The sauce is a cream sauce made with Madeira wine and white wine, and the fluffy crepe, which has a fragrant aroma of potatoes and butter, gently wraps around the cod roe like a feather duvet, and the creamy, melt-in-your-mouth cod roe is simply divine!
"Smoked oysters from Lake Hamana with taro galette"
Marinated oysters are smoked to perfection and served with a taro galette. Winter just isn't complete without oysters! Fried oysters are a staple in our household, but I'm sure the oysters would be happy to be prepared like this! The sweet and smooth texture of the taro galette, combined with the garlic-flavored sauce, is incredibly appetizing!
"Marcel Deiss Gewurztraminer 2007"
This Alsatian wine boasts a rich, full-bodied character with distinct lychee and floral aromas, and a long, lingering finish!
"Homemade Yudane bread and French bread with pork rillettes"
The round bread and French bread, made using the Yudane method, are fluffy, chewy, and fragrant, and they pair perfectly with the soup! Enjoy them with the accompanying pork rillettes!
"Chrysanthemum green soup"
This soup is made by simmering onions, potatoes, reduced milk, and water to create the base, then adding chrysanthemum greens and simmering briefly before blending it in a blender until smooth. The elegant and mellow soup, with its lingering fragrant aroma of chrysanthemum greens, is irresistible for chrysanthemum green lovers!
"Nemuro-produced venison sirloin roast"
This restaurant sources its young venison from Nemuro every year. Only the core of the loin is roasted and finished with a red wine-based sauce flavored with browned butter. It is served with a side of red cabbage simmered in red wine, vinegar, and honey, and a puree made from carrots steamed in browned butter, then reduced and simmered in milk and broth. The main course portions at Lagap are generous, and the more you chew, the more you can taste the wild flavor of the game meat. You can enjoy the rich flavor and satisfying texture that only thick cuts of meat can offer!
"Roasted Challans duck from France"
My husband and I highly recommend this Burgot family's Challans duck at this restaurant. You'd be missing out on life if you didn't try the duck here! (laughs)
Etouffée (suffocation) originally involved inserting a needle into the back of the neck to induce a state of suspended animation, allowing the duck to be slaughtered without draining its blood. However, recently, it seems that electric shocks are also used to induce étouffée. By inducing étouffée, blood stagnates in the duck's body, resulting in the blood circulating throughout the meat. This intensifies the iron-rich flavor characteristic of duck meat, making it more delicious.
The duck meat, which has been suffocated (étouffée), is coated with reduced honey and roasted until the skin is crispy, which enhances the aroma and locks in the meat's flavor.
The cooking was superb once again, and the moment I cut into it with my knife, I could imagine the flavor and couldn't help but smile. When I bit into it, the crispy skin became a delicious flavor, the thicker parts had just the right amount of elasticity, and the juices overflowed. Along with the juices came a rich flavor, and the flesh was soft, moist, and smooth with a rich taste.
I've had this dish so many times I've lost count, but it never gets old and always brings me to a moment of pure bliss!
"Hospices de Beaune Domaine Ponsot 2010"
This precious commemorative wine was a gift from Mark Liu, the owner of The Sherwood Taipei, when I visited Taiwan some time ago, and I've been putting off opening it for a while, but I've decided to finally open it on this special occasion!
Sherwood Taipei participated in the 150th Hospices de Beaune charity auction held in Hong Kong in 2010. Since then, they have continued to successfully bid on Hospices de Beaune in 2011 and 2013. Among these, in 2010 they acquired a 228-liter barrel of Mazis-Chambertin made in the Côte de Nuits, which produces some of Burgundy's greatest wines. The winemaking and bottling were entrusted to the renowned winemaker Domaine Ponsot, and it is an extremely rare item bearing the hotel's original label!
This wine boasts a rich, deep purplish-red color, elegant aromas of dark fruits, and a sensual, creamy taste with a lingering finish.
You choose your dessert from the list written on the blackboard, and you can try a little bit of each, so if you have room in your stomach, definitely try all of them!
You can choose two types of frozen desserts (glasses, sorbet) from those written on the blackboard!
"Crème caramel Anglaise sauce"
By minimizing the amount of eggs, we've created a smooth, melt-in-your-mouth pudding, topped with crème anglaise for a sophisticated adult flavor!
"Chestnut Tart"
This crumbly dacquoise tart, generously filled with candied chestnuts and chestnut cream, is incredibly satisfying and a truly exquisite treat that lets you fully enjoy the flavor of chestnuts!
"Chocolate and Raspberry"
A rich chocolate mousse cake with a hint of tartness from raspberry jelly, and a delightful texture thanks to the addition of royaline!
The plate, which combined three desserts, was garnished with two sorbets and presented in a special way to commemorate the birthday!
"Mandarin orange compote and jelly" and "coffee"
Since the restaurant was reserved exclusively for us, we didn't have to worry about the time, and as it was our first reunion in a long time, we enjoyed a relaxed meal together, chatting to our hearts' content!
We were able to catch up on each other's lives while enjoying coffee after our meal!
Thank you to Ms. Matsushita and Ms. Sugiura for sharing your precious time with me, and to my husband for creating this celebration and for the wonderful birthday present!
Writer/ayaco
L'AGAPE
3-3-28 Aoba-cho, Fujieda City, Shizuoka Prefecture Phone: 054-637-0290
Opening hours: 11:30 AM - 2:00 PM, 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Closed on Mondays and other irregular days (please contact the store directly for details).
Parking: Yes
http://lagape.jp/
