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by Tama
Miyake Lung
Super 5
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Sometimes it seems like the only reason to
venture into the back streets of Omotesando is to get a new
hairstyle. The narrow laneways house arguably the world's
highest concentration of salons, where thousands toil away
with scissors, shampoos and straightening irons. But at some
point, all those hairstylists have to eat. That's where
Super 5 would seem to come in. This small restaurant atop
a small salon offers an intriguing blend of French and Italian
cuisine in a sleek, modern setting. And while it attracts
its share of well-coiffed twenty-somethings, Super 5 also
seems to draw a crowd of sophisticated diners ranging from
solo women to power lunchers.
Our first evening visit saw a handful of young couples seated
in the small dining room flanked by a floor-to-ceiling window
over the street and the well-stocked bar that glowed with
a lineup of liqueur bottles. The quiet atmosphere with only
a hint of jazz in the background allowed us to enjoy a leisurely
taste of their hearty winter fare-the menu, including
courses for ¥4,100-¥7,000, changes monthly-with
the help of a friendly English-speaking waiter. We also sampled
some of Super 5's extensive wine selections, which
go for as little as ¥2,630 per bottle for house wine
and up to ¥24,200 for the Krug Grand Cuvee.
Returning for a taste of their reasonably priced lunch sets,
we snagged the last seats at the bar and proceeded to order
a few of the daily specials. The lunch course (¥1,300)
included a bowl of pumpkin soup, a small salad, bread, duck
confit with lentils, and a drink. Our companion chose the
penne au gratin with shrimp and mushrooms, which also came
with bread, salad and a drink for ¥1,200.
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The pumpkin soup was pleasantly creamy and
smooth, served in a small cup so as not to fill us up. Up
next were our salads, rather standard fare with fresh greens
and an olive-oil-based dressing. The duck confit, on the other
hand, was a rich affair with crispy skin and juicy meat placed
on a bed of warm lentils in a red-wine sauce.
The penne au gratin, meanwhile, was a creamy concoction with
a decent amount of shrimp and mushrooms. The portion size,
however, was more suited to the trio of oba-san seated at
a nearby table than our hearty gaijin-size stomachs. Once
we had cleaned the plates with our bread rolls, the discreet
staff whisked them away and promptly served our coffees. We
procrastinated as long as we could in our comfy bar stools,
lolled by the soft music and low lighting, but it was soon
time to return to the working world.
Super 5 may be hard to distinguish from the funky salons that
line the rest of its narrow street. But we'll gladly
revisit it, knowing we can have a tasty meal for far less
than a shampoo and trim.
1F Jingumae 351 Bldg, 3-5-1 Jingumae,
Shibuya-ku. Tel: 03-5785-1131. Open Mon-Fri 11:30am-3pm, 6-11pm;
Sat 11:30am-3pm, 6-11pm; Sun and hols noon-3pm, 6-10pm. Nearest
stn: Omotesando.
Photo credit: Martin Hladik
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