Visit the restaurant that served in-flight meals: Abalone and young sweetfish prepared by a cutting-edge Japanese chef from Ginza

We head to Ginza's "Ren Sanshichi," which oversees Japanese cuisine for business class flights departing from Haneda and Narita. Here, we encounter simple yet profound Japanese cuisine made with seasonal ingredients, carefully prepared by the owner, Jun Mishima.

Located on Ginza 8-chome, between Corridor Street and Sotobori Street, is an elegant restaurant called "Ren Sanshichi" that hides away from the public eye. Passing through the noren curtain and going down the stairs, you will find a calm space with wood grain and plastered walls. The restaurant has a dignified atmosphere without being pretentious, and you will feel the properness of a traditional Japanese restaurant.

3rd year in Ginza. Abalone is a special dish

"I've had my shop here for about three years now."

The owner, Jun Misaka, welcomed us with a smile. I had heard that it was a small restaurant, but it has counter seats and two private rooms, and combined with the local characteristics, it seems like a restaurant that can be used for both business meetings and private occasions. The restaurant serves Japanese cuisine that makes the most of the flavors of seasonal ingredients.

"Please enjoy," he said, and brought out the steamed abalone. This is a standard dish on the in-flight meals supervised by "Ren," and it seems to be a dish that Mr. Mishina has a deep attachment to.

Soft and beautiful. Simple and delicious flavor.

"I'm originally from Yokohama, but my grandmother is from Kofu in Yamanashi, where boiled shellfish is famous. It's a very special dish to me, as it's a luxurious treat. It's also connected to my own roots, so I serve boiled abalone. We start serving it in the early summer, combining it with matsutake mushrooms or bamboo shoots depending on the season."

The abalone used on this day is natural Hagi abalone. It is slowly simmered until it becomes soft. The abalone is piled high on the wooden Bizen ware ware made by Atsuko Koyama, and is colored with a soft glow, giving it a very seductive impression. Together with a single piece of butterbur on top, it sits there as if to say, "This is delicious."

I put it in my mouth expecting a strong chewy texture, but my expectations were pleasantly betrayed. It was easy to bite into with a slight elasticity. The seasoning was simply dashi. The rich flavor of the abalone was combined with the flavor of the excellent dashi, which was probably made with perfect procedures, creating a simple yet profound taste that was impressive, a feat that is surely the work of Mishina's skill.

Fresh young sweetfish herald the arrival of spring

Next up is young sweetfish tempura, beautifully presented on an antique blue and white porcelain ware. The young sweetfish is lightly battered and quickly fried, sandwiched between pieces of grated daikon radish arranged to resemble splashes of water, and garnished with lush, green buds that are unique to this time of year.

The fluffy, soft, mild texture of the fish meat contrasts with the bittersweet innards. Mizore vinegar complements and enhances the refreshing aroma of river fish and the young scent of buds without interfering with them.

"I put kelp, stock, and vinegar into the radish and let it soak for a day to make mizore vinegar. It's an old method of adding it instead of salt to make it refreshing. I also top it with kinome leaf buds. It's the season for young sweetfish, so it has a good balance of bitterness and a crispy texture. Young sweetfish start coming out after April, so they're really appealing."

I can't help but feel that there is something magical about the word "young sweetfish." Starting with this ingredient that heralds the arrival of spring, the seasonal flavors change from heavy winter ingredients to refreshing spring ingredients. Perhaps the sound that heralds this is best represented by the sound of crispy young sweetfish tempura.

We value the seasonal feel and also add a special touch to our in-flight meals.

"In Japanese cuisine, young sweetfish are followed by sweetfish and then conger eels. We place the utmost importance on seasonality when selecting ingredients. The same goes for in-flight meals."

Young sweetfish are also available on the in-flight meal menu. Even though the in-flight meals change every three months, Mishina values the seasonal feel and puts a lot of effort into their preparations. At the same time, he also adds some unique touches to the in-flight meals.

"Unlike in-flight meals served in restaurants, it is difficult to serve freshly prepared meals immediately. There are various rules, so we take these points into consideration as we repeatedly experiment with flavors and ingredients. In addition to the simple method used in restaurants of making the most of the ingredients, we also try to add something extra. Color is also important. We value in-flight meals as being visually appealing as well."

Seasonal ingredients carefully prepared. Whether in the restaurant or on board.

It has been one year and three months since Mishina started working on JAL's in-flight meals. As the four seasons have gone through a full circle, he says he has received a great response.

"When the COVID-19 situation had calmed down, we had a customer from overseas visit our restaurant. I later heard from the Japanese customer who accompanied him that he had returned to Japan on a JAL flight the day after his visit, and noticed that "Ren" was on the in-flight menu and ordered it. He compared it to the food he had eaten the day before and was impressed by how delicious it was. It's nice to know that so many people have our in-flight meal and think of our restaurant. At the same time, the rendition skills of the JAL chefs who prepare the in-flight meals are truly amazing. After supervising and providing the recipe, they send us a sample when it is first served on board, and when I tried it the other day, I was surprised at how much higher the quality had been."

When you fly internationally again, look forward to enjoying our in-flight meals. If you can't wait, why not visit our Ginza restaurant? Whether on board or at our restaurant, you will be impressed by our seasonal, carefully prepared, handcrafted meals.

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