L’Effervescence – Tokyo (April 2025)

Ate at L'Effervescence in April. This was a highly anticipated lunch given that it holds 3 Michelin stars and a Tabelog Silver award.

Dined here as a group of 4 for their Spring season menu. We were seated in the main dining area on the ground floor with a view of the side garden.

Helmed by Chef Shinobu Namae, L’Effervescence is a French restaurant that fully utilizes ingredients from Japan. You can tell that this place takes sourcing of local ingredients very seriously when we were provided a little info sheet showing all the various suppliers that they work with in Japan and which of their ingredients are featured on the menu.

Lunch consisted of about 8 courses, and a full menu is pictured. There were a mix of very good dishes but a few lackluster ones. The vegetable crisp was a good start and the tofu sour cream dip that was provided was extremely addictive. I also really liked the salad, which is made with 50+ seasonal veggies. It was really refreshing and provided a taste of spring. The signature turnip dish was also a stunner. Strikingly plated, it looks bland but was surprisingly flavorful and juicy. The duck dish also blew me away. The duck breast was tender with just a right amount of skin and fat without any gaminess. The smoky infused protein paired perfectly with the red wine sauce. The companion raviolis were umami-laden bombs which were quickly devoured. The main dessert dish, a hazelnut crème brûlée paired with hassaku orange was a delight as well.

Disappointments of the meal included the risotto appetizer which were plated beautifully but was mid taste-wise. For the longtooth grouper dish, the mustard sauce was a little too acidic for my liking and did not balance well with the fatty fish.

Service was unfortunately a mixed-bag and did not live up to its 3 star accolades. I appreciated the table side service that was provided for certain dishes (welcome cocktail, risotto appetizer, fish dish) was certainly a treat. However this was offset by some service gaps. At our seating it was clear that one of our servers was new and nervous. We could see his hands shake as he placed dishes, and numerous times he seemed unsure on the direction of the plate when laying a new dish (and he had to take cues from his more senior colleagues). In addition, a bag stand was provided for my friend’s handbag but the staff kept kicking and nearly tripping over it throughout the lunch, by the third time it was just comical.

Lunch lasted about 3 hours and at the end of the meal we were provided souvenirs from their food suppliers that we could take home. I chose the bonito flakes and soy sauce.

All in all, I was a tad disappointed in the overall experience. While I enjoyed most of the dishes, the menu was not mind-blowing and the uneven service was a let-down for a restaurant of this caliber.

Score: 3.75 / 5

Reservation difficulty: Booked on omakase. Reservations are released everyday two months ahead. Based on my observations, it seems easier to get a seat for 4 and above. Dining seats for two seems more limited.

Cost performance: 2.75/5. Lunch was $36,300 yen per person before drinks and excluding a 15% service charge.