FERMiNTXO

My friends and I recently had a good dinner at Fermintxo, but any joy from our experience quickly evaporated when we received the invoice. We were left feeling we were taken advantage of and charged costs that we were not accustomed to in Tokyo, Japan, or even Europe. For the total amount of our mea...l, you could readily dine at hundreds of more attractive options, with better ambiance, food quality, and service. Our total costs at Floriége, a World's Top 50 Restaurant and Asia's #3, were less than that at Fermintxo. Food: 7/10 The food was good and reasonably priced at 24,200 for two persons for a 10-course meal. This menu was too much food, and we passed on two of the ten dishes; I recommend the shorter course option. Drinks: X/10 Charging four patrons ¥3,388 for two bottles of water is a travesty. I was about to order an ¥8,000 bottle of white wine, but our friends interjected with the idea of a wine pairing. Generally, this would be a price equivalent to or just higher than the average wine selection cost in Tokyo. This cost, however, was not the case. We received five glasses of wine, at varying 45-60ml pours per pairing, for a price of ¥26,620. The wine pairing was more like that of a wine tasting. The pours were so slight that we asked for a second pour of the first glass, after the third, and again after the fifth. This idea was a mistake as they charged an additional ¥19,602. That calculated to a wine charge of ¥46,222 for an estimated 1500ml of wines. For the price of two bottles of wine, we could have ordered nearly six bottles. It is an understatement to say they took advantage of us with their pairing and slight pours. Ambiance: 2/10 Our four-seated table was between the restaurant and the back of service, feeling like a forgotten space of white walls. I would recommend eating in the main room as this was not ideal.

Visited August 2022

Down a little side street off Roppongi Dori near Nishiazabu crossing, this was a real find. Great food from start to finish. The steak was wonderful, and we enjoyed the meaty canneloni, but the paella was the real star. A Japanese hostess who lived for 8 years in Spain and some incredibly skilled & ...amazingly calm chefs in the open kitchen made this a brilliant dining experience. Good wine list too - and at a reasonable price. We enjoyed the Rioja.

Visited February 2015