Matsukaze Japanese Restaurant - Hilton Hotel, Narita, Japan

I have been to this restaurant on numerous occasions. It is a traditional Japanese restaurant, but being at a hotel you have many choices of food. You can have Sushi, Shabu-Shabu, Sukiyaki or just a very nice steak.

The service has always been great; the only thing I don’t like is the ambiance. It is too much like a cheap Japanese restaurant you’d find in the United States. I could live with this because the food is fantastic.

I arrived in Japan after a disappointing trip to Taiwan and I was looking forward to eating here. I have never had reservations in the past, so I was surprised when I showed up and they were booked. I was asked to come back in 20 minutes and they would have a seat ready. I showed up 25 minutes later and still had to wait 10 minutes before I was seated. Then it took forever for someone to take my order and then I waited a long time for my first course to arrive. I ordered a seven course tasting menu.

As I sat there waiting the restaurant became more and more empty. I then figured out what happened. They were offering very inexpensive dinner meals and the locals were taking advantage of the fact. There is nothing wrong with this, but when your service suffers because you think an Early Bird special is going to bring in some extra cash you have, as they say on TV, “Jumped the Shark”.

Just so you know the meal was fantastic; as usual the food is worth the trip.

My recommendation is that you show up after 7:00 PM for better service.

http://www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/NRTHIHI-Hilton-Tokyo-Narita-Airport-hotel/dining.do;jsessionid=8154A3CDA603B62CB6919384661BE150.etc84#2

Sebastians - Racine, WI - UPDATE

We have been to Sebastians many times and I must say, the new menu is unbelievable. I think the service is best in the bar area, but lately we have had good service in the restaurant.

Tonight we started with the Lump Crab Cakes with apricot and mustard sauces. I wasn't sure about the apricot, but the flavor worked well with the crab. The crab tasted very fresh.

For my entree I had the Lobster Dumplings that were pan-fried and topped with a shitake-mirin butter sauce. Oh my! It was unbelievable.

My husband had the scallops that were served wtih potato croquettes, spinach and a smoked tomato butter sauce. He really liked it, but I think mine was much better. Although I tasted his croquettes and they were really good.

This restaurant never ceases to amaze even if it seems in the middle of nowhere (at least for us). It's worth the drive.

http://www.sebastiansfinefood.com/

Carlos' - Highland Park, IL

This marks about our 15th visit to Carlos. It is our favorite restaurant and not only because of the food. The service is excellent and many of the staff has a great sense of humor. The atmosphere is romantic, the lighting and décor are perfect. There is no stuffiness here. You feel comfortable the minute you walk in.

We have dined here for business and pleasure. Even though it has a romantic atmosphere, it is perfect for business dining also. We’ve been here with family and friends, and everyone comes away agreeing with us: this is the best restaurant in the Chicago area.

For this particular visit, we were with our nephew. It was his gift to me for my birthday. Now keep in mind that he’s only 23 years old and for him, it’s a huge gift monetarily.

I made up my mind beforehand to try to be frugal when ordering. I had not intended on getting the degustation, but my husband and my nephew were both getting it, so I decided to also. I decided to just order wine by the glass instead of getting the wine pairing. Oops! I did not realize how much the wine was by the glass!

Both my husband and nephew got the Meat and Game Degustation and I ordered the Shell Fish and Fish Degustation. Let me backtrack a little. In all previous visits there was always a degustation menu that you could order, but substitute some items from the regular side of the menu if there was something you didn’t like. Some of these items had an upcharge, which was fine. Now, the first thing they tell you if there are no substitutions. I understand the reasoning behind it, but previously you could always ensure that every course was perfect and exactly what you wanted. I understand that change is sometimes necessary, but I wish we could return to the way it was.

In spite of all that, both degustations were out of this world! Both were 6 courses plus Petits Four. Some of the game courses were:

Grilled California Squab Breast with Tart of Spinach and Mushrooms with a natural jus.
Pan Seared Duck and Duck Confit with Hudson Valley Foie Gras
Cocoa Crusted New Zealand Venison with Caramelized Fennel

The seafood one included:

Smoke Trout and Butter Poached Fingerling Potato Terrine
Maine Lobster Ravioli with Julienne Vegetables
Norwegian Salmon Pinwheel with Fava Bean-Wild Mushroom Fricassee (I don’t like salmon, but this was really good)


I forgot to mention that they sat us in a little cubby-hole, which has more privacy than any other place in the restaurant. I always wondered how you got to sit there. Now I realize it’s the perfect place for 3 and that’s probably why we ended up there.

I won’t let these changes affect our #1 rating. We look forward to returning soon.

http://www.carlos-restaurant.com/