Ginza Aster Fall Course Menu

A friend was having a birthday so this was a great excuse for a group of us to head to and treat ourselves to a bit of a special meal at Aster Ginza to celebrate with our friend. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they had renewed and updated their course menu offerings for the fall season. We attended the head store in Ginza, which offered 5 options at 5 different price points. All options looked great and offering great value but we went for the second option – Kakujyu course (difficult to read but the friendly waiter kindly assisted).
The course started with an entrée of seasonal appetizers followed by several main courses, which we shared, between us. All dishes were great quality and provided a great balance between seafood, meat dishes and vegetable offerings. The course included a boiled fish and vegetable dish, abalone and shrimp stir fry, a dish using Peking Duck, and a great braised iberico pork dish – so tender. We enjoyed these with one of the great Chinese rice wine (shokoshu) choices recommended by our very knowledgeable waiter which complimented the meal greatly. We finished off our birthday feast with fired rice and then a lovely dessert of Chinese pudding and fruit platter.
We all had a great evening and I am sure it made for a very memorable birthday for our friend. For a special occasion such as this I cannot recommend Ginza Aster enough. Great service in a special but relaxed atmosphere and choosing one of the course menus will allow you to try several of the great dishes on offer.