Some Memorable Meals of 2023

One of the top meals of the year was a visit to The Clove Club on my trip to London over Thanksgiving, suggested by my friend and London-native Fuchsia Dunlop. Unfortunately, the only reservation I could get was before a theater matinee, so I couldn’t try the full tasting menu. However, the “short” tasting menu was fantastic and made me want to go back to London soon! The staff and execution were first-rate. It lived up to the hype.

In June, I took a trip with a group of faculty members from Harvard-Westlake to Japan. While in Tokyo, I deviated from the trip when I got a reservation for six at Michelin-starred Ginza Toyoda. I took a few colleagues by holding a lottery to join me in the other seats.

A new kaiseki restaurant called UKA opened in Los Angeles. It’s headed by the former private chef for the Japanese ambassador to the United Nations. Tucked away on the top level of Hollywood & Highland, it feels like you’ve been transported to Kyoto.

I returned to Japan in the fall and ended up in the small remote town of Yufuin, outside of Oita, a place known for onsens (hot springs). We stayed at an amazing new place called Enowa (https://enowa-yufuin.jp/). Known as a “botanical retreat,” our group was the first non-New York City visitors from the US. The restaurant is called Jimgu, a farm-to-table led by the wonderful chef Tashi Gyamtso; we had several incredible meals. Here is one of our dinners–this one was focused on vegetables from the farm.

We also visited the farm with chef Tashi Gyamtso.

And back in LA…while my mom and brother visited Los Angeles in October, I arranged for a special Shanghainese meal at a yet to open restaurant in Temple City called Array36. While they were still working out the timing issues during this pre-soft opening family and friends period, the food was quite good! Now that they are officially open, hopefully they have worked out their kinks.