Service: Professional, welcoming, very attentive and smiling. Great explanations.
Facilities & Equipment: Extremely clean. Superb separate washrooms.
Prices: Reasonable considering the extravagant quality.
Strong points: Mainly local products including wild vegetables and meat. Vegetables mainly organic and grown by the staff. Menu changing for the most part every two weeks.
MAP (Japanese)
It has been a long time I have wished to visit Restaurant Bio-S in Fujinomiya City at the foot of Mount Fuji although it has been opened only 3 years!
Even in overcast weather it is such a pleasure to work or eat under the benign protection of Mount Fuji!
I finally had the occasion yesterday as I accompanied two new friends of mine, Camille Oger and Julien Morello from Antibes, France, and both journalists on a grand tour of Japan, here above standing on both sides of Mr. Kazuhiro Matsuki/松木一浩, the founder and owner of Bio Farm Matsuki, Restaurant Bio-S, Bio-Deli in Fujinomiya City and Comptoir de Bio-S in Shizuoka City!
Menu posted outside as in France.
Kazuhiro Matsuki, originally from Nagasaki, Kyushu Island, worked for two years (he speaks great French!) at Hotel Nikko, Paris, before he moved to Shizuoka Prefecture (his wife’s family lives in Shizuoka City) in Fujinomiya City to start the cultivation of organic vegetables in 2000. In 2009 he opened Restaurant Bio-s to promote organic cuisine.
Mr. Kazuhiro Matsuki and his young talented chef (also a hunter!) Mr. Yoshinori Kawasaki/川崎芳範 (born in Hyogo Prefecture!)!
The entrance!
A French 2CV Citroen!
With a plate registered in Fujisan/富士山/Mount Fuji!
Bio Farm organic vegetables on sale in the entrance hall!
Mr. Matsuki is famous all over the country, what with the many books he wrote on organic farming and cuisine!
Plenty of explanations!
The table the three of us sat at for a great degustation lunch!
Champagne!
Offered by Mr. Matsuki who wanted to thank us for coming all the way!
Of course vegetables at a premium!
Now, what did we savor?
This sage, mint and rosemary are organic and for decoration, but you are encouraged to taste them!
A finger herb croissant!
Really cute!
The legs of ham are imported from Spain but matured on site!
Mr. Matsuki cut ours in person!
Raw ham on organic greens salad!
From another angle!
Chicken and mushrooms terrine! I did require a lot of patience to take the pictures before I could jump on it!
The chicken comes from Mr. Aoki’s Farm and the mushrooms from Mr. Hasegawa’s Farm, both in Fuji City!
Home-baked walnut bread!
The first fish dish: Iwana/岩魚/Char/Charr/Salvelinus with cress sauce!
The char is bred by Mr. Iwamoto in Fujinomiya City and was lightly smoked before being sauteed/baked!
All the cress was picked in the wild along streams flowing down Mount Fuji!
The second fish dish: Bass with Japanese echalottes!
The bass was caught in Suruga Bay, Shizuoka Prefecture!
The Japanese echalottes baked to a crisp are grown organically in Bio Farm Matsuki!
Before the meat dish we enjoyed a succulent organic carrot potage!
The meat dish: Fujisan Wagyu Beef from Mr. Okamura’s Ranch and organic vegetables from Bio Farm Matsuki!
From another angle for a better view of the vegetables!
They included carrot, Red Moon potato, Broccolini, bamboo shoot, turnip, and daikon!
The piece de resistance: Fujisan Wagyu Beef which was awarded its title as Product of Shizuoka Prefecture in 2006!
No need to go to Kobe! LOL
Before tackling the dessert we refreshed ourselves with this beautiful Suruga Elegant Orange Soup!
We were first shown the main ingredients of the four desserts!
Suruga Elegant Orange Chilled Soup and Mousse topped with Hazelnut Sorbet and dark chocolate chips!
Organic Carrot Creme Brulee topped with Cardamon Sorbet!
Blanc-manger made with Fujinishiki Brewery (Fujinomoiya City) premium daiginjyo sake white lees/sakekasu/酒粕 and kiwi fruit sauce!
Shizuoka Matcha Tea Powder Mousse Cake and Kumquat Sorbet!
We just had enough space for the expresso, tea and mignardises!
Matcha Castella with azuki beans and yuzu macarons!
Before we left with Mr. Matsuki to interview Mr. Okamura in his ranch we had a small tour of the vegetables he grows for the pleasure of his customers!
Carefully nursed before being re-planted!
All lovingly cared for by Mr. Matsuki himself and his farm staff!
Onions!
The restaurant makes a very large use of leafy vegetables!
Broad beans!
I surely intend to come back soon and have a closer look at all the farm plots!
RESTAURANT BIO-S
419-0303 Fujinomiya Shi, Oshikakubo, 939-1
Tel.: 0544-67-0353
Fax: 0544-67-0098
Opening hours: 11:30~14:30, 17:00~20:00
Closed on Tuesday Night and whole Wednesdays
Reservations highly recommended!
Credit Cards OK
Parking for 8 cars
HOMEPAGE (Japanese)
Entirely non-smoking!
RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES
Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, 47 Japanese Farms Through The Eyes of Its Rural Communities, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento,Adventures in Bento Making, American Bent, Beanbento, Bento No, Bento Wo Tsukurimashou, Cooking Cute, Eula, Hapabento , Happy Bento, Jacki’s Bento Blog, Kitchen Cow, Leggo My Obento, Le Petit Journal Bento & CO (French), Lunch In A Box,
Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, The Herbed Kitchen, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Cooking Cute, Timeless Gourmet, Bento Bug, Ideal Meal, Bentosaurus, Mr. Foodie (London/UK), Ohayo Bento,
Must-see tasting websites:
-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery
Dear SG,
You have outdone yourself with this report from Bio-S! This place has everything, including the garden and Fujisan. By the way, it looks like the blurry close-ups are a thing of the past, so now we can completely enter into the creative display on the plate (and what a gorgeous plate!).
Of course, 100% non-smoking. And, I wish all of Japan would notice, no doubt wildly popular and profitable…anyway…
I wonder if I could get to Bio-S with a taxi from the nearest train station, or is a car mandatory?
Also, there is a bottle of sake half shown. Would it be possible to know who the sake shuzo/maker is?
Best wishes,
Patricia
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Dear Patricia!
Greetings!
Thank you so much for your comments.
You can go there by taxi. The nearest station is Nishi Fujinomiya afetr Fujinomiya on the Minobu Line leaving from Fuji Station.
The sake used is from Fujinishiki Brewery. The sake itself is Fujinishiki Daiginjyo. If you wish to have local sake instead of wine, no problem. Just call them a few days in advance. Tell them you are introduced by “Robert”. Pronounce “Robear”!
Incidentally there are 4 breweries in the region: Fujinishiki, Fujimasa, Fuji-Takasago and Makino.
Best regards,
Robert-Gilles
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