Quick, before the wonderful spring weather turns to rain and then to sweltering summer. It's the perfect season for long, leisurely alfresco lunches: Time to book that peaceful verdant patio table at Cucina Tredici Aprile.
It's all about the setting. Screened from the sun by a wide parasol and surrounded by shrubbery, you settle in sipping Prosecco and nibbling on focaccia. Ensconced in this oasis of calm, you might almost forget you're just steps away from the Nishi-Azabu Crossing, with its looming expressway flyover and ceaseless roar of traffic.
Although Cucina Tredici Aprile is by no means new, it still remains under most people's radar. In large part this is due to the off-off-main-street location, so secluded on a narrow cul-de-sac you barely see the sign until you're right under it. But it's also because chef Masafumi Hidaka seems to prefer it that way.