Autumn is our reward for overcoming the extremes of summer. The harvest that comes with the season also makes it quite possibly the best time of year for eating out. Zeshin, opened more than three years ago by Hideyuki Ohishi, will make you wish autumn lasted the whole year.

The restaurant is located in the basement of an old office block behind the U.S. Consulate in the Kitashinchi district. Zeshin's Japanese-style entrance is at complete odds with the monotony of the surrounding offices. Heading downstairs, the traditional style takes over, with pebbled gardens and a tiny pool. There's also a tatami room, where meals are served on small, low wooden tables (ryokan-style) — an unmistakably Japanese setting for an unmistakably Japanese meal.

I dined alone at the small counter area in front of the open kitchen where chef Takakazu Sekine presides. The chef's kaiseki (multicourse) lunch is ¥4,800 (and dinner is ¥12,000) — with a 10 percent service charge for both.