Chef Jerome Quilbeuf is obviously a man with an appetite. You can tell by the name he’s given his new restaurant, Tinc Gana. It sounds exotic, but translated from the Catalan language, it simply means, “I’m hungry.”

He also appears to have impeccable timing. During the two-plus years of pandemic restrictions, Quilbeuf was able to ride out the slowdown at Gracia, his relaxed, seven-seater Barcelona-style “gastrobar” in Hiroo. Its approach — an informal counter setting with an affordable a la carte menu and enough high-end wines to attract a gourmet clientele — was perfectly tailored for those difficult times.

Now, just as Tokyo’s dining scene starts to regain its pizzazz and Japan reopens its borders, Quilbeuf has elevated that same ethos to a more sophisticated level. At Tinc Gana, he offers the same casual fine dining approach as at Gracia but in a considerably more spacious setting that does better justice to the caliber of his excellent modern Spanish cuisine.