The Japan Times Friday,May29,2015 5

TheHotelOkuraTokyowillinviteMichelin-starredchefFredericSimonintocookatitsluxuriousFrenchrestaurantLaBelleEpoquefromJune1toJune7.

CustomerscanenjoySimoninslunchanddinnercoursesfor12,960and28,000,plusa10percentservicecharge,respectively.

TheeventwillbethelastoneforthecurrentLaBelleEpoque,whichhasservedexcellentFrenchcuisinesince1973,asitwillbeclosedinJulyandaugustforrenovations.

Theeventispartofthecampaign,dubbedThisisOkura:300daysProjectThirdStage,tocoincide therenovationofthehotelsMainBuilding,whichwillstartinSeptember.Priortotherenovation,thehotelsentireSouthWing,whereLaBelleEpoqueislocated,willgothroughminorrenovationsfortwomonths.duringtherenovationoftheMainBuilding,LaBelleEpoquewillreopenasLaBelleEpoque&BaronOkura.

ThisisSimoninsthirdvisittoJapansincecomingin2011and2012.Hewasarunner-upfortheMeillieursOuvriersdeFrance,anawardpresentedeveryfouryearstocraftsmeninFrance.Judgespraisedhimfortheuniquenessofhisdishesandtheperfectionofhiscuisine.

SimoninwasbornintheBrittanyregionofFrancein1975andbeganhiscookingcareeratage15.afterworkingforseveralFrenchrestaurants,heopenedhisownrestaurantinParisin2010.

LaBelleEpoqueopenedin1973;the

sametimetheSouthWingopened.TheinteriorisfinishedintheartnouveaustylethatwaspopularinFranceintheearly20thcentury.ThereareTiffanylampsonthetablesandstainedglassworksonthewall,addingtotheelegantatmosphereoftheluxuriousrestaurant.

The Hotel Okura Tokyo is 10 minutes from Toranomon, Kamiyacho, Tameike-sanno and Roppongi-itchome Tokyo Metro subway stations. For inquiries and reservations, call 03-3505-6073, or visit www.hotelokura.co.jp/tokyo.

Michelin starred French chef to dazzle diners at Okura

hotel special

TheaNainterContinentalTokyowillopenitsfourthfloorGardenPool,anoutdoorswimmingpool,fromJune27toSept.30.

TheviewofTokyoskyscrapersintheroppongi-akasakaareafromtheGardenPoolismagnificent,withTokyoTowerrightupfront.ThepoolissurroundedbythegreeneryofthearkHills,creatingaluxuriousspaceincentralTokyoandmakingguestsfeelasiftheyareinanurbanoasis.

The20x13meterpoolislargerthanmostfoundinTokyohotels,anddeckchairspromiseacomfortabletime.

avarietyoffoodandbeverageswillbeavailableatThePoolsideSnackcafe,whichseats30people.

intheevening,withTokyoTowerbathedinlights,thepoolsideandthe

bottomofthepoolalsotwinkleinfan-tasticalillumination.Guestscanenjoydinneratthepoolsidesnackbar.

Thepoolisopenfrom8a.m.to7p.m.,exceptbetweenJuly25andaug.31,whenitsopenuntil9p.m.

admissionis7,000onweekdaysand13,000onweekends,holidaysandfromaug.10toaug.14,forthosenotstayingatthehotel.Hotelguestscanusethepoolfor4,000,butonlyonetimeperstay.Children5oryoungerarefree,buttheycanuseonlythechildrenspool.

Bathingsuitsandgogglesareavail-ableforrental.

asummeraccommodationplanwithfreeaccesstothepoolisalsoavailablefromJuly1toSept.30,pricedat31,000pernightwithbreakfastand28,000without.

anotherrecommendationforthesummeristospendsometimeatthesophisticatedMiXXBar&Loungeonthe36thfloorofthehotel.itboastsamagnificentviewofmanyTokyoland-

marks,includingtheimperialPalace,theNationaldietBuildingandTokyoMidtownskyscrapers.

Theloungeisopenfrom11:30a.m.to1a.m.fromMondaytoThursday,anduntil2a.m.FridaysandSaturdaysandmidnightSundays.

The ANA InterContinental Tokyo is five minutes from Tameike-Sanno Station (Ginza and Namboku lines). For more information or reservations, call 03-3505-1185, or visit www.anaintercontinental-tokyo.jp.

ANA offers days of relaxing at pool, nights enjoying view

CentrallylocatedinTokyosNihonbashidistrict,theroyalParkHotel,Tokyo,alreadyknownforitsexcellentfoodandbeverageservices,isholdingseveralexcitingpromotionsthissummer.

amongthem,MainBarroyalScotsisofferingavarietyofmojitococktailsforguestsenjoymentthroughoutthemonthofJune.itwilloffertwovaria-tionsofthedrinkachampagnemojitowithtwokindsofberriesfor1,800andafrozenmojitowithblueber-riesandmintfor1,600(excludingtax).

Thebar,onthebasementfloor,isopenfrom5p.m.tomidnighteveryday.Lastordersareat11:30p.m.

ThehotelsChineserestaurantKei-Ka-En,alsoonthebasementfloor,will

offerthreekindsofcoldnoodles,includ-inggomoku(fiveitems)coldnoodles,coldtantanmen(dandanspicysoupnoodles)andcoldsesameseedsoupnoodleswithasaltyplumpasteandchickenfromJune1toaug.31.

Eachdishis2,500.asetofoneofthethreeplusannintofu(almondjelly)costsanadditional300.

Kei-Ka-EnmainlyoffersCantoneseseafood,aswellasdishesfromotherregions.Thereare10privatediningroomsavailablethatcanaccommodatetwoto50peopleforbusinessdinnersorparties.

Kei-Ka-Enisopenforlunchfrom11:30a.m.to3p.m.,withthelastorderat2p.m.intheevening,itisopenfordinnerfrom5:30p.m.to10p.m.withlastordersat9p.m.

TheroyalParkHotelisconvenientlylocatednexttotheTokyoCityairTermi-nal(TCaT),fromwhichbusesleavesev-eraltimeseachhourforNaritainternationalairport,about55min-utesaway.

TheTokyoStockExchangeandtheheadquartersofseveralofJapanslead-ingfinancialcorporationsarenearthehotelandthefamousNihonbashishop-pingdistrict,homeofsomeofTokyosfinestdepartmentstoresandshops,isjustashortwalkfromthehotel.

The Royal Park Hotel is connected to Suitengumae Station (Hanzomon Line). For more information call 03-3667-1111, or visit www.rph.co.jp/english.

Wide variety of food, drink at Royal Park

Inawoodlandsettingsurroundedbystreamsandsingingbirds,theNikiClub&resortsinNasu,Toch-igiPrefecture,offersguestsarelax-ingsummer,providingthemwithanexperiencesimilartoalong-termstayatasummerhouse.

designedbyarchitectakiraWata-nabe,theuniquebuildingsblendEastandWest,withthemainbuildingappearingJapanesewithexteriorwallsmadefromOyatuffstones,NikiClubopenedin1986,asanaubergewithonlysixguestroomsandasim-ple,butmoderninterior.

Today,ithasgrowninsize,with41rooms,includingafamilysuitethatallowsparentsandchildrentoenjoytheirsummerholidaystogether.Naturewalksinthewoodsandartles-sonsareofferedattheglassworkshopandceramicstudioatartBiotopNasu,afacilityattheclubandresortforlong-termartistsinresidence.art-workssuchaspaintingsandsculp-turesadorntheguesthouse.

TheupscaleNikiClub&Spa,whichopenedin2003,isequippedwithaluxuriousspaandrestaurantoffering

mealscookedwithfreshorganicvege-tablesandherbspickeddailyfromitskitchengarden.ThemealsareafusionofFrenchtechniquesandingredientsuniquetoJapanesecui-sine,andguestscanchoosefromeitheraJapaneseorWestern-stylebreakfast.

Pricesrangefromaround44,160to50,370perperson,pernight(taxandservicechargesincluded).

Wewanttowelcomeguestswhowillcomenotjustforsightseeing,butwithawishtoenjoythestayitselfattheclubandresort,saidTakayukiMurai,thepublicrelationsmanager.

Guestscanvisituseachseasonandenjoynatureintunewiththedif-ferenttimesofyear.

Niki Club is a 30-minute drive (free shuttle bus available) from JR Nasu Shiobara Station, which is about 75 minutes by Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo Station. For further information, call 0287-78-2215, or visit http://www.nikiclub.jp.

Relaxing time at Niki Club & Resorts

GrandHyattTokyowillhostaseriesofluxuriousFrenchsummereventsatTheFrenchKitchendubbedSoireeBlanche2015throughOctober(MayandJuneeventshavealreadysoldout),from6p.m.to9p.m.,whereguestswillbeaskedtodressallinwhite.Free-flowingchampagne,themedbeveragesandfoodfromthegrillwillbeofferedfor10,000(taxandservicechargenotincluded).

SoireeBlancheisasummereventthatoriginatedinthe1970sinSaint-

Tropez,France,whereguestsincludingmanycelebritiesenjoyedsummergatheringsdressedallinwhite.reservationsarerequiredandcanbemadedirectlywithTheFrenchKitchenat03-4333-8781.

avarietyofothersummerpromo-tionswillbeofferedthroughtheendofSeptember,withnewdishesbeingintroducedathotelrestaurants,includingitalian,French,JapaneseandChinesecuisine.

attheitaliancafeFiorentina,newchilledpastadisheswillbeservedfromJuly1toaug.31(11a.m.to10p.m.)Therearethreechoicesonthemenu:Cappelliniwithfruittomatoesandbasil;pastawithfreshsummerpeachesandmozzarellacheese;andseaurchinandcaviarpasta,withthefirsttwopricedat2,700andthethirdat3,300.

alsoattheJapaneserestaurantShunbou,naturaleelandsoftshelltur-tlefromLakeBiwainShigaPrefecturewillbefeaturedinvariousdishes,withpricesrangingfrom5,900.

additionally,thebeergardenwillbeopenatTheOakdoorfromJune1toSept.30,inwhichguestscanchoosefromawiderangeoffree-flowingbev-eragesanddishesincludingbarbecuedchickenwingsandgarlicshrimp.

SummercookingclasseswillbeheldatTheFrenchKitchenandTheOakdoor,wherechefTroyLeewillbecon-ductingachildrensFrenchcookingclassonaug.2,16and30,forchildrenfrom10yearsoldandabove,aswellasforadults;andchefadamNoffsingerwillbeteachingregionalamericancuisinemonthlythroughaugust.

Grand Hyatt Tokyo is about three minutes from Roppongi Station (Hibiya and Oedo lines). For more information, visit tokyo.grand.hyatt.com.

A taste of St. Tropez at Grand Hyatt Tokyo

RoyalParkHotelTheHaneda,whichisdirectlyconnectedtotheinterna-tionalterminalofthegrowinghubthatisHanedaairport,boastsanunprecedentedlocation.

Mostofourcustomersduringtheweekarebusinessprofessionalstravelinginter-nationally,said SalesandMarketing Man-ageryoshikazuKobayashi.

Hestressed,however,thatthehotelwantstoincreasethenumberofdomesticflightguestsandgeneralguests.

Kobayashiexplainedthatthehoteltriestoattachaplayfulmoodtoeachroom,selectinguniquedesignsfortheinteriorsanddecoratingeachofthe313roomswith

singularartworkscreatedbybothprofes-sionalandamateurartists.

Thepiecesshareacommonthemeoftravelandairplanes,withmotifssuchasglobes,suitcasesandflightschedulestoraisethespiritsofguestswhostayatthehotel.

Thehotellobbyisdirectlyconnectedtothedepartureareaoftheairport,highlightingitsconvenienceforguestswhowanttousethehotelbeforeflightsorduringtransit.

asthefirst-evertransithotelinJapan,thehotelhasasmallertransitsection,locatedwithintheairportsinner-terminalzoneforpassengerswhohavejustlandedafteralongflightfromanothercountryandwilltransitionatHaneda.

Thetransitareahas17guestrooms,eightrefreshroomswithshowersandaloungewithasofaandT.V.,pricedat2,000perhour(servicechargeandtaxincluded).Withouthavingtoclearpassportcontrol,passengerscandirectlyaccessthefacilitiesaftermakingembarkationprocedures.

Therearealsorefreshroomsintheregu-larhotelarea,pricedat2,000perhour(servicechargeandtaxincluded),whereguestscantakeashortbreak.

TheTailwindrestaurantandbarisopenfrom5a.m.to1a.m.,andoffersawiderangeofchoicesforbreakfast,lunchanddinner.

Royal Park Hotel The Haneda in Ota Ward can be accessed directly from the Haneda Airport International Terminal. For more information and reservations, call 03-6830-1111, or access http://www.rph-the.co.jp/haneda/en/

Easy travel with Royal Park The Haneda

Clockwise from above: French star chef Frederic Simonin will cook at the Hotel Okura Tokyo; A lunch course item of half-boiled eggs with green peas and cheese; Lemon-flavored razor clams from the dinner course menu. YUJI ONO

The hotels Garden Pool overlooking Tokyo Tower

Above: The flamboyant Soiree Blanche 2015. Below: The Oak Door Beer Garden.

Above: The main building made with Oya tuff stone walls. Below: A guest room.

Above: The lobby entrance is decorated with suitcases. Below: A travel theme continues throughout the hotel.

Vegetables and herbs are picked fresh from the kitchen garden.

The French Kitchen Terrace

The Prism Suite living room

Summertime cold noodle specialities at the Chinese Restaurant Kei-Ka-En

(publicity)

Left: An executive deluxe room. Right: Lunch buffet at MIXX Bar & Lounge

Mojito cocktails at the Main Bar Royal Scots

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