CULINARY INNOVATIONS

Tokyo restaurants titillate the senses with creative drink-pairing menus that add complexity to traditional flavour profiles. By Kyoko Nakayama

Are drinks inspiring the new innovation in cuisines?

Decades ago, Ferran Adria piqued the world’s interest with molecular cuisine that converted the art of gastronomy into a food science experiment and transformed the physical and chemical dimensions of ingredients. Since then, it has set the bar for new sensory expectations in the dining experience. As chefs continually seek to surprise and intrigue discerning palates, new ways of presenting menus are also being created, and Tokyo has opened the doors to a new way of pairing food with drinks that are not what you might typically expect. Drinks in the non-traditional sense are being used to create depth to flavours in dishes. Here’s a look at a few restaurants that are setting the trend.