Tenzen: the confidential Japanese tempura restaurant in Paris

If you're tired of eating on the run and gobbling up your meal in seconds, then why not turn to a very pleasant gastronomic experience? To discover it, head to Zen, a family-run Japanese restaurant nestled in the capital's 1st arrondissement. The surprise is in the basement. After descending the steps and passing through the sliding door, we're at Tenzen !

Discover the Tenzen table on video :

See this publication on Instagram

A publication shared by sᴏʀᴛɪʀᴀᴘᴀʀɪs.ᴄᴏᴍ (@sortiraparis.officiel)

Described as France's first gourmet tempura counter, this confidential new restaurant immediately puts us in the mood. With a small room that's entirely closed off from the outside world, noble wood on the walls and a cypress counter that can seat up to 12 people, Tenzen sets the scene and doesn't take long to catch our eye.

Behind this famous counter is talented chef Jiro Kondo. Originally from the island of Kyushu in southern Japan, the chef first cut his teeth making the inevitable sushi, before turning to more traditional Japanese cuisine and finally developing a passion for one of the pillars of Japanese gastronomy, tempura, offered here in its most authentic and sophisticated form.

So it's around this counter that the waltz of dishes begins before our amazed eyes. The intoxicating aromas quickly make our mouths water, and chef Jiro Kondo 's technical skills are bound to captivate us. But don't be in a hurry. At Tenzen, we take our time. Expect to spend between 2 and 2.5 hours at lunchtime, and a little longer in the evening, as the tasting menu is more substantial, but also more expensive (Lunch Menu €65 and Dinner Menu €120).

So, what exactly can you expect from this unique menu featuring quality products? It all starts with the unmissable otsumami, small, varied starters combining different textures and authentic flavors. This lunchtime, it's time for fried eggplant and miso sauce with chicken strips, followed by a Japanese omelette with stuffed green bell pepper and marinated shrimp, and finally a duo of brill and sea bream sashimi (two fish caught by line in Brittany), accompanied by a wasabi leaf and lemon parsley, and a lightly sweetened homemade soy sauce sublimated by a bonito broth.

• To be read
• Japanese restaurants in Paris
• The izakayas of Paris, our best addresses for authentic Japanese tapas
• Tips for the week of November 18 to 24, 2024 in Paris: free or inexpensive outings

We continue with an assortment of 8 tempuras, served delicately one after the other: shrimp head, whiting, squid, green bean, shiitake mushroom, corn, fried potato, not forgetting fig tempura, an incredible and succulent creation imagined by the Chef, enhanced by a miso sauce with egg yolk and sake. A true delight to remember! Chef Jiro Kondo 's secret? The use of cottonseed oil specially imported from Japan, which preserves all the flavor of the ingredients and produces an ultra-delicate, fine breading.

Each tempura is served with either fleur de sel de Camargue, dashi sauce and grated radish, or a surprisingly delicious volcanic salt from Iceland! If you're feeling a little lost between these different accompaniments, don't panic, the waiter is there to guide you to the best possible tasting experience. A special mention goes to the service, which is attentive and attentive throughout the experience!

After these tasty 8 tempuras, the journey continues with the famous kakiage-don; a rice cake with beans, mushrooms, corn, shrimp tempura... all delicately placed on perfectly cooked rice. To round things off, the chef offers us a delicious red miso soup and some tsukemono (beet stems and leaves).

We're starting to feel a bit tired, but there's no time to flinch, as it's time for dessert. As refreshing as they are light, we fall for these pear pieces with hojicha syrup, mascarpone whipped cream and marron glacé.

After more than two hours of observing the chef's technical gestures and discovering tempura in a refined form, we come away from this experience with a smile on our faces, happy to have experienced this timeless interlude.