My favorite restaurant. Vol.3 "Rendezvous Lounge" by Morioka Masayuki
Everyone has their favorite place. Restaurants, cafeterias, coffee shops, cafes, bars... Because they know the people there, because the food is delicious, because it's comfortable... The genres and reasons vary from person to person. If there's one thing we can say, it's that if you have such a place, your life will be rich. So, we want that person to tell us about their favorite place. In the third installment, we talk about the Rendezvous Lounge and sandwiches on the first floor of the Imperial Hotel Tokyo, which Morioka Masayuki, president of Morioka Shoten, visits several times a year.
The ultimate sandwich and treat.
I first stepped into the Imperial Hotel Tokyo when I was a student working at the Takarazuka Theater next door. I often passed through the hotel on my way to Hibiya Park during my break. At the time, I was living in an apartment in Nakano that cost about 30,000 yen, so it was a different world for me. I looked at people in suits having business meetings and thought to myself, "Adults are amazing." Of course, I didn't even have the concept of going into the lounge, and just enjoyed the space itself. Even now, when I come here, it makes me excited, as if I was looking at the future of Tokyo from the perspective of someone in the 1960s.
After I became a working professional, I finally went to the Rendezvous Lounge with my own money. It's a lounge on the left side of the hotel's main entrance, and I was really nervous. When I sat down, I noticed that the ceiling was high. Also, if there is an appropriate distance to keep when talking to someone or listening to someone, this distance seems to have been calculated and reflected. The word rendezvous in the name of the lounge means "promise" in French, and it's the perfect place for a meeting to make an agreement or something, but I also like to just sit there by myself even when I have nothing to do. "What does it mean to have 24 pillars?" I spend seemingly meaningless time drinking coffee or tea, which is a luxury.
Last year, I came here alone to celebrate the publication of my essay collection. Then, by chance, a customer sitting nearby knew me. I was so happy that I signed the book I had in my hand and gave it to him. You could say I felt a bit like a star (laughs). I wish I could tell my nervous, stiff past self. Speaking of this year, I also visited on a rainy day. There were not many people there except for me, and the usually bustling lounge was enveloped in a moist atmosphere, which I thought was also nice.
I wasn't originally that fond of sandwiches, but I started eating them after I noticed that they often appear in Haruki Murakami's novels. The quality of ordinary items is what I feel Rendezvous Lounge pays special attention to in their mixed sandwiches. For example, the vegetables in between the sandwiches. They tend to be limp, but the lettuce and tomatoes here are fresh, as they are freshly made. The potato chips and pickles on the side are also great. I don't know how they decided on them, but I feel that it's inevitable that they have to be on a sandwich! Speaking of which, they recently changed their bread. I like the chewy texture.
Even though it looks simple, you'll understand after one bite. This is the ultimate sandwich. You can't get a top-class watch or coat without paying hundreds of thousands or even tens of millions of yen, but you can get a top-class sandwich at the Rendezvous Lounge for just a few thousand yen. It's not a cheap price, but I think it's worth it, including the experience of the space in the lounge. I also recommend the shortcake. There's a drop of syrup on top of the strawberry, so small you can't see it. It's to make the sourness milder, but it somehow feels gentle.
Speaking of which, I also feel the kindness of the staff. It's like a sense of security that anyone is accepted. Because they are so close to people's joy, this place is always filled with hope and dreams. It makes me feel like I'm a Chihuahua. Chihuahuas are loved by everyone, aren't they (laughs). I'm moved by the hospitality of the Imperial Hotel, which provides such an experience, and every time I come here I think that I would like to have that attitude in my work.
Imperial Hotel Tokyo Rendezvous Lounge
Address: 1-1-1 Uchisaiwaicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
TEL: 03-5726-9629
Business hours: 10:00-22:30 (last order 22:00)
Official website: https://www.imperialhotel.co.jp/tokyo/restaurant/rendezvous
Profile
Morioka Masayuki (Representative of Morioka Shoten)
Born in Yamagata Prefecture in 1974. While he is the representative of Morioka Shoten, a second-hand bookstore in Ginza, he is also active as a writer, and his books include "The Smallest Bookstore in Ginza" (Shogakukan) and "The Old Bookstore in the Wilderness" (Shogakukan Bunko). He is also known as a big fan of shortcake, and in 2023 he published a collection of essays titled "Forgive Shortcake" (Raichousha).
Instagram:@moriokasyoten
