the garden place soshuen

Yesterday, I was able to meet up with my host-mom and my host-brother's wife for lunch at Garden Place Soshuen.

This large estate was the vacation home of a plutocrat and then after the war in 1946 was turned into a Chinese restaurant called Soshuen.

The estate survived the large Kobe earthquake of 1995 and in recent years, was turned into a wedding restaurant facility and the name changed to The Garden Place Soshuen.

The cuisine is Italian/French.

We started our lunch with a cocktail. This is made with sparkling wine and the juice of a himepon (literally, princess citrus, it is a type of dekopon)....very fruity.

The amuse bouche was mozzarella cheese with pieces of citrus and bits of anchovy, some capers...delicious.

Appetizers were a scallop and kanburi (type of yellowtail) marinated in an agrodolce (sweet/sour) sauce and served with some caponata.

It wasn't too sweet or sour, I enjoyed this dish because the scallops were grilled and had a nice flavor.

Lobster linguine...delicious lump of lobster, but the meat inside the claw was a bit difficult to remove.

A sirloin piece of "akaushi". Akaushi is the brand name of wagyu in the Kumamoto area of Japan.

Tender and delicious with the silky gorgonzola mashed potatoes.

Dessert was a strawberry shortcake.

This is different from the shortcake that is more widely known in the States.

Japan's strawberry shortcake is a yellow sponge, filled with fresh whipped cream and strawberries.

The waitstaff asked if we wanted the cake cut, and we did, so she cut it into thirds.

The property was beautiful, the food delicious and most importantly, it was nice to be able to spend time with my host-mom and my host-brother's wife. (Thank you!)

The Garden Place Soshuen
4-7-28 Sumiyoshi-yamate
Higashi-nada, Kobe
Phone: 078.851.3182
*Reservations required