Summer Menu challenge 2025
Chef Tanno Takashi – Restaurant “NÔL” 1* Michelin, 1 Green Michelin star- Tokyo, Japan
Tucked in a quiet corner of Tokyo, away from the neon and noise, lies NÔL, a serene enclave where the boundaries between cuisine, culture, and consciousness are intentionally blurred. With no signage and minimal ornamentation, the restaurant invites its guests to arrive not for spectacle—but for introspection.
Every course at NÔL is an ode to nature—delicate, thought-provoking, and deeply rooted in Japanese philosophy. The menu is a quiet rebellion against overconsumption, telling stories of seasonality, memory, and forgotten flavours. Sustainability is not an add-on here; it is the foundation—nurtured through the restaurant’s own compost-to-table system, in-house farming, and a reverence for zero-waste cooking.
Dining at NÔL feels like walking through a forest poem—where the moss, smoke, and silence are all part of the narrative.
Chef Tanno Takashi’s approach to cooking is equal parts storytelling, environmentalism, and ancestral respect.
“Our guests shouldn’t just taste the dish—they should feel the forest, remember a river, or question why something that was ‘waste’ could be so beautiful.”
About the Chef
The Philosopher of Forest Flavour
Chef Tanno Takashi is not merely a chef—he is a steward of time, tradition, and terrain. With deep roots in Japanese heritage and classical French Culinary training, Chef Tanno creates food that honors memory and nature, delivered with meditative precision and modern ecological responsibility.
He believes that ingredients carry voices—from the tidepools of Hokkaido to the bamboo groves of Kyushu—and his role is to amplify them without distortion. At NÔL, he practices culinary kintsugi—the art of finding beauty in imperfection, using offcuts, wild herbs, and forgotten ingredients to craft dishes that ask more questions than they answer.
“A Moment of Season” – A Journey Through Forest, Memory, and Responsibility
Chef Tanno’s summer tasting menu is a multisensory journey designed to stir curiosity and honor the overlooked. Every dish is an interlude in a broader story of Japan’s landscapes—from bamboo groves to mountain fields—told through a deeply seasonal, zero-waste lens.
Chef’s Summer Menu Inspiration
“This summer, I wanted to reflect on balance. Between heritage and innovation. Between what we celebrate and what we discard. Every ingredient has a past, and this menu tries to honour its full story—from root to flower, from memory to meaning.”
Tableware & Producers at nol.
Featured Tableware Brands
JICON by Touetsugama
Sfera Tokyo Lacquerware
Serving ware
Ingredient Sourcing & Sustainability Partners
Yagishita Noen Blueberry Farm, Odawara
Hokkaido Venison Cooperative
Tateyama Bamboo Collective
nol. Urban Farm (Compost-grown herbs and flowers)
- Rainbows Farm Kamakura – Produce
- Hasegawa(last) Hiroki (first) – Fish
Photo credit to @Sydney Seekford
Summer menu 2025 -NÔL Restaurant Tokyo
By Chef Takashi Tanno | All4Chefs Summer Menu Challenge 2025
Title: “A Moment of Season”
A multi-course tasting menu grounded in sustainability, forest philosophy, and Japanese identity.
Raw Squid · Asparagus · Mustard
Squid and asparagus tart layered with grain mustard and squid ink salt. Served chilled for a light, tactile start.
Beetroot · Red Pepper · Smoke
Beet croquette dusted with beetroot powder, filled with silky red pepper paste.
Abalone · Red Seaweed · Shell
Small abalone served warm in its shell, resting atop a bed of local red seaweed.
Zucchini Flower · Sorbet · Garden
House-grown zucchini flower stuffed with zucchini sorbet. A soft bite of chilled vegetal sweetness.
Shadow Potato · Honey · Salt
“Shadow Queen” purple potato brick, caramelized with honey and finished with sansho and salt.
Sweet Potato · Blue Cheese · Sansho
Crisped sweet potato chips, bonded with melted blue cheese and a delicate kick of sansho.
Artichoke · Tuna Tartare · Tomato
Roasted artichoke round topped with fresh tuna tartare and a mosaic of three-colour tomato. Finished with squid ink salt and garden herbs.
Peking Duck · Wild Chive · Miso
Mizuame-lacquered duck breast in Peking style with thigh meat, house-made miso, and soy-marinated wild chive.
Sturgeon · Boar Bacon · Olive Gel
Sturgeon steak wrapped in wild boar bacon and fried, served gunkan style. Topped with peas, caviar, fermented asparagus, and gelled olive oil.
Brown Rice · Soba · White Soy Foam
A comforting bowl of genmai and soba grain mix, crowned with white soy foam.
A tribute to pre-modern Japanese staple grains.
Zero Waste Soup · Pea Shells · Shiitake
A siphon-brewed broth made from dried tomato skins, shiitake stems, potato peels and pea pods.
A reflection on ingredient value and the modern food chain imbalance.
Grouper · Bamboo · Kombu Broth
Sasa-wrapped, steam-roasted grouper marinated in kombu-bamboo broth. Served with grilled bamboo shoots, grouper gelatin and a side of watercress.
Venison · Coffee · Eggplant
Charcoal-roasted Ezo venison marinated in cacao and coffee. Served with crushed green bean and potato paste, grilled eggplant filled with venison heart, and a slice of cured lardo.
Biwa (Loquat) · Sake · Myoga
Loquat-sake compote with a jam of loquat and ginger buds. Topped with yogurt foam and shiso flowers, finished with warm saffron sauce.
Blueberry · Kuromoji · Vinegar
Blueberry ice cream infused with kuromoji vinegar. Served with kuromoji-smoked blueberries.
A sensory homage to summer visits at Yagishita Farm, Odawara.
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