Ginza: bills Ginza （ビルズ銀座）

Summary: bills' sunny and down to earth dishes for the fancy crowd at Ginza.

Ginza is one of Japan's biggest luxury shopping and entertainment district, and is one of the best places to enjoy the bright neon lights of Tokyo. 

This area is a fascinating place where the latest fashion and dining trends and the oldest of Japanese traditions converge.

Opening a location in Ginza is considered the ultimate status, and having a store in Ginza adds class and prestige to a brand, and is an honour that many strive to reach for.

This time. Australian Egg Master and Breakfast supremo Bill Granger has ventured into this luxurious neighbourhood with his newest (7th) restaurant in Japan, bringing his sunny, all day casual dining to the fashionable crowds at Ginza.,

bills Ginza opened its doors to the public on 1st October 2016, and occupies the top floor of Okura House, a landmark building along Chuo-dori street, which is also home to Cartier’s flagship store in Japan.

For those coming here for the first time, it can be a little tricky to find the restaurant. The entrance bills Ginza is actually tucked in the corner of the building. 

I would suggest for you to look out for a glass section of the building – you should be able to see the name of the building (Okura House) at its entrance. 

okura house

12th floor!

bills is located on the 12F of Okura House.

To be honest, this is not a place you would expect a restaurant to be - definitely not one of those restaurants you can find while having a casual stroll along Ginza!

Upon exiting the elevator, I was greeted by a warm, smiling receptionist who quickly guided me to my seat.

From the looks of it, this restaurant is definitely more upscale than the other branches I have been to in Japan.
Just by looking at its interior, you can tell how much effort bills Ginza put into their interior to match the glitz and glamour of Ginza,

 Long, gleaming marble (?) bar, plush banquette seating, and wall paintings, - even their plates and table lamps look expensive.
(my date immediately knew they were using iittala plates - I guess those who are plate nerds can tell!)

While the restaurant atmosphere was all glitz and glamour, the menu featured familiar foods like their famous ricotta hotcakes, fresh banana
and honeycomb butter, scrambled organic eggs and flat white coffees.

Their dinner menu, while featuring the same foods that you can find in their other restaurants, also served Ginza-only small plates specials like truffled arancini, warm taleggio sandwich, pear and hazelnuts, as well as mains like wagyu fillet steak.

They also have a private dining course menu, and afternoon tea specials in Ginza. I have also tried their afternoon tea set, but I didn't take proper notes while enjoying my meal so I rather not write about it.

However, here are some photos of their afternoon tea.

Back to my dinner - I was a little apprehensive to try their cocktails (only because I don’t like non-milk alcohol), so I stuck with my all-time favourite bills sunrise (made with berries, banana, apple juice, orange juice and yoghurt) or bills beets (yummy blend of beetroot, carrot, fennel, and apple).

sunrise 950yen

Pictured above is their sunrise drink, which is a standard but delicious berry smoothie. Everything is made in house on order, so you can be rest assured that the flavours are as fresh as it can get.

bills beets - I would say it’s an upscale, fresher and juicer version of the ABC juice (apple beets carrot) you can find in most hawker centres in Singapore, except you pay 5 times the usual price.
Unfortunately, we do not have our lovely hawker uncles in Japan, so I will continue to get my ABC cravings at bills…

I came here for dinner with my friends, so we decided to order a few plates to share amongst ourselves.

grilled flatbread with seat salt 500yen
raw vegetables, warm anchovy and garlic dip 1200yen
warm taleggio sandwich, pear and hazelnuts 1400yen

The grilled flatbread with sea salt was your average flatbread - smokey, nicely salted with the slight aroma of olive oil, but too plain to eat on its own. I really wish it came with a side of dip for me to dunk into.

The raw vegetables, warm anchovy and garlic dip was okay. I found the vegetables (radicchio) a little too bitter for my liking, and that yellow vegetable (maybe yellow beetroot?) too watery.

I would have been okay with this dish if they had a better balance of sweet and bitter vegetables. Maybe I am just a big kid, but I felt adding some raw carrots and daikon radish would have been great.

I definitely liked their warm taleggio sandwich, pear and hazelnuts - who doesn't like warm, gooey cheese and honey? The pears were also beautifully caramelised and the roasted hazelnuts was yum. Definitely something I would recommend if you are feeling a little indulgent.

prawn galangal, lemongrass and coconut
1300yen

Prawn galangal, lemongrass and coconut – I quite like the flavouring of this. I personally prefer my prawns to be cooked to the point it is almost overcooked, so I wasn’t a fan of their prawns, but that was just my personal preference.

crispy chilli potatoes 750yen

I liked these - it's different from the standard Japanese potatoes sold in supermarkets.
The flesh was dense, creamy and nutty on the inside, and the skin was well seasoned and crispy.

parmesan crumbed chicken schnitzel, creamed potato and fennel slaw
1800yen

Parmesan crumbed chicken schnitzel, creamed potato and fennel slaw - to be honest, I was not a fan of this. The coating was soggy but the meat inside was dry.
I think I rather eat a standard chicken katsu from a Japanese restaurant.

But at least I liked the side dish which came with the chicken.

crispy calamari, chilli and pepperberry 1200yen

Ooohhh - this one was awesome!
This was actually my third time eating this.
I usually don’t eat fried food, but bill's crispy calamari is one of my favorites. Lightly coated squids in a crispy shell, dipped in sweet chilli sauce…YUM!

shrimp burger, jalapeño mayo, shaved radish salad and sesame gochujang
1800yen

The shrimp burger, jalapeño mayo, shaved radish salad and sesame gochujang was really good - definitely one of the dishes I would try again when I visit.

Presentation was colourful and beautiful, the patty was juicy, and the clean, fresh flavours of the salad made the meal light despite it being a burger.

In Bill Granger's own words: tasty, healthy, wholesome and a little bit exotic.

Last but definitely not least, we ordered their ricotta hotcakes, fresh banana and honeycomb butter.

ricotta hotcakes, fresh banana and honeycomb butter
1600yen

As always, their ricotta hotcakes was phenomenal. I have yet to find a place where I can get better hotcakes.  Glorious, extra-fluffy, airy and light hotcakes with creamy, custard-like middles. Honeycomb butter melting all over them and warm maple syrup drizzled on top.

Foodgasm at its best. 

I doubt I can ever leave bills without ordering their ricotta hotcakes, regardless of whether it's night or day. 

Overall, quite a different experience from other bills I have been to.
I usually head to bills for breakfast/brunch, so dinner was a completely new experience for me.

cafe latte 700yen

Night time at bills was good, but I would also recommend coming here for breakfast to enjoy Bill Granger's Ricotta Hotcakes or other breakfast dishes before staring your shopping trip in Ginza.

flat white 700yen

Address: Okura House 12F, 2-6-12 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061
〒104-0061 Tokyo, 中央区銀座２丁目2−6−12
Phone: 03-5524-1900
Hours: Mon- Sun 8.30am-11pm (last orders 10pm, drinks 10.30pm)
Website: http://billsjapan.com/en/ginza

URL: http://tabelog.com/btb/dd1f73f93915f1f4fae1da0747d237798f1a445e812d232fe52513c57e776b4b/

bills 銀座

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