Sadaharu Aoki, Tarte Chocolat

Was at Isetan looking from something from a superb shop that won a cake-off, but saw a new cake from quite superb shop at Sadaharu Aoki, so change of plans. It was their Tarte Chocolat. I haven't seen an announcement, and I'm not sure any special details, but it's a pretty standard cake with a self-explanatory name. I judged immediately it was excellent. As basic as this cake is, it's not so common, so it's difficult to make comparisons when they are months or years apart. This was was fairly solid, which is common, but it makes it less cake-like. I guess I'm reminded that the simplicity is limiting, so I'm not sure how to distinguish the excellent from the great without a much better appreciation of the differences in chocolate, which I haven't managed to develop yet.

The running, as I mentioned last time, was difficult due to my knee. I want to say I was also increasing the distance daily, working up to two loops around Akasaka Palace, plus the run there and back (though the running part of the latter was probably shortened a little by grocery shopping on certain days). 

Pascal Le Gac, Tarte Chocolat

Was late getting started, but ran down to Pascal Le Gac for a third cake. On the way there and back, I successfully ran three loops of my neighborhood running course, completing the (trivial, in terms of knowledge) Moto-Akazaka west loop (Akasaka Palace running course). I was getting a third cake from this shop and choose the Tarte Chocolat. This is definitely excellent, for a chocolate lover, so this shop stays in the still crowded quite fine shop group. The negative point is this tart is tiny, so a bit pricy for cake, but if you consider what bonbon chocolates cost, not unreasonable. Still two more two-cake quite fine shops to go, so I should finish them off around mid-September.

1 min/1 min intervals to Origines Cacao

Ran doing 1 min/1 min intervals (1 minute of not fast enough strain muscles to 1 minute of as fast as I can maintain safely for a minute). Now that I've gotten used to intervals, this seems better than 30/20/10 intervals, although I don't get the same maximum speed, of course. My legs were almost shaky waiting at the last light before the cake shop.

To Origines Cacao, I managed about 5'34''/km (counting only the running part) doing intervals, but 6'05''/km running back to the 100 yen shop normally, but with cake, which is pretty good for me. Of course, even doing top speed there was a guy in front of me maintaining distance at what looked like an easy run for him, so I'm never going to be really fast. Route currently showing on the map, as well as the cafe Knenet, which Joshi Plus visited so I might get over there some time.

The cake was a new one (not even on the Tabelog rating site yet): Tarte Chocolat for 518 yen. As usual, not many options: other choices were a cake I thought that I've already posted about, but apparently not (I was confused after running, as always); chocolate pudding (under some French name) in a glass bottle; and something pudding enough that it needed a dish with sides but not pudding enough that it needed a bottle. Actually, at this point, I would have tried any of the other three too, since the non-cakes were under 400 yen and probably good.

The chocolate tart was great. It was simple, just chocolate (although maybe ganache) soft enough to easily cut but too firm to call mousse, under a chocolate glaze and on top of a biscuit. Note watery but not so rich or so sweet that I got tired of the taste before I ran out of cake, although I would be happy to share half with someone (if I could get half of something else). The little decoration was quite candy-like and a little crispy rather than truffle-like; maybe caramel, but mostly sweet. It would definitely be worth getting by itself.

Ginza run in light rain to Dalloyau: Tarte Chocolat

Just did a Aoyamadori to Ginza and shortest way back run. Felt awkward and strange, like I hadn't run recently, although I have everyday from Saturday. It was not painful, though and I'm not particularly tired from it, so I could have done more, but with the rain, it was enough, carrying cake. Well, not cake, but a Tarte Chocolat. It was very good, as good as the best from Jean-Paul Hevin (not that they have one these days) or Ryoco, but it's not really great, just nice sometimes. That makes 8 items I've blogged about from there, so I'll turn up empty soon (they had one other item that I've had but not blogged about, plus cream puffs and Mont Blanc, which I've had and don't need to blog about). The tart is 486 yen made of chocolate cream on a short bread base covered in shiny (?) chocolate. Rain is increasing through tomorrow night so I'll probably skip cake and stay in.