I ended up at the Shisho Tree Cafe with a group of girlfriends for a quick dinner on a Sunday night. I've never been here before (or even in j-town, for that matter) and am generally still quite ignorant when it comes to Japanese-Italian fusion.
I am, however, totally excited about this place!
The restaurant itself is tucked away, but the inside is welcoming, with a warm furniture set-up and intimate feel.
Our server was polite and attentive, although I think we had a little bit of trouble communicating at first (she seemed unsure about what I meant when I asked if a meal could be prepared without bacon -- this in turn made ME a little nervous!)
We ended up getting two orders of fries (definitely a sharable portion!): the nori and the ogonomiyaki. Both were tasty, although I preferred the Japanese mayo slightly more. What can I say...I'm a sucker for fries slathered in creamy goodness.
I got the ogonomiyaki spaghetti (witout bacon) and it was delicious - perfectly cooked pasta and just the right amount of sauce.
The menu is not huge, but there are some good options on there. I'm looking forward to coming back and trying out some of the other dishes. A few people around us had some tasty looking shrimp plates so that's definitely next for me.