Dinner here was a visual as well as culinary experience. My table faced a huge picture window looking into and through a lighted Japanese garden. A pair of ducks lounged on a pond just outside. Management wisely kept the interior lighting low, letting much of the illumination come from the garden outside. The restaurant was ‘L’-shaped, making it easier to separate larger parties from single diners and couples.

As you’d guess from the name, the menu at Cle d’Or is Continental, not Asian. Most memorable for this writer was Turbot with Crusted Chestnuts --- a filet mignon-sized cut of perfectly-cooked fish ‘breaded’ with a crisp, light coating of what appeared to have been finely ground water-chestnuts. Two intensely flavorful sprigs of Japanese greens crisped in olive oil were the only garnish. The waiter gladly brought me several more, but they were hardly enough to compensate for my failing to order one of the a la carte salads before the main course. Like a lover of big steaks confronting a filet mignon for the first time, I was blown away by the flavor and texture of the meat but went away still feeling a bit hungry.

That said, I ordered the turbot again two nights later. But this time I had a salad first.

On a few occasions, my waiter had to consult with someone more experienced with English, but that didn’t keep the service from being near-perfect on all three nights I dined here. My first night’s tab, including two pre-dinner cocktails (with a premium American whiskey) and three glasses of Glass Mountain California Chardonnay was approximately U.S. $68 including the mandatory 10% service charge. Considering that the tip would have been 15-20% at a U.S. restaurant, and given Asia’s typically sky-high liquor and wine prices, I’d consider this good value for a dinner of this quality.

Cle d’Or, in the lower level of the Hotel Miyako Tokyo, is a restaurant I’d return to.