Muji eatery tweaks food offerings

However, fewer cooking processes and condiments is by no means blandness. The prowess in minimalist can be reflected, for an example, in a simple dish of pumpkin soup (15 yuan). With no sugar added, no spices, no salt, no milk, but just a delicate topping of shredded morsel of parsley and an arch coconut cream line for garnish, the soup is so tasty on its own.

The restaurant works with farms on the outskirts of Beijing that cultivate produce with traditional farm manure and with no chemical pesticides or fertilizers, Han says.

Putting health at the top of the agenda in crafting the new menu, Han also uses healthier ingredients such as quinoa and chickpea.

The appetizer is an assorted deli (68 yuan) made up of three dishes-chicken and konjak salad, mixed nut spinach salad and avocado salad-that does well to whet the appetite. And it is served in generous portions, enough for sharing with two or three.

What a surprise, then, when the Ise udon is served. The gourmet noodle dish has been exquisitely prepared and costs just 38 yuan, hard to beat anywhere else. These noodles are extremely soft with a chewy texture, and they are topped with tender sliced beef, safe-to-eat Japanese runny egg, and crumbs of crispy tempura batter.