It’s Saturday midday in Zürich and it’s snowy, blustery and comfortably cosy. My mother and I just boarded the Swiss LX 160 to Tokyo Narita, mom is across the aisle and I’m looking forward to a few days of work mixed with mama-son time. Mom hasn’t been to Japan for about 10 years so it’s going to be a few action-packed days of good bites, shopping, coffees, sunny days on the terrace at the Palace Hotel and late nights at private restaurants. If you want to do something similar with your mama, here’s my top ten for Tokyo:

1.
Use up all your points and treat mom by flying first class. If you’re not hooked up with a carrier that still has first-class cabins, then the lady deserves business at the very least.

2.    
It’s always good to start with a little surprise on arrival. I have my dear friend Noriko picking us up at Narita.

3.    
We’re doing two nights at the Palace to start. Since the Park Hyatt closed for renovations, this has been my new address. To spread the love, we’ll do two nights there and two nights at the recently reopened Park Hyatt. Stay tuned for the review. 

4.    
Winter is the best time to hit Tokyo. Forget sakura season and autumn leaves as Tokyo is rammed with muppets in polar fleeces and bad trainers. January is good but February is great as spring/summer collections start hitting the rails, so you get big sunny skies, fewer tourists and the best shopping.

5.
Lunch at Shiseido Parlour is a mama pleaser. I grew up going to department stores where an elegant lunch was part of the Saturday programme and Shiseido Parlour still captures this with its calm dining room, perfect dishes, fine wine list and generally Japanese clientele. Most visitors wouldn’t get it but that’s the whole point. It’s from another time, has a menu of classic yoshoku dishes and perhaps the best Caesar salad in the world. 

6.
Who doesn’t like going a bit Wako? In a similar spirit to Shiseido Parlour, Wako has become my favourite department store in the world. An anchor in the heart of Ginza and part of the extended Seiko family, it has shades of old school Henri Bendel and Montreal’s Ogilvy from its golden years. The store has many things that you might need and zero tat. Indeed, it’s like a very good magazine – exquisitely edited, beautifully presented and there’s always something to discover. Sound familiar?

7.
And who doesn’t like a second surprise, all in the same day? Noriko is well sorted with a group of private restaurants and it’s always a treat to visit one of her establishments and be treated to pretty much whatever you fancy. Fancy a tiny filet made with the finest beef from Hokkaido? Tick. A crab croquette with a tangy sauce? Tick. A plump tomato from Kyushu with the skin removed and soaked in a delicate vinaigrette? Double tick.

8.
Mom loves a well-assembled burger and she still remembers our trip to Golden Brown all those years ago. This will be repeated. For sure there are many places with a better burger in Tokyo but the location in Omotesando Hills is hard to improve on, so that’s on the cards for Tuesday or Wednesday. 

9.
After burgers there will most definitely be a little Aoyama tour and this will include a trip through the Nezu Museum, some grocery shopping at Kinokuniya and hitting a few bookshops as well. Dinner at Appia Alta is also in the diary. 

10.
I am looking forward to my return to the Park Hyatt on Tuesday. The withdrawal during the Covid years was bad enough (can we pause for a moment and reflect on how ridiculous that period was?) but the closure for renovation has been agonising. Anyway, I cannot wait to sample room 4701 again and treat mom to a dazzling eve at the New York Grill on Wednesday. Tune in to Monocle on Sunday and I’ll let you know how we’re getting on.

Enjoying life in ‘The Faster Lane’? Click here to browse all of Tyler’s past columns. 

On its face, Trogolo sounds rather rustic (writes Claudia Jacob). The restaurant’s name comes from the Italian for “trough”, evoking the communal water containers traditionally found in Tuscan farmyards – an image that doesn’t seem congruent with polished Westbourne Grove. 

But it all becomes clear once you look at the menu. At the newest opening by the Boglione family – which opened farm-to-fork restaurant Petersham Nurseries near Richmond Park in 2004 – the dishes are decidedly down-to-earth. Choose from crostini with gorgonzola, pear and walnuts, nourishing ribollita soup – which is reduced over two days – a rich pappardelle al cinghiale and an artichoke frittata. Florentine fare like this can be hard to come by in a city guilty of flattening Italian cuisine into clunky clichés.

There is, however, one addition that you might not expect. The signature Trogolo bullshot cocktail is made from a vodka base with lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco. The secret ingredient? A generous glug of leftover Tuscan beef stock. A bit like a beefy bloody mary, it offers an unexpected umami kick for those less keen on the sweeter stuff.
trogolo.uk

Monocle’s London City Guide offers our editors’ picks of the best hotels, restaurants and galleries in the UK capital.

Tuomas Liewendahl has been general manager of Helsinki’s pre-eminent Hotel Kämp since 2016 (writes Petri Burtsoff). Founded in 1887, Kämp is the grande dame of Helsinki – a gathering place for the well-travelled as well as the country’s cultural and political elite. Monocle meets Liewendahl to talk about his favourite Swedish rock band, his go-to French dishes and cross-country skiing.

A Sunday soundtrack?
I’ve recently been listening to the playlists that Alf from the Swedish streaming company Soundtrack has put together for Kämp. They were made to be played in different areas [of the hotel]. It’s a mix of artists such as Paul Desmond, Benny Carter, Aki Rissanen and The Spinners.

Ideal start to a Sunday? Gentle or a jolt?
A jolt, especially now that the cross-country skiing tracks are open. 

What’s for breakfast?
A ginger shot, orange juice, vanilla yoghurt with fresh blueberries and granola topped with honey, along with two slices of bread with eggs, ham and cheese. And no coffee, which is unusual for a Finn.

Sunday culture must?
A spontaneous Sunday-night concert by the iconic Swedish band Roxette is a real treat.
          
News or no news?
I can’t start my day without reading the Helsingin Sanomat, Finland’s main newspaper.

What’s on the menu?
Classic French cuisine with a Nordic twist, like the dishes served at À La Kämp.

And to drink?
A burgundy wine. And I don’t let a day go by without a Coca Cola.

Which brands does your wardrobe currently consist of?
Suits from Ivan and the team at Sartoria Rossi or Oscar Jacobson in Stockholm and also shirts from Stenströms.

To find out more about Hotel Kämp’s latest renovation, click here.

Craving something warming? Monocle’s Japanese chef, Aya Nishimura, offers her take on the spicy Southeast Asian noodle soup with prawns and tofu. Garnish with plenty of lime for a kick of freshness.

Serves 2

Ingredients
For the prawn stock
200g large whole prawns, shells on
2 tsps vegetable oil
700ml water

For the laksa paste
5g chilli flakes
15g dried shrimp
50ml hot water
1 lemongrass stalk, roughly chopped
20g fresh ginger, roughly chopped
1 large banana shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
½ tbsp shrimp paste
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter
1 tsp turmeric powder
½ tbsp coriander seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsps vegetable oil

For the crispy shallots
100ml vegetable oil
1 shallot, very finely sliced

For the laksa soup
1 tbsp vegetable oil
200ml coconut milk
4 deep-fried tofu puffs, halved (optional)
½ lime, juiced

To serve
100g flat rice noodles
10g fresh coriander, roughly chopped
½ small red onion, very thinly sliced
Lime wedges

Method

1.
Peel the prawns, reserving the shells and heads. Devein the prawns and set them aside.

2.
Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a medium pot, add the prawn shells and cook until crispy. Pour in 700ml water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes. Blend the mixture until smooth, then strain through a fine sieve. Discard the solids and set the stock aside.

3.
Soak the chilli flakes and dried shrimp in 50ml of hot water for 30 minutes. Transfer the soaked mixture (including the soaking liquid) to a food processor along with the remaining laksa paste ingredients. Blend until very smooth.

4.
In a small saucepan, heat 100ml of oil. Add the sliced shallot and fry until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Set aside.

5.
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the laksa paste and cook, stirring often, until fragrant and lightly caramelised. Add the coconut milk and prawn stock, then bring to a gentle simmer. Add the peeled prawns and tofu, and poach until the prawns are just cooked through. Stir in the lime juice. If the soup is too thick, you can add some hot water to thin it out. 

6.
Place the rice noodles in a bowl and cover with hot water. Soak for 2 to 3 minutes until softened, then drain well. Divide between two bowls.

7.
Ladle the hot laksa soup over the noodles. Arrange the prawns and tofu on top. Garnish with coriander, red onion and crispy shallots. Serve with extra lime wedges.

Looking for a bit of Alpine whimsy this winter (asks Gregory Scruggs)? The once-dowdy Hôtel Saint-Georges has been transformed by British artist and designer Luke Edward Hall to embrace a flamboyant mountain style – think pink floral armchairs and lush green bedspreads.

For the 29 guest rooms, Hall leans heavily on 18th- and 19th-century influences, including patterns from French fabric purveyor Pierre Frey. The result is interiors with distinctive and eye-catching contrast, such as sunflower-yellow and hunter-green chequerboard bathroom floors set against an eccentric wallpaper in vivid hues. “I draw on antique French and English textiles, and botanical motifs, such as edelweiss and pastoral literature, to create a fairytale-like atmosphere,” says Hall.

The first Alpine foray for hotelier Chapitre Six, whose other properties span Paris to the Mediterranean, the Saint-Georges also serves up hearty fare at bistro Le Trappeur, offers a spa for hot-cold cycles to relax after a day on the pistes and features a piano bar that promises to become Megève’s newest nightlife option.