Opened last November, Alea is a casual fine dining restaurant led by Western culinary technique and peppered with Chinese influences. It’s helmed by Ningbo-native chef Zee Zheng, a former sous chef of Taian Table who also cooks at the upstairs fine dining restaurant, Fabula.
The space is intimate, with just six tables and a maximum capacity of 20 people. It’s rather spartan, but comfortable enough for a meal where the focus remains on the food.
The Food
The menu here is a convergence of personal heritage, Zee’s Ningbo roots, and fine dining technique. Think fine dining precision, but scaled for family-style sharing.
This vision is best conveyed through the signature Sea Anemone Risotto (¥168), which swaps Italian rice for diced Ningbo rice cake, bound in a savory sauce made with briny sea anemone. The chewy rice cake is paired with bits of lardon, water chestnut for crunch, and finished with cheese.
The meal begins with a welcome bite that’s on a seasonal rotation. When I visited this winter, it was a crunchy tart of king salmon, salmon roe, cucumber foam, and seaweed dust.
A favorite of the meal was the Hiramasa (¥168), thick-cut yellowtail amberjack sashimi, served with persimmon and flavored with 三合油, a classic Chinese dipping sauce that combines soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil. It’s clean-tasting, yet the combination gives it an unexpected depth and complexity.
Another cold starter, the Amaebi (¥138), layers sweet shrimp with diced celery, crème fraîche, caviar, and lemon zest. It’s topped with a toasted brioche slice blanketed in salted egg yolk, adding an extra dose of umami.
A close second favorite was the Lumina Lamb Loin (¥358). The lamb was perfectly cooked, pink in the center, and not gamey at all. It’s paired with very few elements, just black garlic and an excellent jus, allowing the quality of the lamb to speak for itself. Minimalism at its best.
The Iberico Pluma (¥358) follows a similar philosophy: minimal intervention, cooked well, and paired with flavors that complement rather than overpower. Sharply pickled pear slices and a mustard sauce cut through the richness, while on the side, grilled cabbage hides tiny cubes of richly flavored pork tongue.
Other dishes, like the Chicken & Duck (¥258), showcase the kitchen’s technical confidence. The two birds are fused to create a single “steak,” capped with crisp duck skin. It’s served with a deeply flavorful jus and garlic-sautéed seasonal vegetables.
A Bread Plate (¥88) is also available, should you crave some carbs in between plates. It’s house-made brioche and ciabatta, served with a choice of two pairings, either foie gras and fig, seaweed ricotta, or brown butter.
Nothing here feels forced or superfluous, just carefully considered. They pull it off, which, in this case, deserves praise. Alea feels assured rather than ambitious, a calm confidence that carries through the meal.
