Mentaiko pasta was invented by the chef of Kabe-no-ana (Hole in the Wall), a restaurant in my old neighborhood of Shibuya in Tokyo that has been in existence since the 1950s. I used to hang out there with my girlfriend. It’s an affordable, unpretentious spot that serves an amazing range of wafu pasta. I like mentico spaghetti because you only cook the pasta. You simply add the hot pasta to a bowl of roe, butter and olive oil and that’s it.
