It's been more than a year since Wolfgang Puck closed the doors at Spago, his iconic Sunset Strip bistro, and a few months since the chefs at the Tokyo branch revamped their menu to the point where all that remains of Puck is his name on the door. It would seem the shine is off the quintessential celebrity chef. But after a couple visits to the new Wolfgang Puck Café in Akasaka and word that he plans to open dozens more around the country, we realized this Austrian's star is burning as bright as ever. 

Puck's passion for mixing it up was evident the minute we picked up the menu—the mile-long drinks list named every cocktail known to man and even a few nods to Japan, including the tempting Ume Cosmopolitan (vodka, cranberry, ¥900). Opting to save our taste buds for the food, we settled on a light Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc (¥5,000/bottle) and turned our attention to the rest of the menu. 

Having tucked into Puck's gourmet pizza (¥2,000) on the previous visit, we took a chance on the spicy salmon and shrimp dumplings (¥1,000). The generous serving of six steamed dumplings, sitting in a yuzu and butter broth, was light yet flavorful with meaty fillings and thin rice-paper casings. It was also a perfect warm-up to the pepper-crusted ahi tuna (¥2,500), which came artfully arranged around a mound of horseradish-flavored mashed potatoes and steamed baby vegetables, with a tangy mustard sauce drizzled along the rim of the plate.

Our Japan-sized stomachs were put to the test with the arrival of our wiener schnitzel (¥2,400). Stretching over both sides of a large dinner plate, the lightly breaded veal cutlet barely left room for the accompanying potato salad and spinach. It was so hearty and tasty, however, that the plate was wiped clean in a matter of minutes. 
Feeling flush with accomplishment, we soldiered on with a creme brulee (¥700), another American-sized serving that went down surprisingly well thanks to the crispy caramelized coating and warm, creamy center.