The name is a portmanteau of Kurume, Chef Kotaro Nakashima’s hometown, and tanchozuru, ‘red-crowned crane’. The restaurant’s emblem, the head of a crane in profile against a bright sun, throws down the gauntlet on behalf of the Japanese culinary world. Care is taken in the aromas and temperatures here. Baked sesame tofu and pea soup are accented with the umami of Orient clam. Kutan’s burning aspiration and creativity shine in every dish.