(5 Piglets)
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| The interior |
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| The bar area |
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| A glass of bubbly to welcome you! |
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| COURSE 1: SAKI ZUKE (A PAIRING OF SOMETHING COMMON AND SOMETHING UNIQUE): Kabocha and Shrimp Cake, Caviar, Chilled Kabocha Soup. If each course tasted this good, I'm in for a real treat. The soup was absolutely and utterly divine. I literally would drink this soup everyday if I could. The Kabocha and Shrimp cake was light, smokey, and soaked up the delicious soup. The broth was slightly sweet and paired perfectly with the shrimp cake. It was a perfect way to start the meal to anticipate the goodness that would come next. |
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| A CLOSER LOOK AT COURSE 1 WITHOUT THE SOUP |
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| COURSE 2: ZENSAI (SEASONAL INGREDIENTS PRESENTED AS AN APPETIZER): Deep fried panko crusted tuna with yuzu aioli, Squid ink sauce, Lobster spring roll, Duck, Jellyfish sashimi with ginger. The lobster was my favorite out of the four. It was extremely fresh and partially cooked with all the textures. It was slightly sweet and I appreciated the lightness of the roll as it was wrapped in rice paper. The tuna was super crispy just the way I liked it and the aioli complemented the tuna. The duck was a little dry for my liking but the jellyfish was light and delicious. |
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| A closer look at the duck and the jellyfish |
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| A closer look at the tuna and the lobster |
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| COURSE 3: MODERN ZUKURI (MODERN INTERPRETATION OF SASHIMI): Uni wrapped with scallop, Nori seaweed, Strawberry, Yuzu. Man, am I picky when it comes to uni. I don't particularly love it because I feel really good, fresh uni is hard to find, but when you do...its game over! This uni presented before us was probably the best uni I've ever had. I don't know why...maybe its because the sweetness was complemented by the sweetness of the raw scallops. To be honest, this dish was mighty tasty and the strawberries were picked straight from the chef's garden. The yuzu was just icing on the scallops! |
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| A closer look at this dish |
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| COURSE 4: OWAN "STILL WATER": Baby corn, snow crab in dobin mushi. This was probably the dish I was least amazed about. I'm not saying that it was bad by any means, cause it was delicious, but it just reminded me of Chinese corn soup (which is my favorite soup). The crab was tender and I appreciated that I had multiple sippings of my soup |
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| Look at all this soup! |
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| And my crab got stuck in the spout :( |
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| COURSE 5: OTSUKURI (TRADITIONAL SASHIMI): Oh Toro, Kurodai, Amaebi, Kuamoto Oyster, Hamachi. OMG. I think I literally died. The sashimi was melt in your mouth, sweet, and bursting with flavor. It was so fresh and I could have eaten this all day. One of the best sashimis I've ever had. |
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| THE COOKED STUFF CHEF MADE ON THE FLY FOR OUR FRIEND. THAT SHRIMP WAS SOOO GOOD...SMOKEY WITH A NICE CHAR ON IT! |
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| COURSE 6: YAKIMONO (GRILLED): Conch with quail egg and broth. I believe this was my first time having conch and it was quite interesting. It was a bit rubbery and had a strong, pungent smell. The broth was good, but unfortunately I barely had any and had to borrow some from my friends to taste it. The quail egg was a nice touch. This was probably my least favorite dish but I was definitely wow'd by the presentation. |
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| And it was all gone.... |
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| COURSE 7: MUSHIMONO (STEAMED/FRIED): Fried sea bass. This was delicious. It had a sweet and sour flavor and the eggplant that came with the dish was nicely cooked. It was a good dish overall. |
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| MY FAVORITE DISH. COURSE 8: SHIIZAKANA (NOT BOUND BY TRADITION, THE CHEF'S CHOICE DISH): Spaghettini with abalone, Pickled cod roe, Burgundy truffles. This dish was absolutely amazing. I mean...its just spaghetti right? But its some revamped spaghetti with some bold flavors. The truffles added a bit of earthiness to the dish. The roe gave a bit of saltiness and the abalone a bit of texture. Comprehensively, it was heaven in your mouth and I wanted a big bowl of it! |
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| A closer look at the pasta |
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| COURSE 9: NIKU (MEAT COURSE): Japan Matsuzaka Wagyu Beef A5. Seriously, this was the best beef I've tasted in a really, really, really long time. It came on a sizzling plate to cook to your liking. The beef was perfectly marbleized that melted in your mouth. |
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| COURSE 10: SUNOMONO: Maguro, Japanese cucumber, Wakame, Yuzu Sake. This is a dish to cleanse the palate. It was fresh and light and the yuzu sake...oh man! Don't get me started on that. I could drink that forever.... |
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| COURSE 11: SHOKUJI (RICE DISH-SUSHI): Kinmedai, Toro, Hotate, Aji, Miso Soup. The sushi was utterly delicious. Each fish was melt-in-your-mouth perfection. The fish was sweet and fresh and she coated it with a little soy. The miso soup was bold and the way a miso soup should taste. A successful course. |
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| Ever seen tempura fried uni? Now you have! Although our friend was disappointed that she couldn't eat anymore raw foods, she said this stayed creamy and fresh. |
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| COURSE 12: DESSERT: Ume Shiso Granita. The granita was made out of plum and came with a matcha green tea. Together, it was delicious. The plum granita wasn't overly sweet , refreshing, and was a perfect way to end the meal and start a creamier dessert. |
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| A closer look at the granita |
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| COURSE 13: DESSERT: Toasted Coconut Ice Cream, Stewed Lychee, Papaya, Pineapple, Macademia Nut, Meringue, Madeline. This was my kind of dessert. I'm very particular when it comes to coconut and I actually enjoyed this dessert. All the textures and flavors were spot on. It wasn't overly heavy and I thoroughly enjoyed this dish. |
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| I wanted some chocolate and voila! It was in front of me! |
(2.5 Piglets)
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| Part of the interior |
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| The other half of the interior |
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| JALE BERRY ($11.00): Strawberry jalapeno, infused tequila, lime agave. This was a refreshing drink with a slight kick to it with the jalapeno. It's perfect for summer but I wouldn't say I loved it. |
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| THE PETER RABBIT ($12.00): Pimm's #1, bruised basil, pressed lemon, pickled carrot. This was probably my favorite drink out of the two. It was different and the basil flavor really comes out through the drink. It gave a smooth finish and wasn't too sweet nor too strong for my liking. A good drink overall. |
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| OYSTERS: FANNY BAY/BC ($3/EACH), COROMANDEL/NZ ($3/EACH), KUSSHI/BC ($3/EACH): The oysters were medium bodied and more on the medium-small size. They had a cucumber base with a nice fresh finish to them. These oysters were delicious. My favorite would have to be the Kusshi oysters. |
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| ALBACORE POKE ($14.00): Ginger, soy , spicy mayo, nori, avocado. This was probably my least favorite dish of the night. Although the fish tasted fresh, the poke had no flavor and lacked seasoning. I felt there should have been a little acidity added to the dish to brighten it up a little more. The fried nori was good and it went well with the poke, but it wasn't amazing. I actually only ate a few bites and couldn't eat it anymore (and I never pass on the opportunity to eat food so this was a sad moment). |
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| ARANCINI ($9.00): Herb aioli, tomato, mozzarella. The aranicini were fried crisp just the way I like them, but I couldn't taste the tomato. The herb aioli just felt as though it shouldn't have been there. I appreciate the chef trying to do something different but the aioli lacked flavor in all aspects. I ate these bad boys cause I love fried food, but I probably wouldn't order these again. |
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| SLOW COOKED ANGUS SHORT RIB ($31.00): Creamed kale, fingerlings, parmesan pine nut relish, jus. Ok, ok, I always love me a short rib but quite honestly, not these. The short ribs were extremely fatty, which I normally wouldn't mind, but it was almost all fat. The potatoes were ok and cooked well and the creamed kale was good, but nothing at all superb. |
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| HERB FRIES ($7.00): The fries were ok. They weren't as crispy as I would have liked, but still good nonetheless. |
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| MY FAVORITE DISH. MINT CHIP PUCK ($11.00): Housemade mint chip ice cream, almond "magic shell", chocolate crumble, chocolate sauce, candied smoked almonds. Thank goodness for this dessert because it basically salvaged the whole meal. Up until this, I was completely disappointed, but this was a good dessert. I appreciated the mint chip ice cream using real mint herbs to create the creamy specialty. The shell was delicious and the condiments to go along with the dessert were chocolate-y, crunchy, and had overall good flavors. |
