RyuGin, Hong Kong (2 Michelin star, 2016)

Tags

Hong kong, hong kong restaurant review, japanese, japanese restaurant review, Michelin, Michelin star, restaurant review, ryugin, two michelin star

This was my surprise birthday dinner! Since I had completely ruled out Japanese restaurants while researching for restaurants to try in Hong Kong (good Japanese food does not come cheap in Hong Kong), I was completely unprepared but pleasantly surprised when I was shown in to this restaurant. Despite the glamour of its two Michelin star status, the setting was simple, save for a great view, it being situated 101 floors up. It claims to offer traditional but unique kaiseki cuisine. Unique it was indeed! And yet it retained all the clean, seasonal and delicate aspects of traditional kaiseki that the Japanese pull off so well.

This is the first overseas branch of the Tokyo restaurant, which boasts a full spectrum of Michelin stars.

http://www.ryugin.com.hk/about_e.php

We weren’t given a choice on the food. Everyone had the tasting menu.

The tasting menu consisted of 10 dishes, which change according to season:-

1. Cold noodles topped with white shrimp, caviar, abalone and abalone liver sauce
2. Foie Gras flavoured with porto and wasanbon sugar served with fresh figs and sesame cream sauce
3. Charcoal grilled Alfonsino with matsutake mushroom in ichibandashi soup
4. Assortment of sashimi
5. Charcoal grilled Amadai brushed with Miso-yuan sauce
6. Cold Kegani crab egg custard with grated fresh apple vinegar
7. Wagyu beef shabu shabu, lotus root cake and onion ponzu sauce
8. Steamed rice topped with Ikura salmon roe
9. RyuGin Specialty -196 °C pear candy and 99 °C pear jam
10. Chestnut ice cream with roasted chestnut biscuits

We chose to have sake to go with our dinner and they presented us with a choice of sake cups which I thought rather lovely. Weakness for tableware.

Chilled sake this time.

First course: Cold noodles topped with white shrimp, caviar, abalone and abalone liver sauce

This to me was the star of the night! I’m not usually a fan of cold noodles but this blew me away. Something about the delicious salt brine of the caviar mixed with the sweet creaminess of the shrimp and dashi scented savouriness of the liver sauce coating those perfect cold noodles. The herbs, which I’m guessing is mitsuba, adds a heightened flavour to the dish and the abalone is cooked to a tender perfection. Now that I’ve tasted it, I’m wondering if I’ll ever be able to satisfy my newfound craving for it 😦

Mmmmm….Second course: Foie Gras flavoured with porto and wasanbon sugar served with fresh figs and sesame cream sauce.

I loved this as well, but it could be because I’m partial to foie gras. Popped the entire thing in my mouth. It tasted like peanut butter. Delicious but the foie gras to fig ratio could be better. The fig came dangerously close to overpowering the foie gras. Overall a nice mouthful (or two, the second is not pictured here).

Third Course: Charcoal grilled Alfonsino with matsutake mushroom in ichibandashi soup

Now this is what I’d expect from a top notch kaiseki restaurant. This is quintessentially kaiseki to me. The soup is clear, clean and yet flavourful. Ichiban dashi just refers to the basic stock that is used in most Japanese cuisine, made from katsuobashi (dried bonito flakes) and kombu (kelp). I had to look up the Alfonsino’s more familiar Japanese name, Kinme. It’s a type of sea bream, thus its taste is of a white-fleshed fish with enough fat to keep it tender but not as fatty as the cod. Well balanced fish cooked just right with a lovely charcoal aroma from the very slightly charred skin.

Fourth Course: Sashimi, standard offerings of hirame (I’m guessing here), akagai, hotate, ebi and saba sushi.

They’re all good and fresh, although special mention has to be made for the akagai and the saba sushi. I’ve not had the akagai cooked lightly like this before and I think it vastly improves its flavour and texture, making it easier to eat. The saba sushi is also done well, meticulously balancing the vinegar seasoning with the usually strong tasting fish. Absolutely nothing fishy about it, perfectly fatty and good use of seasoning.

Fifth Course: Charcoal grilled Amadai brushed with Miso-yuan sauce

All I can say is that the chef knows how to cook his fish well. Juicy and thinly glazed, it has none of the cloyingly sweet miso glaze I was dreading when I first saw the menu. I also liked that crisp that came along with it, it’s like a healthy ikan bilis cracker.

Sixth Course: Cold Kegani crab egg custard with grated fresh apple vinegar

This dish is your usual chawanmushi, except that its cold. The crab meat didn’t do much for me, and the orange stuff on top of the egg custard could be smoother. However I did like how it tasted of kaffir lime zest and juice, although it could have just been from the grated fresh apple vinegar. Interesting combination.

Seventh Course: Wagyu beef shabu shabu, lotus root cake and onion ponzu sauce.

I thought this was good! My dining partner said it could be more tender. If it were done yakiniku style, with the same sauce and garnish, I think it would be perfect. Needed a little boost to further melt the fat, but delicious otherwise. By this time I was too full to do justice to the lotus root cake, but I didn’t really fancy it much anyway after taking a small taste of it.

Eighth Course: Steamed rice topped with Ikura salmon roe

This is standard fare in kaiseki. The rice course comes out right at the end before dessert. While I’m not wowed by this course, I do love my ikura on warm fluffy rice rather than on cold, vinegared rice. Very satisfying and comforting along with the most delicious soup! The depth of flavour in this unassuming soup is unrivalled so far!

Ninth Course: the RyuGin Specialty -196 °C pear candy and 99 °C pear jam

It comes shaped as a beautiful, frozen pear which you tap and break into the insides before the waitress ladles the warm pear jam (which is more like poached pears) on top.

I love pear and I loved how the differing temperatures of the two components came together in a pleasing mixture to show off the pear ingredient. Very clever. My dining partner is harder to please though.

Tenth Course: Chestnut ice cream with roasted chestnut biscuits.

This tasted like chestnut ice cream, with chestnut shavings and roasted chestnuts cooked in some kind of alcohol. I loved this and would have finished the lot had I not been bursting at the seams. Dining partner didn’t seem to like it however. Not a fan of chestnut it seems (or the bill, since I didn’t pay for dinner hahahaha!!)

Conclusion, I really liked it! Fresh ingredients cooked well and on the mark, sometimes with a twist. The chef skirted with his cooking techniques, pushed boundaries and yet managed to execute the dishes with such finesse. The sake helped it all to come together I must say. And there’s nothing like an authentic Japanese meal to end a wonderful day.

I can’t speak for the value for money aspect of the dinner as I still do not know how much it cost. Ignorance is bliss.

Opening Hours / 12nn-3pm (Private Lunch Only) 6pm-9:30pm (Dinner Last Order)
Address / 101/F, ICC, 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon
Reservation Telephone no. / 2302 0222
Number of seats / 48 ( including 2 private rooms, 1 for 4 guests and 1 for 12 guests)
Parking / 4 hours Free Parking

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Peking Garden Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star, 2016)

Tags

1 star, Chinese restaurant, Hong kong, hong kong restaurant review, Michelin, Michelin star, Peking Garden, restaurant review

The Michelin Guide baffles me sometimes. I’ve eaten at Peking Garden before, and while I think it’s good, I’m not sure it warrants a Michelin star.

On my previous visit to Peking Garden earlier in the year, I tried some of the other dishes which I deemed to be pretty good. This time I came back to try their Peking duck dish, since I had a (rather expensive) hankering for it.

I managed to satisfy my craving, but I thought the duck tasted a little gamey. I’m usually not squeamish about meat having a bit of that taste of the wild but this was a tad over. Plus, I prefer my Peking duck skin crispy and devoid of the heavy extra fat that this one had.

Perhaps the meat could be more juicy and tender as well.

This crab roe noodle was excellent though! I loved the chewy springy of the noodles coated in crab roe with a dash of black vinegar. Its a novelty, and absolutely my kind of dish!

Total damage for the two dishes:- HKD 816.2

 

Located in: Alexandra Shopping Arcade

Address: Alexandra Shopping Arcade, 5-17 Ice House St, Central, Hong Kong

Phone:+852 2526 6456

Oribe Sushi, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tags

abalone, aburi, aji, anago, authentic japanese cuisine, authentic japanese cuisine in kuala lumpur, barracuda, blow-torched, botan ebi, cod sperm, engawa, flounder, flounder's fin, hinata, hirame, horse mackerel, hotate, ikura, japanese restaurant kuala lumpur, japanese restaurant malaysia, japanese restaurant review, kamazu, mackerel, nodoguro, omakase, oribe, otoro, prawn, restaurant review, rockfish, scallop, sea urchin, seiki aji, shirako, sushi, sushi oribe, top japanese restaurants in kuala lumpur, tuna belly, uni

I was treated to Oribe Sushi about a week ago, and a treat it was! Chef Hideaki Oritsuki was previously head chef at Sushi Hinata. I gave Sushi Hinata a 6.5 back then… while they do have fresh raw ingredients, the quality of the rice as well as a couple of other factors dragged the score down. I was slightly perturbed that the fish was pre-sliced and placed in a box for convenience and quick service. That’s not how it’s done in Japan!

I digress, so I gave Sushi Hinata a 6.5 then. Oribe Sushi would be a 7.5. Chef Ori has addressed the rice issue and uses Japanese rice in his sushi. It makes a world of difference! His ingredients are fresh and flown in from Japan as well and it helps that he was more than happy to talk about Japan and where he sources his ingredients from. Very friendly chap he is! Ambience I excluded from the score, so I must add that while the sushi counter is sufficiently pleasing, the rest of the restaurant didn’t look like that of a high end restaurant.

We both had the omakase, which is priced at RM450 for dinner. So here goes!Sashimi platter as a first course; Otoro (Fatty tuna belly), Clams (Tsubugai), Flounder (Hirame), Botan ebi (Prawns) and Bafun Uni (Sea Urchin).It was delicious, and as fresh as you’d expect sashimi to be. We ended up sucking at the prawn head to get all the lovely,cholesterol-rich prawn brains out! Not a look you’d want to go for on a date but it’s worth it I think! The only thing that was slightly disappointing on this plate is the Hirame, which could have been better and “livelier” so to speak.Shirako (Cod Sperm) served with ponzu and ginger. My first encounter with the infamous Shirako wasn’t very pleasant so I half dreaded this dish when it came. I’m quite happy to say that it was absolutely delicious! Creamy in texture and fresh, well complemented by the tang of the ponzu sauce, it made for a perfectly well balanced palate and leaves no lingering unpleasant aftertaste. Lovely!Herring roe marinated with dashi, pressed and then topped with bonito flakes. It’s a fun dish, I could very clearly hear whenever my partner bit into it! Let’s just say it’s pretty crunchy 😉

Abalone that has been steamed for 7-8 hours. Tender to the bite and loses none of its natural flavour. A dish well done.Cawanmushi – standard as far as steamed egg custards go unfortunately. Nothing special here.Grilled Nodoguro (rockfish) was well cooked, had the perfect amount of sear to it and meltingly soft flesh. Would have been stellar if the skin had been a little more crisp!Seiki Aji (Horse Mackerel). The chef emphasized that this is one of the best kinds of horse mackerel in Japan as it was caught in Kyushu where the currents are strong. It is always served with ginger and spring onion. Now this was outstanding! I usually don’t pay the horse mackerel much attention but this had beautifully fatty and rounded flavours. Usually this fish tends to taste and smell a little strong but there was none of that here and I think this would be a prime example of how it should taste like! Full marks here.Engawa (Flounder’s Fin) – I always give brownie points whenever I get Engawa in any respectable sushi joint. It’s uncommon, or at least in Malaysia and Singapore it is. It’s got a chewy texture and is mild and sweet in taste. I wish I could have had more! There’s a “BUT” in here though… it was better in Japan ;(This I very blithely requested XD. Aburi Otoro! (Blow-torched tuna belly). OH SO GOOD!!!! With a couple of drops of sudachi juice and salt. Melts in the mouth with the fatty bits all softened to gorgeous tenderness and fabulous with that slight char. Wish it were a thicker slice though >.< Aburi Hotate (Blow-torched scallop) with yuzu zest. I asked very nicely for it to be topped with uni 😀 After all, that’s what all the food blogs out there are for right? To advise you to exercise some control over the chef’s discretion. He was really sweet and acquiesced to the request though. Another delicious morsel is thus born! Hotate is creamy by itself already, so topped with the uni it makes for gold!Kamazu (Baby baraccuda); some fish requires a little charring to break down the fat and toughness before its full potential comes out. This one had its skin on. Raw skin never tastes good, so blow-torching it is a nice way to render the skin delicious and yet be able to enjoy the flesh without it being cooked to death. Oh this… stuff that dreams are made of! It’s a little different in that he added some shiro ebi (white prawns) into the mix. Usually it’s just Uni, Ikura and Negitoro (Tuna belly and scallions). Nevertheless! Always a perfect combination. Can never go wrong with this if you’ve got the fresh ingredients!

I forgot to take pictures of two of the sushi that we had… the Saba (Mackerel) with seaweed and the Anago (Eel) that was had yuzu zest and half of it basted in a sweet sauce and the other half served with a touch of salt. Satisfying end to the meal. Green tea ice cream 🙂Couldn’t resist another picture of the cholesterol bomb!

So overall, a 7.5 out of 10. Fresh ingredients and affable chef were plus points, as well as the availability of Engawa and Shirako. Minus points would be that it’s always better in Japan, and they would be more generous with the portions and number of servings in Japan. Also, no surprises with the menu, perhaps there could have been a little more in that area. Ambience would have been a real killer if we weren’t seated at the counter!

Sushi Oribe

Ground Floor. Block C-1, Vipod Residences, No6, Jalan Kia Peng, 50450 Kuala Lumpur., 43000

+60-3-2181-4099

Lunch 12:00-15:00(Last Order: 14:30)    Dinner 18:00-23:00(Last Order: 22:00)

Sage Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tags

fine dining, Kuala Lumpur, kuala lumpur fine dining, malaysia fine dining, mid valley city, restaurant review, sage, the gardens

There aren’t very many good fine dining restaurants in Kuala Lumpur. Way more over in Singapore. Sage which is located at The Gardens, Mid Valley City, happens to be one of the few fine dining experiences that have been consistently good over the years. I like it because its in such a convenient location! Not a fan of driving far out into town for food.

The gripe I have is that I prefer the menu for the appetizers to the menu for the main courses. That said I usually order the appetizers and have it converted to a main course size. It could be because the decent sounding mains are usually beef, however some of of my friends have also preferred the list of appetizers in comparison to the mains.

The menu is up on their website as such:

http://www.sagekl.com/alacarte.php

I always get the Sage Set…it comes with the Chef’s Special Appetizer, Appetizer, Main Course and a dessert.

Chef’s special appetizer that night was a slice of lean tuna akami topped with some  scallop and microgreens. Pretty standard in terms of taste, clean and palatable. Not too sure about the dubious red liquid that oozed onto the plate though. 

Foie gras is always a nice choice here. A nice fat hunk of perfectly seared foie gras paired together with some dark grapes in a very delicious tangy red wine reduction. Hits the spot every time. And believe me when I say those grapes are amazing.

This was my main, a carpaccio of Hamachi with Caviar and Truffle Soy. I do love my raw fish, so yes my main course is comprised entirely of sashimi. They’re fresh, thick cuts with several dollops of briny caviar over the top. The dish was simple, bright and refreshing with a tinge of truffle lingering in the aftertaste.  

Souffle of the day was good as well. Airy, light and fluffy with just the right amount of sweetness.A friend ordered the Cold Somen Noodles with Abalone and Avruga Caviar but she had them replace the abalone with seared scallops. I think the noodles came in a dashi sauce. Noodles were perfectly cooked, scallops also done well but I think I’d still prefer my caviar with nothing more than a water biscuit and some creme fraiche. That’s the best way to enjoy it!

Chef’s special appetizer on a separate occasion, a lightly blowtorched-seared slice of salmon with some frisee and tomatoes. 

Again I ordered from the appetizer list and had them change it to a mains size. This is a Capellini Pasta with Trio of Seafood and Togarashi Spice. They were really generous with the scallops and prawns! I was full from eating just those! The capellini pasta, being thinner, was a good choice for the togarashi spice. Any thicker and the flavour would be lost! The Japanese chilli pepper flavour is mildly spicy and has a very subtle smoky flavour to it, which I think made this dish quite interesting and different from the usual aglio olios, cream and tomato based pastas.

Crepe Suzette which I didn’t order so I don’t know how it tastes like. Haha =p

All in all one of my favourite go-to places on special occasions or when I feel like treating myself. Very good and romantic ambience as well, though there isn’t much of a view. Despite the good standards in quality, I feel that it could do with a bit more creativity. I hardly feel inspired by the menu unfortunately.

http://www.sagekl.com/

Lunch (Mon-Fri): 12pm-2pm
Dinner (Mon-Sat): 6pm-10.30pm
Closed on Sunday

The Gardens Residences Level 6,
The Gardens, Mid Valley City,
Lingkaran Syed Putra,
59200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tel: 603 2268 1328

Magosaburou, ION Orchard, Singapore

Tags

beef, best beef in Singapore, bibimbap, japanese beef, japanese restaurant review, kobe, magosaburou, marbling, restaurant review, rib eye, rib eye core, sashimi, sashimi salad, shin shin, singapore, singapore beef restaurants, singapore japanese beef, singapore restaurant review, sirloin, steak, sushi, tenderloin, tongue, wagyu

I never eat beef. It’s pretty obvious as my blog has never featured beef. However, I couldn’t resist the temptation anymore as I’ve seen (and smelt!) many a succulent beef dish! So I thought, if I were to try beef anyway, why not go for one of the better beef places in Singapore? Which led me to Magosaburou, I’ve seen pictures of it online and it planted the seed of temptation into my head T___T. I’ve gone back a couple of times since, so this post would include pictures from 2 or 3 visits. I must say though I loved it at the start…but it got a little disappointing in my last visit. In any case, I shall lay off beef for a while… since I don’t usually eat it, my body just isn’t used to it!

So here goes… the first visit:-Sashimi salad. The best sashimi salad I’ve ever had! The sashimi slices were generous and in thick slabs, it had tuna, salmon, scallop and ikura in it. The sauce seemed like a sort of ponzu/goma sauce but it was divine with the salad! I always order this when I go. The last visit though, the slices seemed smaller and thinner. I’m not sure if it’s my imagination but I hope they don’t skimp on the sashimi the next time!Beautiful, healthy and tastyBotan Ebi and Uni sashimi. The sashimi is fresh, the prawn still retained a little crunch before your teeth sinks into the creamy centre. And I should add that the botan ebi is of a good size and plump to boot, not some prawn wannabe melting into obscurity with its head half hanging/wilting off its body. So two thumbs up for this. The uni was delicious too, fresh and creamy. No complaints on the sashimi end for this post  We ordered a la carte beef from the menu. Kobe Wagyu, Kurimi and some thinly sliced tongue. I don’t know my beef cuts well so I don’t know what Kurimi is!  We also ordered some samgyeopsal (marinated pork belly). Needless to say, the beef was still the main star of the show.The beef is presented nicely on a platter, this is where you decide whether you want to cook it yourself or have the restaurant cook it for you. We chose to leave it to the pros. The cooking makes or breaks the beef, so since this was going to be an expensive meal, we’d rather not risk it!Foie Gras Cawanmushi… apparently the foie gras was in a more solid form than this but I didn’t notice as I was busy taking photos of the beef.So this is what tongue tastes like… its delicious! Slightly chewy with some resistance, but with lots of flavour in it.Then the kurimi. Its delicious as well, but there is very little fat or marbling in it so its a little tough. But hey, what would I know right? I have no benchmark to compare it to!Then this came along. There was just no competition, this was hands down the best cut of the night. Its the Kobe-Wagyu and it was the most tender, full-bodied, amazing depth and round flavoured meat I’ve ever tasted. Now I know why people scoff at me when I say I eat lamb instead of beef. I really didn’t know what I was missing. My two dining companions were in raptures as well, though one of them did say that I should try the beef in Japan as its even better than this! Certainly this is the best he has tried in Singapore though.We ordered a bibimbap as well. It came in a stone pot so it would be of the dolseot bibimbap variety. Again this was a first for me. I never order bibimbap when I’m at a Korean restaurant, I usually opt for Kimchi Jiggae instead. I think I became a bibimbap fan after having this! It had the perfect ratio of vegetables and meat to rice, and that crispy rice which came from the bottom of the pot adds such a pleasant crunch without being so hard you have to chew voraciously at it. All in all, a good bibimbap indeed!

These are photos from the second visit. We got greedy and ordered the mixed beef platter as well as some kobe beef which was on promotion. I think this was a way better choice than ordering a la carte as I didn’t know what I was ordering!

The mixed platter includes the Kurimi and shin shin but also has Rib eye, rib eye core and a nice tenderloin steak.And the kobe promotion included more rib eye cuts and sirloin.Rib eye was amazing… thin slices of marbled, tender beef. I can’t remember what this was… either the sirloin or the rib eye. Both were equally good and melted so charmingly in my mouth. 

In comparison the shin shin was just alright. The rib eye core was fantastic as wellI think this is the tenderloin steak, done medium well with a touch of pink in the middle. I reckoned this was pretty well cooked with a nice sear on the outside. Had enough bite to it and was bursting with beefy goodness.

I must say though, at this point I felt I had too much fat. I should have had some rice to go with it, just a few slices of this would have been enough with it.

The thinly sliced rib eye. Since its that thin you barely needed to chew it. The meat itself had a lot of that beautiful marbling it so it was so juicy and again, oh so very slightly pink, that I think that if I put it in my mouth it would have just slid easily into my throat

I think the following photos were from another visit. The mixed platter set included tomo sankaku in place of one of the other cuts of meat. I believe the platter is an assortment of the chef’s choice cuts. I highly recommend the mixed platter!

Here’s a very bad photo of the bibimbap. Yes we ordered it again, it seemed quite small the second time though. Still delicious.

I didn’t fancy the tomo sankaku very much. Had a little bit of a strong smell to it.

And in repetition to the meats already shown:-

Something to note, I ordered the maguro and otoro sushi in my last visit. It was nothing great, the fish slices were small and doesn’t taper off like the authentically Japanese sushi. It’s also thin and miserable looking. For the price, which was outrageously expensive, I feel pretty ripped off on the sushi. I’d advise not to go for the sushi at all.

Even without the overly priced sushi, the bill is usually pretty steep. I normally spend up to SGD 500 for 2-3 people. So to maximize the experience, go for the beef platter and/or sashimi salad and bibimbap and forget about the sushi.

Details of the restaurant is as below:-

Magosaburou

Address: 2 Orchard Turn #04-11A & 05-01 ION Orchard, 238801

Phone:6634 1411

Tatsuya at Goodwood Hotel, Singapore revisited – More expensive and less (?) food

Tags

aburi, ebi, fusion, fusion sushi, goodwood hotel, hotate, japanese, japanese restaurants, omakase, restaurant review, sanma, singapore, singapore omakase, singapore restaurants, tatsuya, uni

Tatsuya has always been one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Singapore. So naturally it was one of my top choices when I dropped by for a visit in Singapore and thankfully got a counter seat as the place was packed. I opted again for the omakase as per my usual routine but I was quietly disappointed when the food came. The food quality is more or less the same, still delicious but the sushi was served in a platter instead of done up and served with care one by one. And there were more cooked courses than raw, we had a whole grilled sanma fish to share between us. While it was nice, I’ve always considered sanma to be an inexpensive fish. In previous visits, we were given a little uni/otoro/ikura rice bowl which was infinitely more divine. So I was doubly shocked when the bill came… up to SGD 847 for the both of us!

Previously the omakase sets come at SGD 280++ , but the bill would mean that the new cost of the omakase set is now SGD 400++ where it adds no additional value to the dining experience and where the food is not as appealing as it was when it was at SGD 280. What happened Tatsuya?!!! The least you could do if you charge more is to give us better food and a better dining experience! Don’t get me wrong, Tatsuya still serves quality food, service is still good and chef is very friendly. It’s just that we no longer get the traditional counter experience where the chef serves up his tantalizing morsels one by one reverently and works up a surprise for our palates here and there. Now it just feels like a normal restaurant…. at a more expensive price. I complained to my makan kaki who did the initial Tatsuya visit with me and she came back with a barrage of complaints. She’s probably not going back.

Not sure if I want to go back again either if this is what is to be expected. For SGD 400+ I could just go to Shinji. I think Aoki may be the better choice now compared to Tatsuya, I’ve visited it twice after the last review and will post up another review on it soon.

Photos from the last disappointing Tatsuya visit:-

Did not take photos of the sanma and the other cooked courses as I was so disappointed. At least we had some uni with the tai sashimi though! Some saving grace there.

In comparison, here’s a collage of some of the dishes from the initial trip and my previous review on Tatsuya.

8 1/2 Otto E Mezzo Bombana, Central, Hong Kong

Tags

alexander house restaurants, alexandra house, black truffles, butter, cavatelli, caviar, central, central restaurants, chanterelle mushrooms, fresh bread, Hong kong, Ice Cream, italian, italian cuisine, lobster, lobster bisque, Otto, Otto e Mezzo, otto e mezzo bombana, parmesan, Pasta, pear tart, restaurant review, risotto, scampi, seared tuna, shellfish, tagliolini, truffle, truffle emulsion, truffle ice cream, truffles

 Just got back from Hong Kong and had the opportunity to have a meal at this restaurant. It is apparently the only Italian restaurant outside of Italy to have received 3 Michelin stars, having been awarded 3 stars by the 2012 Michelin Guide Hong Kong and Macau. I was so lucky to get a reservation at the last minute, thanks to a friend of my sister’s!

My goal for the night… EAT ALL THE TRUFFLES! I’ve been so tempted by all the photos of truffles coming out on instagram from this restaurant, as well as my sister who also ate there a week before I went to Hong Kong. So yes… we didn’t go for the degustation menu but what we ordered seemed like a more expensive degustation by itself! Such that the Caucasian women on the tables next to us looked over at us in disgust at the amount of food coming to our table for just 2 of us ;D We are Asian, and we are naturally greedy. Plus the dishes are mostly dainty and in small portions!

We ordered 2 starters, 3 pastas, 1 main and 2 desserts. Even the waiter was aghast. No matter! I looked forward to a great meal and wasn’t disappointed at all. 

 The amuse bouche came first, though I didn’t catch what it was. Could very well be a blend of fruit and cheese? I can’t really tell what it was. Quite refreshing though.

 Yes, the bread basket…. the bread is warm! I loved the foccacia! Its the one on the top right. It had a crispy top with some sun-dried tomato and olive baked onto the surface and warm fluffy insides. It’s been so long since I had good bread at a restaurant! I only ate the focaccia but my friend loved the brown bread beside it. Again it had that crunch to it as you bite into the bread, but yet you don’t have to gnaw it to death to take a bite out of it. The waiter had to top up our bread basket with fresh warm bread. How embarassing… and we kept on eating even the 2nd basket.

 Luckily, our first appetizer arrived in time to stop us. This is seared tuna topped with caviar with some dainty salad. They were so nice to split the portion into two plates for us, so this was my portion. I could have sworn that the tuna is of the akami type, the leaner part of the tuna. It certainly had that ruby red hue to it. But when I bit into it, it had all the full flavour of seared fatty tuna. It was beautiful, along with that gorgeous mountain of caviar in unison with a slightly tart and rich sauce.

 Next, the scampi topped with truffle shavings. The scampi carpaccio is fresh, in some sort of olive oil emulsion if I’m not mistaken. It is similar to the truffle tai carpaccio at Aoki but I prefer the texture of tai compared to the scampi. Plus the flavours didn’t blend as well as the truffle tai carpaccio. So while this was nice, it wasn’t one of the must haves for the night. I hear that there is an octopus version of this that is really nice too.

Next up, the pasta dishes.

Shellfish cavatelli in a delicious seafood bisque with chanterelle mushrooms. Sometimes this is topped with sea urchin, but I think that could be seasonal. This was amazing! And also half a portion as my friend and I shared the cavatelli as well. The seafood bisque was full flavoured and bursting with ocean goodness. It wasn’t heavy at all and left us unabashedly scraping at the bottom of the bowl to get at every last drop. The pasta, while I wouldn’t normally order pasta in this style, is great with the bisque and the perfectly cooked shellfish. Nice bite and texture to it but I’d say the shellfish and bisque were the stars of the dish to me.

More pasta dishes up next, we couldn’t decide between the risotto (which was highly recommended by my sister) and the more traditional tagliolini (which was highly recommended by the waitress), so she suggested we take both in a small size. We happily took her suggestion to heart….

When both dishes came, a waiter meticulously shaved… and shaved… and shaved more… and more black truffle all over the pasta until you can no longer see any pasta! How generous! (Obviously this was going to be expensive but when you’re eating, all good reason flies out the window)

 Truffle… with pasta.

This is the risotto, I’m not sure why its green again but it was well cooked with a nice bite to it. You can’t really tell in the picture but both pastas had a ring of dark sauce around it. I’m assuming this is the truffle emulsion and it tasted like a dense, truffled wild mushroom soup. Together with the risotto it added more depth to an already rich and aromatic dish. It is a really small serving, however, you can probably finish it in a couple of spoonfuls, just enough to savour and appreciate the mix of earthy and nutty flavours in this gorgeous dish.

 This is the homemade tagliolini in a creamy, smooth butter and parmesan sauce with truffle emulsion in a ring around the golden mound of al dante pasta. Classic pairing for truffles. It has that super cheesy and creamy taste that I love, but with the truffle emulsion, it helps to bring a different layer and richness to cut into the cheesiness. Very decadent! Along with the truffles, it was to die for. Too bad I only had a bite ;(

 Our lobster main, cooked perfectly, still had that balance between raw and cooked in the center which I really liked. Texture-wise the lobster had a smooth cut to it so that it is still retained that creamy texture. Again…that sauce/broth that came with it? Amazing. I’m not sure if its the same broth as before with the pasta, but it had that same full flavoured brine to it.

 Finally we were ready for dessert. This is the tiramisu ice cream which was actually not bad! I always scoffed at the idea of truffle ice cream. Lovely gold flakes in its presentation and nestled in fresh whipped cream and surrounded by fresh black truffle shavings. I still prefer my hazelnut ice creams though ;p

 This pear tart came highly recommended by my sister. Its got an almost wafer thin flaky crust topped with very delicately sliced pears. I must try to make this one day!!! Very warm, slightly spiced and crispy dessert which ended the meal perfectly.

 The waiter congratulated us upon finishing our meal. *Shy*

 Obviously it cost a bomb, but in comparison to some other top restaurants, this isn’t too bad after all. I think the a la carte would be better than the degustation. Also, if you go during the white truffle season, or black winter truffle season, the experience will be so much better as nothing beats the aroma of the Italian truffles! Our favourites for the night were the seared tuna, all the pastas, the lobster and the pear tart. ❤

8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana
Shop 202, 2/F, Alexandra House, 5-17 Des Voeux Road Central, Central, Hong Kong
中環德輔道中5-17號歷山大廈2樓202號舖
Reservation: Tel: +852 2537 8859 Fax: +852 2537 8895, info@ottoemezzobombana.com
Opening Hours: 12:00p – 10:00pm (Mon-Sat, Closed on Sun)

Just for fun, I’ve included a couple of recipes from Otto’s website. I’m sure I’ll never be able to make it as well as they do despite them openly sharing the recipes like this!

Homemade Cavatelli shellfish ragout and sea urchin

For 1 pax

70gr cavatelli

5gr sea Urchin
15gr scampi (no shell)
15gr octopus
20gr snapper
15gr lobster (no shell)
30gr diced cherry tomato
5gr chopped garlic
50gr lobster stock
50gr seafood soup
3gr basil
salt
white pepper
dry chilli

 

Preparation:

– Seafood: cut the scampi, octopus, snapper and Lobster into small dices, marinate with extra virgin olive oil, salt and white pepper
– pan-fry the garlic and dry chilli until golden color, put on side
– cook the diced cherry tomatoes in medium heat, add lobster stock and seafood soup
– separately, pan-fry the seafood and mix with garlic chilli, basil
– add seafood-tomato sauce
– cook the cavatelli in saltwater for 3 minutes
– mix with the sauce and cook for another 3 min
– transfer onto a plate, garnish with sea urchin on top

Tajima Short Rib and Beef Tenderloin, Red Wine and Plum Sauce, Whipped Potato

Red wine and plum sauce, whipped potato

160 gr short rib (big squared)
180 gr beef tenderloin (wagyu)
100 gr carrots
100 gr celery
80 gr onion
80 gr leek
100 gr Italian tomato
5 gr garlic
1 pcs bay leaf
20 gr parma ham
40 gr porto wine
40 gr red wine
160 gr veal stock
30 gr dry plum
8 gr rosemary
60 gr extra virgin olive oil

Preparation of base sauce:
•    Saut all the vegetables in a big bowl until they are soft
•    Put the ham, plum, porto and red wine in the bowl. Cook everything in the bowl until the alcohool is evaporated. After put the veal stock

Preparation:
•    Pan fried the short rib until a golden colour and put in the bowl with the base sauce
•    Put the bowl in oven at 200 degree for 2 hours.
•    Then take out the short rib cut big squared and the base sauce strim it
•    When the serve take out the short rib and heat again in sauce, and pan fried the beef tenderloin in pan.

Coffee Trio of Tiramisu, Warm Coffee Tart and Crunchy Coffee Ice Cream

 

For 4 pax

For the Tiramisù

•    48 gr yolk
•    40 gr sugar
•    120 gr whipped Cream
•    200 gr mascarpone

Mix up egg yolk with Sugar (Sabayon), melt the gelatin and combine all the ingredients together

For the Coffee Gelly

•    160 gr espresso
•    60 gr sugar

Heat the espresso with sugar

For the sponge

•    64 gr ground almond
•    20 gr cake flour
•    80 gr icing sugar
•    40 gr sugar
•    132 gr egg white

Sift all the dried ingredients. Make meringue with sugar and egg white. Fold in the dried ingredients with meringue and spread on the tray. Bake 180 degree for 12 minute.

For the Coffee tart

•    4 pcs egg yolk
•    80 gr sugar
•    128 gr milk
•    20 gr coffee powder
•    56 gr coffee bean
•    320 gr cream

Roast the coffe bean for 10 minutes at 200。and add into the boiling milk. Infuse 30 minutes. Mix sugar and egg yolk and add the cold cream. Mix the coffee powder with warm milk, combine all the mixture and sift. Bake at 110 degree for 35-40 min.

For the Coffee Ice Cream

•    800 gr milk
•    240 gr cream
•    120 gr coffee Bean
•    70 gr milk powder
•    50 gr yolk
•    180 gr sugar
•    20 gr coffee powder
•    30 gr water

Roast the coffee bean and add into boiling milk and cream. Cook like a custard

 

Leonardo’s, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Tags

bacon and eggs, bacon wrapped, bangsar, bangsar restaurants, black pig, chocolate lava cake, chocolate molten cake, iberian black pig, KL, Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur restaurants, Leonardo, leonardos, malaysia, Malaysia restaurants, molten chocolate cake, Pasta, pork balls, pork loin, pork loin steak, pork steak, restaurant review, www.leonardos.my/; pork

I’ve been meaning to do a review on Leonardo’s since last year! It has become one of my favorite restaurants in KL. There aren’t many restaurants in KL that serves really good pork. This was a good find!

This post includes pictures from two trips to Leonardo’s. Might make another trip sometime soon just for the molten chocolate cake. Nice and cosy ambience, perfect for a chilled and relaxing dinner.

Yeah, prices are on the steep side ;( If you do come here though, order the pork. That’s what Leonardo’s is known for.

First up, the pork balls. This is a really fun dish, like a fried meatball on a stick but a more refined version.

Chunks of pork meat and fat. You eat it like you would a meatball, but that first crunch obviously puts it heads and shoulders (and whole body) above the average meatball. It’s got a good balance of flavor, rich but not overpowering.

We had the scallop and lychee salad as well. I can’t exactly remember what it tastes like now but I remember not being disappointed with any of the dishes. Good thing is, this place is pretty consistent. Over a span of 7-8 months the quality remains at the same standard, really good stuff.

Pasta with mushrooms, bacon, chilli padi and garlic. A bacon aglio olio XD. Al dente on the noodles, all the flavors have been well absorbed and each strand is well-coated and well-seasoned. Love the little kick that the chill lends to it too!

Spanish Iberico Black Pig shoulder loin steak. As tender and juicy as you can imagine it. The meat from an Iberian black pig tends to be more tender than the regular pig and is obviously not going to be as tough. The steak is served medium done with truffle oil mash potatoes and some vegetables. Yes please do away with the notion that pork has to be well cooked to be safe for consumption. That isn’t necessarily true. An internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit is deemed safe by the USDA. So a pink middle is fine as long as the internal temperature is 145 Fahrenheit. A relief to pork eaters as we never liked tough cuts of thoroughly cooked pork either. Same concept as beef well done I suppose?

Anyway, this loin steak and the truffle mash? Yummy-licious! I’ve a dire weakness for meat and potatoes like that. Beef eaters would say I’m missing out on all the good steak and mash but I’m very content if I have this instead. Meat craving satisfied!And a glass of cloudy bay. Lovely and easy to drink. One of my favourite wines for a chilled dinner with friends. I tend to veer towards the more complicated French wines when I’m with colleagues. 

And helloooo slice of heaven!

I can’t even begin… will you look at that? It’s so molten it oozed bittersweet chocolatey glaze as we dug into the cake. The vanilla ice cream was pretty good as well but I didn’t even notice cuz of the cake!!! We didn’t have to dig to deep before we hit the chocolate gold so I’d say perfect ratio of cake to molten chocolate. Neither the cake or the molten chocolate has that cloyingly overly sweet commercial vanilla note that most chocolate cakes do. They’ve hit the perfect note with bitter and sweet and rich. The outer layer of the cake is also slightly crisp which makes this dessert texturally perfect for me. 

Onto the 2nd dinner at Leonardo’s. Above is the watermelon and feta cheese salad with a ball of soft mozzarella in the middle. I love soft mozzarella! Watermelon and feta cheese is pretty good too, very refreshing. But I’m not a big fan of olives so I left those alone.

Now this was a surprise! When we ordered bacon and egg we didn’t expect this succulent, tender braised pork belly at all! It just melted in our mouths. The molten egg was a delight as well. Put them both together and you have a luxuriously smooth and sexy combination melting together in your mouth. xoxo 

Pork balls again! Different presentation, same delicious taste. I especially like the balsamic glaze to go with it just because I could never resist the thick black shiny sweet stuff.

And here we have the grilled pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon in garlic au jus. It was perfectly cooked and tender but I prefer the Iberico loin steak as it was more… juicy I would say. Good nonetheless. I don’t remember how the sauce tasted like as I didn’t take much of it. All the calories are in the sauce! (well, the bacon too but I’d rather meat over sauce).

Yes this was what I’ve been waiting for the whole night. My molten cake !!!! Our greedy faces. Very very satisfied indeed.

Website and Contact details for Leonardos:-

www.leonardos.my/

61 Jalan Bangkung, Taman Bandaraya, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur
03-2093 2226

 

Kinki, Singapore

Tags

aburi otoro, ambience, collyer quay, engawa, foie gras, fusion, hotate, japanese, japanese restaurant, kinki, Kinki sushi, Marina Bay Sands view, mbs view, otoro, restaurant review, scallops, sea urchin, singapore, sushi, tai, truffle, uni

Kinki Sushi remains one of my top favourite Japanese restaurants in Singapore. The setting is pretty casual and relaxed. Perfect to kick back after a day at work or if you just want something special for dinner.

The best part of this restaurant is that it overlooks this breathtaking view:

Its amazing isn’t it? There’s also a rooftop bar where you can have snacks and drinks but I haven’t checked it out. Was just there for the food 😉

They serve the usual very fresh sushi and the custom Kinki dishes which are amazing. I must warn you that the bill can get pretty steep depending on what you order. Check out the menu and the prices:-

http://www.kinki.com.sg/wp-content/uploads/Web-Kinki-Dinner+Lunch-Menu0211013.pdf

So I just had to try the Tai Carpaccio, something similar to what I had in Aoki. The taste is almost identical except that at Aoki they served the fish with shaved fresh truffles on top. At Kinki they just make this with truffle oil. Still delicious nevertheless and I love the way they presented this dish. The dish and the dark table gives a stark contrast in coloring. The fish is rendered translucent and looks like a work of art.

Not my best shot. I don’t know where my other pics went to. These pictures could have been better had I done something about the white balance but I was hoping to capture some sort of that dinner at dusk kind of look ;p

A bowl of expensive but divine sea urchin. It is indeed my ideal type of sea urchin: fresh, plump, not too firm, beautifully creamy and yet has some form to it (I hate sea urchins that come in pure mush form but then again I don’t like it when its too firm, there isn’t much flavour in those). A little soy sauce on the uni sashimi, place it onto some crisp seaweed and you’re all set to go!

The view… I just can’t get over it.  On top is the Engawa with sudachi zest. Very good balance of texture, firm and chewy yet it seems to have some fat in it to round the flavours all up. The slight torch and zest gives it a nice twist and a fresh tang to the very enjoyable bite of sushi.

Below the Engawa is the Otoro Aburi, seared fatty tuna. This was really good as well, the fat just melts away in your mouth while the seared top and, what I suspect is yuzu or some citrus, all helped to cut through all that buttery fatty piece of fish. It can get pretty cloying if you have too many pieces of fresh otoro, but the seared otoro is a whole different ball game.

And here is the first bomb (by bomb I mean it is the THE BEST) of the night: The pan-seared foie gras and Hokkaido scallop sushi

The seared foie gras and fresh scallop tastes so amazingly divine served like this! I suppose its because both ingredients are on the creamy tasting side, with the foie gras imparting a rich gamey depth to the sushi while the scallop lends it a light and briny ocean flavor. And then there’s that sauce, it just… ties everything up together in one delightful little parcel. Game Over.

Cholesterol for the night.

The Kinki Okonomiyaki was a surprise. To be honest I wasn’t expecting much from it but it was delicious as well. It’s got Hokkaido scallops, prawns, streaky bacon,sweet onions and buffalo mozzarella. Normally okonomiyaki is made up of batter, lots of cabbage, and other toppings topped with mayonnaise and bonito flakes. THIS okonomiyaki has a pastry base, the flaky pastry base that everybody loves and it remained crispy for a long time even with all the delicious toppings all laden on top. And the portion is generous, so if you’re not a fan of sushi, or are on a budget but would like to try out this place then this is the dish for you.

Lastly, my baked scallop in butter topped with sea urchin. This was the second bomb of the night. While my cousin thought this was a tad overcooked, I though it was cooked perfectly. It is definitely not rubbery and didn’t have much resistance when I cut through it. It remained succulent and retained all the flavors of a fresh scallop, soaked in a luscious butter and chive gravy. As if that weren’t enough they had to top it all off with a dollop of that beautiful sea urchin. I can’t even imagine how to describe it further. Heaven in a bite. This dish and the foie gras with scallop dish are my top faves of the night.

Pure bliss.

Finish off your evening with some goma ice cream and work off all that food with a walk with the MBS in full view. ❤

Tatsuya, Goodwood Hotel Singapore

Tags

akami, anago, bonito, caviar, ebi, flounder, goodwood hotel, goodwood park hotel, halfbeak, ikura, japanese omakase, japanese pear, japanese singapore, kajiki, maguro, musk melon, omakase, omakase singapore, otoro, prawn, restaurant review, salmon, sayori, sea urchin, seaweed, singapore, singapore restaurant, sushi rice, tatsuya, tuna, uni, yuzu

*Edit: Updated Review on Tatsuya here

I’ve heard quite a bit about Tatsuya from friends, and as Japanese omakase is my not-so-secret crush I was pretty thrilled when my makan kaki suggested Tatsuya for dinner. We went after the recent renovation so I have no idea what it looked like before.

It is a good sized traditional Japanese restaurant located at Goodwood Park Hotel and offers counter seats where you can watch the chefs do their thing as well as table seats.

As far as omakase goes, the rates are similar to other omakase restaurants in Singapore. We went for the SGD 280++ omakase option and topped up a little for desserts.

Sat at the counter, always very educational and you’re left with a better idea of the skill level of the chef as well as the dedication they put into their food.

Now, so far I’ve only been to the really traditional types of Japanese omakase restaurants and I expected Tatsuya to be the same. However, I quickly realized how wrong I was. Yes indeed they do go about the traditional methods of preparation but they also favor the technique of “aburi” (flame-torching) alongside using modern twists in preparing the fresh seafood.

Here’s a beautiful carpaccio dish that serves as a good example to the delightful little surprises that they come up with at Tatsuya.

Beautiful is it not?

First up we each had a dish of ikura with some yuzu grated over the top. What makes this ikura stand out is that each roe is separate from the other. I’ve gotten so used to roes sticking and clumping together that this came as a bit of a surprise. A good one of course. Each individual sac was fresh and not at all slimy, bursting with briny goodness. 

Some dish that the chef was preparing for the other guests.

Next, we had some simmered mackerel (on the left) and monkfish liver (on the right). I love monkfish liver, but I’d gauge these two dishes as average. Perhaps I just prefer raw fish haha!

Above, some flounder topped with seaweed, uni and bonito. Great texture on the fish, a little bite, alongside the game changers, the toppings. While the uni topping was my favourite, the bonito came a close second.

Here we had a plate of half beak (sayori) sashimi with ginger and spring onions. Shiny skinned fish tend to smell a little stronger so ginger and spring onions are often used to balance out the smell. As the fish was fresh there was hardly any smell, while the ginger and spring onion only served to heighten the flavour of the fish. 

Once we were done with the sashimi, they whisked away the bones of the fish and deep fried it so that you can enjoy those too and nothing is wasted. 

The next offering: a plate of delectable, thick-cut sashimi

Akami remains my favorite. The fried ebi topped with caviar and yuzu was heavenly as well. Fantastic combination.

This is something we did not try as we both do not take beef. It looks good doesn’t it? The fat on the beef was just melting before our eyes as they torched it.

❤

Torched abalone with yuzu, I think they must have added some butter at some point. Tender and flavorful, but not as mind blowingly good as the one I had at the curb market in Sapporo .

*drools*

Above, an aburi toro. Meltingly soft and juicy, the fish went so well with the rice, daikon and spring onions with just a hint of smoke from the torched surface.

This is definitely a place that has got its rice right. Nice short grains of lightly vinegared rice.

Next up, aburi Kajiki (swordfish belly) which had a little more bite to it in comparison to the toro. While it doesn’t hold a flame to the toro, it holds its own ground pretty well too.

Aburi Kampachi belly topped with bonito flakes, nori and roast sesame seeds. Oh and yuzu of course. I love how Tatsuya manages to blend all these strong flavours together and never overpower the fish. The flavours all come together very harmoniously.

This? Party in my mouth! Aburi Ebi with mentaiko mayo topped with yuzu and lumpfish caviar. BEST COMBINATION EVER! Or rather perhaps I’m biased towards anything with mentaiko mayonnaise. Prawn is amazing with that mixture. When they torched this baby I could hear the mentaiko popping furiously as they cook. The sweet mayo, marinated mentaiko, half crunchy, half creamy ebi and caviar just took this dish to level heaven (yes I’m dramatizing food, I loved it that much)

This is yet another favorite! Hotate (scallop) and Foie gras lightly touched and topped with yuzu and er… tiny anchovies haha. I thought that the anchovies got in the way of the scallop and foie gras a little. It was divine nonetheless.

Rich heavy foie gras with the smooth clean and creamy taste of the scallops… mmm…

This is something I’m more familiar with, the conventional sushi as it is. Uni and ikura ❤ 

I remember asking for no eel at the start of the meal. I’m not sure why this came but I’m glad it did. It was nicely broiled and delicious.

Lastly, a really crunchy, simple roll that you just eat with your hands. Simple, no fuss, minimalistic yet really satisfying. Did I mention that the nori is fabulously crunchy?

Chef preparing hunks of beef

Beef on fire! It was sizzling and I found myself drooling over a meat I’ve only tried once or twice in my life and never crave for!

Ended the course with some fruits; a musk melon and japanese pear. As Japanese fruits go, these were extraordinary in flavour and texture as well.

We couldn’t resist…. ordered a yuzu sorbet and caramel ice cream. Refreshing end to a fantastic meal.

Tatsuya

ADDRESS

22 Scotts Road Goodwood Park Hotel Singapore 228221

(65) 6737-1160