Early Anniversary Mini Kaiseki Dinner @ Maru 丸 on 31May2018

Posted on June 9, 2018 by chefquak

weekday promos

had early anniversary dinner with wife at maru 丸 at icon village 12 gopeng street on 31.5.2018. ^^

unagi & aburi hotate don lunch

the bar restaurant offers various promotions that look quite interesting…

maru omakase set dinner 1 for 1 at S$78 inc 250ml free sake

excellent food & value.

we took the special 8-course mini kaiseki 1 for 1 S$78 mini kaiseki inc free 250ml sake 👍some more…

250ml free sake

& the sake was good standard. this alone would cost like S$18 easily..

#1 sensai 前菜edamame, tuna, marinated octopus

the appetizer plate included a tuna ceviche, marinated octopus & edamame.

the tuna was very good…the octopus was tough…edamame the usual…

#2 oyster

not the very large oyster at hachi, but neverthelessthe oyster was very fresh & sweet, not big, quite ok, and came with a tasty tomato sherbet..

#3 5 kinds of sashimi – maguro, salmon, amaebi, tai, hamachi

sashimi was nothing special, still quite good standard, fresh & sweet.

there were 5 kinds = sashimi – maguro, salmon, amaebi, tai, hamachi, one piece each for the 2 of us… 🙂

#4 kappa – grilled fish cheeks

the shio (salt) grilled kappa (fish cheeks) very good 👍👍

wife found it slightly fishy, so took only 1/2…i took all of it & her 1/2 piece too. lol!

#5 sushi (aburi salmon & anago)+ #6 bara chirashi don

the aburi sushi & barachirashi don were served together.

sushi (aburi salmon & anago)

the aburi sushi were great…salmon was good & of course anago sushi 👍was special. sauce though was a bit sweet.

the bara chirashi don was ok. fish was fresh though odd cuts letfovers like any bara, the sushi rice not that great.

& there was a #7 soup…it was good too, nice tasty clear soup with asari (la la clams)…

#8 yuzu sorbet

yuzu sorbet lagi shiok!…very flavourful & refreshing. great dessert ite….

bara chirashi don

a very enjoyable early anniversary dinner with wife…

this place i will definitely come back again..don’t mind to take this mini kaiseki set again, alaos to try the weekday special & lunch specials..

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Maru Dine & Bar 丸

Address:

Contact:

Opening Hours:

daily	11:30AM–11PM

Excellent Chirashi Don Set @ Kuriya Dining on 9Jun2015

Posted on June 10, 2015 by chefquak

uni, negi toro, salmon, tai, maguro, hotate, hamachi, amaebi

wife bought me an excellent chirashi sushi zen set at lunch at kuriya dining on 9.6.2015.^^

it was for early father’s day.

we had a mother’s day lunch at gurnard’s head on 10.5.2015 and a mother’s day dinner at mackerel sky at newlyn, cornwall.

salad with goma dressing

set started with a salad with goma (sesame) dressing.

salad with goma dressing

there was a lot of salad, a bit little dressing. we asked for more. of course to be added in moderation. it was good. 🙂

snow crab chawanmushi

the chawanmushi was excellent, especially with the very tasty snow crab sauce, though i felt the sauce was a bit starchy.

chirashi sushi zen

this was an excellent chirashi don for S$62++.

chirashi sushi zen

i still cannot decide if this is better or mikuni’s better. i guess overall i still favour mikuni’s chirashi don but this was really really good too.

anyway, i like them both.

uni, negi toro, salmon, tai, maguro, hotate, hamachi, amaebi

you have in one bamboo holder uni, negi toro, salmon, tai, maguro, hotate, hamachi, amaebi on a bed of cubed salmon & maguro (like in barachisrashi don).

anago, ikura, tobiko, tamago

on the other there was anago, ikura, tobiko, tamago on sushi rice.

anago, ikura, tobiko, tamago

a most wonderful, satisfying lunch.

dessert – strawberry mousse, black sesame ice cream, fruits

there was dessert & coffee too.

dessert – strawberry mousse, black sesame ice cream, fruits

dessert was strawberry mousse, black sesame ice cream, and fruits. 🙂

it’s actually kind of huge set for lunch, but on some days we are permitted to spoil ourselves.

c.h.e.f andy

A Tale of 2 Dinners Part 2 The Good Ending – A Marvellous Kaiseki Dinner @ Gettoan on 26Jan2015

Posted on February 8, 2015 by chefquak

excellent uni

after the excellent ryokan breakfast this morning, we now had cause to anticipate a nice kaiseki dinner on 26.1.2015.

kaiseki menu

this time we were not disappointed.

hence i had termed these 2 dinners on 25.1.2015 & 26.1.2015 “a tale of 2 dinners”

what a difference a menu change made.

see the sub-par dinner on 25.1.2015…

with a good kaiseki dinner & breafast, Gettoan 月灯庵 did fully meet our expectations of a good ryokan.

umeshu梅酒

for this evening, dinner started with umeshu梅酒.

excellent chawanmushi with egg & spring onions

the chawanmushi (茶碗蒸し) was outstanding. there was bits of minced ginger on top. the texture & flavours were exquisite. maybe i will try this at home.

superb braised wagyu & tendons

the braised wagyu & tendons was just superb. texture was almost like gelatinous, had bite yet dissolving in the mouth, and nice mellow beefy flavours, mildly sweet. this was par excellence! ^^

sashimi moriawase

grating own wasabi

ika

fish sashimi

we grated our own wasabi roots!

sashimi moriawase was nothing like last evening’s which was below those at sun with moon, or for that matter any supermarket basement sashimi picks in japan!

this time we had good serving each of uni, very sweet! ika was pretty good & the fish slices were very good too. the same lady server initially said it was swordfish, but when i mentioned it did not look remotely like kajiki, she corrected herself but we did not understand what fish it was actually. whatever, what counted was it’s good!

excellent anago tempura

& we had an excellent tempura!

the 2 large pieces each of anago (sea or conger eel) was a large helping. the tempura batter was just great & the whole experience wonderful.^^

bungo wagyu 丰后和牛

& we had a wonderful bungo wagyu 丰后和牛 shabu shabu. there were 10 large thick slices of wagyu for 2 pax, beef was well marbled and flavourful, very good indeed!

shabu shabu

noodles, mushrooms, veg

we had the usual noodles, mushrooms, vegetables.

bungo wagyu 丰后和牛

i can have this again! 🙂

if we were to make a comparison with mikuni’s excellent kagoshima wagyu sukiyaki konabe, certainly what we have at Gettoan was much more marbled & better beef quality. in terms of satisfaction, mikuni’s was almost as good & a good approximation to this.

pickles

we had pickles with the gohan (rice).

cake dessert

dessert was ok. we did not have much interest for the butter cake. it maybe that gettoan indeed is trying to be fusion, with the foie gras tofu last evening (tonight’s chawanmushi would beat tat hands down), and these cake stuff, which some restaurants in Singapore like kuriya etc does too.

anyway, we were immensely satisfied with the kaiseki dinner this second night. ^^

c.h.e.f andy

Sumptuous Alluring Omakase @ Hachi on 22Nov2014

Posted on November 29, 2014 by chefquak

#4 sashimi moriawase 1pax = botan ebi, sawala (spanish mackerel), chutoro, ika, kinmedai, tai, hamachi

my wife’s good friend couple bought us a wonderful super delicious omakase dinner at hachi on 22.11.2014. 🙂

my wife & i had been to hachi several times. we introduced the restaurant to them & said we would buy them dinner there, but they sprang this superb omakase on us & bought us instead.

in fact we had never take this S$188pax premium omakase here (restaurant said it’s a new menu started 2014). every time we just took the S$118pax (now increased to S$128 pax) omakase, which was also pretty good. well no complaints. ^^ 🙂

#1 japanese persimmon

#1 first course was a japanese persimmon came shielded with persimmon leaf. dish was beautiful & exquisite, feeling of koyo (autumn colours). persimmon was very sweet but could not recall the other items. there was goma (sesame) sauce.

#2 ayu fish, tamago, ginkgo nuts, chestnut, crispy sweet potato, seaweed

#2 second course was ayu fish, tamago, ginkgo nuts, chestnut, crispy sweet potato, dish of seaweed. such delicate & beautiful plating. 🙂

ayu is a tasty but flaky (falling apart) fish, not my favourite but ayu shioyaki (鮎塩焼) is a very popular dish (see photo of the open grill here). in small bites for this starter, it was quite nice.

#3 steamed tai (seabream) on braised tofu

#3 third course was a steamed tai (seabream) on braised tofu. sea bream was very sweet & tasty. tofu was excellent, very crispy outside & smooth consistency inside.

#4 sashimi moriawase 1pax = botan ebi, sawala (spanish mackerel), chutoro, ika, kinmedai, tai, hamachi

#4 the next course sashimi moriawase for 1pax kinmedai 金目鯛 (japanese golden eye sea bream – see photo here), tai (sea bream), hamachi>> was a real treat. i have not taken sawala before & probably not kinmedai (as sashimi) too.

the kinmedai was really good. 🙂 and of course the chutoro, botan ebi etc etc. ^^

we had really good sashimi moriawase just last week at sumiya on 16.11.2014 which included uni, awabi & akami.

and of course mikuni’s chirashi don sashimi quality was top draw.

but to have this sashimi moriawase as part of an 11-course omakase was truly luxurious, sumptuous. 🙂

the sashimi moriawase for GOTO’s kaiseki was not too bad, but it was expensive & not as good value.

#5 crispy sweet potatoes on steamed sea bream on japaenese rice cake

#5 fifth course was crispy sweet potatoes on steamed sea bream on japaenese rice cake in a very tasty starchy mountain yam soup. simply yummy. i drank the whole thing.

#6 very large (3in), firm & tasty oyster

#6 sixth course was a large (3in), firm & tasty oyster. 1 of us found it sandy. it was ok for the rest. it was evidently good enough though as we finished the oysters before i thought of asking the restaurant to replace the oyster. i like this dish very much.

#7 excellent tempura – anago (conger eel), very good hotate, shiso 紫蘇 leaf (also called oba), and red pepper.

#7 excellent tempura – anago (conger eel), very good hotate, shiso 紫蘇 leaf (also called oba), and red pepper

#7 next course was an excellent tempura – anago (conger eel), very good hotate, shiso 紫蘇 leaf (also called oba), and red pepper.

the konbu (昆布) which japanese use for dashi (clear soup stock) is not edible.

#8 ohmi wagyu (近江牛) with xavier, jalapeño chilli, sweet potatoes

#8 ohmi wagyu (近江牛) with caviar, jalapeño chilli, sweet potatoes

#8 eighth course was ohmi wagyu (近江牛) – among the top 3 japanese wagyu – with caviar, jalapeño chilli, sweet potatoes.

taste was simply sublime, out of this world. ^^

#9 hokkaido momotaro tomatoes – a palate cleanser

#9 next was hokkaido momotaro tomatoes – a palate cleanser.

#10 my selection of sushi = kinmedai, hotate, uni (each diner can pick 3 types of sushi)

#10 the server brought us a tray of 10 to 12 sashimi. each diner can pick 3 types of sushi. my selection of sushi = kinmedai, hotate, uni. the hotate was really good, very huge, plump & sweet. the uni & kinmedai too of course. 🙂

wife had uni, negi toro & kinmedai. the 2 friends each had botan ebi, hotate & uni. 🙂

#11 dessert – yuzu ice cream, kiwi fruit, grapes, strawberries, blue berries, cheese cake slice

#11 i guess dessert was the least tantalising of the omakase – yuzu ice cream, kiwi fruit, grapes, strawberries, blue berries, cheese cake slice. it was a bit more quantity than quality, good standard & substantial, but not like say japanese melon.

overall this hachi premium omakase was much superior in quality of ingredients & taste c/w the kaiseki we had at GOTO on 23.10.2014, which cost a lot more.

c.h.e.f andy

Very Good Chirashi Don Set @ Sumiya on 13Nov2014

Posted on November 13, 2014 by chefquak

S$18.80 chirashi don set

in search of good chirashi don. 🙂

today fundonate friends met to discuss some matters. decided to meet for lunch at sumiya, level 12 orchard central on 13.11.2014.

i thought it might be the previous kuirya penthouse location, & it was. anyway sumiya is owned by the same RE&S group, which owns kuriya dining & also ichiban boshi, kuishinbo etc.

S$18.80 chirashi don set

ponzu salad

chawan mushi

S$18.80 chirashi don set

the photos of the lunch set, in particular, the chirashi don looked exciting. & it was.

it came in a set with chawan mushi (not so good), a ponzu salad, pickles, miso soup & a mochi, quite similar to ginza kuroson. 🙂

the chirashi don was excellent. 3 fish (salmon, maguro & hamachi) cube-cut sashimi & heaps of ikura (salmon roe), tobiko (flying fish roe) & avocado. the sashimi were very fresh & sweet. the cube cut made it looked like bara chirashi. this were quite big cubes though, really good sashimi. vinegared rice was very good too.

2 other friends ordered anago don & fish of the day (maybe amadai?). forgot to take photos.

12 pieces amaebi S$14.80

they had this 12 pieces amaebi for S$14.80, so i had to order it. 🙂

there was a shelling fee of $5 if we wanted it shelled. we of course decided to D-I-Y! 🙂

i never knew amaebi looked kind of anaemic & unappetising with shell on. but they were good, very fresh & sweet when shelled & eaten, like any good amaebi. 🙂

overall i was very impressed & would certainly come back for more.

this S$18.80 chirashi don set was definitely superior to the S$25 barachirashi don set at flying squirrel (no comparison i think), better than the S$17.90 chirashi don lunch set at tonkichi (also no comparison).

i couldn’t decide if this was better than the S$20 chirashi don set at ginza kuroson! i think both were equally good, and though kuroson had better quality cuts, this one at sumiya was really very enjoyable.

with tatsu, though it was not quite like for like, but as an overall dining experience, i think this set was more enjoyable than the S$40 expensive chirashi don at tatsu.

compared with chikuwatei & momoya, this quantity was smaller, but hey the flavours & freshness were better even. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Fabulous Omakase Lunch @ GOTO on 1Oct2014

Posted on October 2, 2014 by chefquak

sakizuki - a selection of small appetizers

sakizuke(先附) – a selection of small appetizers

GOTO is closing for renovations on 26.10.2014 & reopening on 11.11.2014.

i had wanted to go GOTO all these while but somehow did not get to do. a friend suggested recently & 5 of us decided to go for the S$68pax omakase lunch on 1.10.2014. there was no GST so it was just S$75nett! 🙂

GOTO at 14 ang siang road is currently a kaiseki only restaurant. lunch is 6-course at S$68pax & dinner S$180pax & S$280pax. the chef owner GOTO HISAO, was previously the personal chef to the japanese ambassador to singapore. after the renovation it will be remodelled to a casual restaurants. according to the server lunch sets would be like S$40 onwards.

we were wondering about the economics of a straight kaiseki restaurant where the dishes & ingredients were limited, vs a normal restaurant with an extensive menu, dishes & ingredients. we were of course out of our depths, no expert in f&b, but perhaps the main objective was to increase traffic & customers. kaiseki restaurant would have a limited number of patrons. a casual restaurant would attract a larger customer base & the sitting could be doubled from the current 20?

seems the restaurant name would be changed as well to G-One. couldn’t figure out G-One, but we were kidding the place change from GOTO to GONE? is that good? 🙂

who cares as long as food is good right? & it was, quite excellent! 🙂

sakizuke(先附) – a selection of small appetizers

ikura on enoki mushrooms

we had the first course sakizuke(先附) – a selection of small appetizers. it had a delicious pickled sanma (秋刀鱼), a equally delicious tofu, pickled ika (squid), some vege, and ikura on enoki in small bowl. really good! we were saying if every dish could be like this. they were, quite! maybe minus the rice. 🙂

sashimi moriawase = maguro, hirame, hamachi, hotate, anago

the sashimi moriawase = maguro, hirame, hamachi, hotate, anago was just incredible! they told us its maguro, but it was so sweet its like akamai (lean toro). hotate was just 1/2 a piece but very sweet. same for hirame (flat fish) & hamachi (yellow tail). the anago (conger eel) was an expensive item too but actually that was my least preferred among the quality sashimi.

tempura moriawase

the tempura moriawase was served differently w/o the dip & radish & wasabi. there was a lemon & a dish with what looked like green tea powder but actually salt. the server missed out explanation at our table for this dish, so we were guessing the lemon should go on the salt (lemon juice with salt is a very good dip for yakiniku), anyway a few of us including myself was too quick & just squeezed the lemon on the tempura. there was shisamo (pregnant fish), asparagus, 2 like fish cakes etc. very good dish. 🙂

a simmered kamo (duck) dish

we have a simmered duck dish. i liked it very much. 1 friend felt the duck had too gamey taste. the rest didn’t. a few thought the duck was tough. 1 said the sauce a bit sweet (japanese like to add sugar to their dishes).

for me though it was quite perfect – duck, yam etc. 🙂

chicken & mushroom gohan (rice) set

a friend said that the mushroom smell was really good. & indeed it was. however i & a few of us did not think this good was great. it did not really had the wok hae of a good chinese fried rice, nor the flavours of a good japanese unagi chahan (fried rice) like say in zen or its sister restaurant en japanese dining. nor is it flavourful c/w the very nice kamameshi at sun with moon.

of course we were just picking bones. haha! 🙂

dessert – mochi, fruits, black sesame ice cream

dessert was good too. kochi i liked, good quality fruits & a great black sesame ice cream.

i think this a very good lunch for S$75. i consider this perhaps more refine & better than the S$68 omakse lunch at hachi & about same as (or sometimes better than depending on menu) the S$68 monthly lunch special at kuriya dining. anyway i have booked to go back next week. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Asahi Sushi Shinjuku Sumitomo 50F Course Dinner on 9Apr2013

Posted on April 14, 2013 by chefquak

Kinki – a fatty Japanese delicacy

arrived Tokyo on 9apr2013.

had dinner arranged with my daughter & JH. they were already travelling Japan. decided to book a course dinner in a comfortable environment & easy to locate place, so booked Asahi Sushi at 50F, Shinjuku Sumitomo Building. They had a few course menu promotions for the month & great views up there. 🙂

JH & I had the 7-course with kuroge wagyu beef dinner. My daughter had a 10-item sushi moriwase set.

for the course dinner, we also had a small veg salad with mayo otoshi. The 7 courses were-

hokkaido crab claw with unagi & vinegared pickles (below photo left)
maguro & tai sashimi (above photo middle)
chawanmushi (above photo right)
kinki (japanese delicacy & chef’s favourite here)
kuroge wagyu grilled
8-item sushi moriwase
miso soup

the veg salad, chawanmushi & miso soup were non-events. the crab & unagi vinegared dish was very tasty. the sashimi were very average even for Singapore.

the kinki was fabulous. this very sweet tasting fatty fish is like between a cod (not as fatty) & chilean seabass (the latter is my perennial favourite). super! 🙂

kuroge wagyu (黑毛和牛) rare

the kuroge wagyu was good I guess but kind of underwhelming. I always felt Japanese wagyu were so good they were best eaten teppanyaki or yakiniku style rather than western fine dining style. When Andre Chiang was at Jaan years back, we use to frequent there a bit more. he had this kagoshima wagyu done in this Gordon Ramsay style similar to what’s done here in the above photo. It was good of course but I would much rather have it sizzling hot & with the freshly seared aburi marbling flavour. 🙂

10-piece sushi platter

my daughter was not too impressed with her sushi platter (above photo). It had anago, 2 pieces maki, hamachi? (not sure), ikura (these were small & I much preferred the large ones so maybe it was not ikura), tai, aji, prawn, hotate, maguro uni & akamai (lean toro). after I later tried the very good quality sushi at Daikokuya 大黑屋 kaiten (conveyor belt) sushi, I had to agree with her that you could get equal or better quality sushi at much lower price but of course ambience and view was a world apart. 🙂

her set also included the vinegared crab dish & miso soup.

8-items sushi moriwase

for the course dinner, we had a 8-item sushi platter-maguro, saba, akamai, hotate, amaebi, uni, ikura (small ones) & anago. It was good but same observations as my daughter. 🙂

was the dinner worth it? my daughter’s set cost 2730yen=S$30++. good kaiten sushi not withstanding, S$30++ for a plump, succulent, sweet hokkaido crab claw + 10 piece sushi including akamai, uni, anago, ikura, hotate would really be nothing to complain about in Singapore.

the 7-course dinner cost 6090yen=S$67++. here with kinki & kuroge wagyu thrown in, I would say it was still a very good set c/w say Kuriya Dining which offer very good monthly S$88++ set but my usual eat at Mikuni would beat this hands down in terms of overall satisfaction if not value of ingredients. 🙂

& that was before factoring in the free view of Shinjuku night skyline, privacy & quiet ambience.

c.h.e.f andy

Ganso Sushi: Shinjuku Kaiten(Conveyor Belt) 元祖寿司 on 12Apr2013

Posted on April 12, 2013 by chefquak

uni (sea urchin) sushi on 12Apr2013

Today is my rest day. The trips to Takaosan & Enoshima-Kamakura the last 2 days were rather tiring, each entailed >5hrs of walking on my injured toes. 🙂 Today I plan only to stroll around Shinjukugoen to catch any remnants of sakura flowering and later to pick up the All Nikko Pass from Tobu Pass Office at MB1 of Shinjuku Centre Building.

Ganso Sushi: Shinjuku Kaiten(Conveyor Belt) 元祖寿司

I was passing this kaiten sushi (回旋寿司) place on the way to Shinjukugoen. The first kaiten sushi I tried this trip was kind of disappointing, this fortunately though turned out to be much better. 🙂

kaiten sushi at corner from Shinjuku South Exit to Sunroute Hotel

kaiten sushi at corner from Shinjuku 1-chome

Like the other kaiten sushi shops, there was a powdered tea box where you dished out tea powder (I picked the toasted rice tea 玄米茶 ) & added hot water from the tap, and you can help yourself with the pickled ginger (see above photo).

I ordered the following sushi items-

uni (sea urchin) – 262yen
2xhamachi (yellow tail) – 2x130yen
ebi (prawn – don’t know what type, I only know amaebi, akaebi & botan ebi – this though was as large as botan ebi) – 130yen
ika (squid) – 130yen
anago (sea eel or conger eel) – 130yen

Total cost = 912yen for 12 pieces, about S$12nett.

The uni (top photo) was above average, good helping, sweet & not dry but not the very creamy melt in the mouth bursting with flavour kind, definitely good value for 262yen! 🙂

uni (sea urchin) sushi 0n 13Apr2013

I went back again the next day (13Apr2013) and this time the uni was very creamy & sweet, very good indeed, so do note the freshness & standard may vary a bit. 🙂

The hamachi standard was inconsistent. The one on the above right photo was excellent. The one of the left was just ok. I could not tell from just looking at them.

ebi sushi

The prawn sushi was good. It was large but not as sweet tasting & plump as botan ebi (which is very expensive in Singapore like 3pieces for S$25)

The ika was good not great. So was the anago. This the cheaper version. I did not take the 262yen ones which were like 2 times the size (in length). maybe I should have!

It was a really great sushi lunch and at very low cost of just S$12nett! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

	Nicholas B on Below Expectations – Cir…
	chefquak on 8th HCA 3 Dishes 35pax Lunch f…
	chefquak on Good Claypot Liver & Zicha…
	Christabel on Good Claypot Liver & Zicha…
	Sasha Blackwell on 8th HCA 3 Dishes 35pax Lunch f…
	Kelly on Grandson 1st Month Celebration…
	chefquak on Grandson 1st Month Celebration…
	Kelly on Grandson 1st Month Celebration…
	Singapore Food Blogs… on Belly Pork Alio Olio and Mala…
	hyacinthus on Teochew Fried Crayfish with Eg…

c.h.e.f

cook.hangout.eat.fun

Tag Archives: anago

Early Anniversary Mini Kaiseki Dinner @ Maru 丸 on 31May2018

Excellent Chirashi Don Set @ Kuriya Dining on 9Jun2015

A Tale of 2 Dinners Part 2 The Good Ending – A Marvellous Kaiseki Dinner @ Gettoan on 26Jan2015

Sumptuous Alluring Omakase @ Hachi on 22Nov2014

Very Good Chirashi Don Set @ Sumiya on 13Nov2014

Fabulous Omakase Lunch @ GOTO on 1Oct2014

Asahi Sushi Shinjuku Sumitomo 50F Course Dinner on 9Apr2013

Ganso Sushi: Shinjuku Kaiten(Conveyor Belt) 元祖寿司 on 12Apr2013

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: