Tag Archives: ohmi

Our Favourite Yakiniku @ Aburiya on 6Oct2014

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ohmi wagyu beef set

ohmi wagyu beef set – S$39.95

went to aburiya for dinner with wife & daughter on 6.10.2014. 🙂

i had an excellent dinner here last on 19.3.2014. today was just as good! 🙂

yakiniku

yakiniku

aburiya yakiniku

aburiya yakiniku

sake

sake

kimchi chigae

kimchi chigae – S$11.90

kimchi chigae

kimchi chigae – S$11.90

bibimen

bibimen – S$12.90

we ordered our usuals – kimchi chigae & bibimen. i love both these dishes.

kimchi chigae always so tasty, with some slices of thin belly pork. i love the kurobuta kimchi nabe at shirokiya @ cuppage terrace but for a simple small helping of kimchi chigae, aburiya’s is the best.

bibimen is something i come to like because my wife prefers it to bibimbap. now i get to like everything about it, flavours, texture. 🙂

ohmi wagyu beef set

ohmi wagyu beef set – S$39.90

we decided to order the ohmi wagyu beef set (above & top photo). it looked marbled, tasted good, but somehow not quite matching our expectations of the intense marbled flavours of 1 of the 3 best kuroge wagyu (黑毛和牛) in japan, along with kobe & matsuzaka. somehow the last time we had the cheaper hokkaido wagyu here on 19.3.2014, it left a more lasting impression. maybe it’s better just to order karubi or jo-karubi than to have the tokumori mixed set.

for me tajimaya@vivocity’s wagyu was pricy but good too only if there is amex 50% discount, but they did not have the kimchi chigae & bibimen we liked here, so the enjoyment was not the same. 🙂

jo karubi negi (prime short ribs with leek)

karubi negi (short ribs with leek) – S$11.90

we had the cheap australian angus karubi negi (short ribs with leek). it was quite ok. anyway we had always liked it before we started trying the wagyu here.

kurobuta & iberia pork set

kurobuta & iberia pork set – S$25

kurobuta & iberia pork set

kurobuta & iberia pork set – S$25

we tried the kurobuta & iberia pork set this time. it was really good. certainly better than the karubi. i think overall our enjoyment of the pork was more than even the ohmi tokumori set, not that the ohmi was poor.

the bill

the bill

the bill came to S$143 nett for 3pax including a bottle of sake. quite ok for a very enjoyable dinner. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

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Excellent Yakiniku Dinner @ Aburiya on 19Mar2014

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hokkaido wagyu jo karubi (prime ribs)

hokkaido wagyu jo karubi (prime short ribs)

had an excellent yakiniku dinner at aburiya on 19.3.2014. 🙂

had not been there for a while..just checked my blog & it was almost a year ago that i had dinner at aburiya on 26.3.2013.

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jo karubi (prime short ribs)

karubi negi (ribs with leeks)

karubi negi

yakiniku

yakiniku

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yakiniku

the prices had gone up slightly. we basically ordered similar food. for this evening the jo karubi (S$15.90) was not that great but the cheaper karubi (S$10.90) was good. we also added hokkaido jo karubi (S$21.90) which was excellent, nicely marbled and very flavourful. they did not have the ohmi wagyu though it was on the menu.

bibimen

bibimen

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kimchi chigae

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kimchi chigae

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ice sake

we always ordered the bibimen & kimchi chigae. both were very good. 🙂

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aburiya

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aburiya

the inside tables were mostly taken up at 7pm. there were still quite many tables available outdoors.

the dinner including sake (S$15) added up to S$105 for 2pax, not cheap but it was very enjoyable. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Good Quality Lunch Kaiseki @ Hachi on 17Jan2014

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kobachi (amuse bouche)

kobachi (amuse bouche)

had a good quality lunch omakase at hachi with my wife on 17.1.2014. see also the excellent dinner omakase on 9.11.2013. 🙂

omakase is like a chef’s table, no menu but usually follows the course preparations for kaiseki. the chef selects the “freshest” ingredients of the day, checks whether you have dietary restrictions & supposedly dishes out an excellent meal to you…well they usually do..

we ordered the S$68pax lunch omakase & the S$88pax ohmi wagyu omakase.

#1 we had a very good amuse bouche of tofu toped with ikura & yuzu jelly.

sensai platter

sensai platter

sashimi moriawase (shima aji, tai, hamachi)

sashimi moriawase (shima aji, tai, hamachi)

#2 next we had a sensai (前菜) dish = tofu, sweet black beans, tasty egg plant, some vegetables & nice barley miso.

#3 a sashimi platter of shim aji, tai & hamachi followed. they were sweet & fresh, but not comparable with the sashimi in the superb kuriya dining lunch kaiseki we had on 16.11.2013.

miso soup with mochi & chicken

miso soup with mochi & chicken

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tempura

tempura

gohan (rice) set

gohan (rice) set

my wife took the lunch omakase.

#4 a tasty miso flavourful & intense was served, with chicken & kochi.

#5 then came a large oyster sashimi (S$12 ala carte). this was similar to what we had for the dinner omakase & it was very good. 🙂

#6 next was tempura, good quality batter, and #7 the gohan set.

ohmi wagyu tataki

ohmi wagyu tataki

shabu ohmi wagyu

shabu ohmi wagyu

shabu ohmi wagyu

shabu ohmi wagyu

grilled ohmi wagyu

grilled ohmi wagyu

grilled ohmi wagyu

grilled ohmi wagyu

wagyu gohan set

wagyu gohan set

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for my ohmi wavy omakase, i had #4 ohmi wagyu tataki. it was good, very sweet & tasty.

#5 i liked the shabu ohmi wagyu as well. its like the korean bulgogi or gyudon sliced beef but good quality & w/o the overpowering teriyaki sauce. 🙂

#6 there was also the grilled ohmi wagyu steak. the wagyu was not very marbled, but still very enjoyable & my wife preferred less marbled wagyu.

#7 the gohan set had wagyu tips, small chopped pieces. a very nice rice indeed. i though maybe i could try this dish at home actually to complete a good meal. 🙂

kuro goma (black sesame) ice cream

kuro goma (black sesame) ice cream

#8 we had the black sesame ice cream – must say i was getting tired of this or the macha ice cream & would have preferred yuzu flavour instead. 🙂

i would still rate kuriya dining’s S$58 kaiseki lunch over hachi’s S$68 omakase but not by much really, so i would go back for both. if one has a fix for ohmi wagyu i guess the wagyu omakase (which i do) is an excellent choice, otherwise the S$20 upgrade to tokusen sashimi at kuriya dining would be the one i go for.

c.h.e.f andy

Excellent Omakase @ Hachi on 9Nov2013

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excellent kobachi (小钵) -amuse bouche

excellent kobachi (小钵) -amuse bouche

we had an immensely satisfying omakase dinner for 3pax at hachi on 9.11.2013. 🙂

omakase is like a chef’s table. there is no menu & the chef dishes out the freshest ingredients of the day. generally it is done like a kaiseki course dinner. at hachi we were served a 12-course autumn-theme dinner. the restaurant asked whether we had diet restrictions, as was customary. we of course ate anything & everything..haha. 🙂

the first dish was an excellent kobachi like an amuse bouche. i can’t really remember what it was except for the slice of japanese persimon sticking out. 🙂

sensai (前菜) platter - tofu, ginko nuts, a momiji (maple) flour cake. chestnut etc

sensai (前菜) platter – tofu, ginko nuts, a momiji (maple) flour cake. chestnut etc

sashimi moriawase (shima aji, hirame, hotate, kampachi)

sashimi moriawase (shima aji, hirame, hotate, kampachi)

oyster

raw oyster

sensai (前菜) platter was lovely – tofu, ginko nuts, chestnut & a momiji (maple) flour cake etc befitting the occasion.

next was a dobin mushi (teapot soup) which was simple & nice. didn’t take a photo though!

the sashimi moriawase consisting of shima aji, hirame, hotate, kampachi was excellent, very fresh & sweet. 🙂

we also had a very large plump juicy oyster. very good indeed!

hamachi kama (fish cheeks)

hamachi kama (fish cheeks)

steamed crabmeat, tofu, seaweed, melon dish

simmered crabmeat, tofu, seaweed, melon dish

ohmi wagyu rare

ohmi wagyu rare

hokkaido tomatoes

hokkaido tomatoes

light noodles with tempura batter

light noodles with tempura batter

next up was the hamachi kama (fish cheeks). this was among the best for this evening. i don’t order kama at japanese restaurants because it is usually quite a large helping & not everyone likes it. for this evening though it was excellent, 1 of the best kama i had, very well marinated, sweet (not too sweet) & tasty. we all liked it. 🙂

next was a simmered dish of crabmeat, tofu, seaweed, melon etc, delicate & tasty.

following that we were served ohmi wagyu (ohmi is 1 of the top 3 kuroge wagyu after matsuzaka & kobe) – the highlight of the evening. it was very flavourful & a nice rare. after that we had hokkaido tomatoes. they were super, sweet & refreshing. these are now served in many restaurants in Hong Kong & Singapore & xiyan served them as a starter dish in their rather expensive course meals.

to round off the meal, we had, in place of the usual gohan set (rice & pickles), a light noodle with some tempura batter. it was very satisfying.  after that we had a nice macha ice cream. 🙂

the price of the omakase was S$118pax. it was very good in quality of cooking & ingredients & also quantity. it was certainly a much better deal c/w the S$138pax kaiseki at kuriya dining & the S$170pax kaiseki at keyaki. c/w mikuni at 50% FAR discounts and Andy’s kaiseki (in jest only la! haha), mikuni was still the better deal. still hachi was an excellent alternative for good japanese kaiseki. will certainly be back. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Great Lunch Kaiseki @ Hokkaido Sushi on 4Oct2013

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kagoshima wagyu 3 small pieces

kagoshima wagyu 3 small pieces

hokkaido sushi at M Hotel had a wagyu kaiseki groupon promotion. i always like hokkaido sushi but it is kind of ex w/o promotions. 🙂

they had the S$46.50 for 7-Course kagoshima wagyu sirloin kaiseki & a S$62.80 5-course kagoshima & ohmi wagyu set. there were 6 of us & we arranged to have the S$46.50 lunch. they charged S$1 for refillable tea & S$0.50 water, quite fair. 🙂

pitan tofu with tobiko

pitan tofu with tobiko

sashimi moriawase

sashimi moriawase

ebi & fish tempura

ebi & fish tempura

ginkarei shioyaki

ginkarei shioyaki

kagoshima wagyu

kagoshima wagyu

bara chirashi don

bara chirashi don

the 7 courses included a pitan tofu with tobiko (flying fish roe), and it was very well done here, as always. next was a sashimi moriawase. this time there was no botan ebi, being replaced by a small truffle kampichi item. the other sashimi – salmon, hamachi, tai & maguro were all good, very fresh & sweet. 🙂

the fish + 2 ebi tempura were good, nothing special. the ginkarei shioyaki was very good, and a good helping too. the kagoshima wagyu (star of the show) was very good, but a very small helping just 3 pieces. the bara chirashi don with salmon, tai & ikura toppings was good too, though not special. it was really 6 course & not 7 (they just count the soup as 1 course). 🙂

i thought it was very good value, though a smaller set c/w with previous offers & having kagoshima wagyu replaced a bigger portion of australian wagyu.

truffle sashimi

truffle kampachi

kagoshima wagyu & ohmi wagyu

kagoshima wagyu & ohmi wagyu

wagyu fried rice

wagyu fried rice

i had earlier gone for a lunch with my family & 2 of us took the $62.80 set. the truffle kampachi was ok but i thought the cheaper set sashimi moriawase which then included 1 botan ebi was far better. when it came to wagyu though, there were both kagoshima wagyu & the more ex & fatty ohmi wagyu sirloin & a good portion (100g) & they were just fabulous. when the promotion is back i will certainly do it again especially the ohmi wagyu set. it is best paired with the cheaper 7-course set to share among 2pax. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy