This sushi restaurant is located in Yuen Long, but also have another outlet in Hung Hom so it is important to ensure you have booked the right one. Coming on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, there are two sessions and we have chosen the earlier one starting at 6:30 to 8:30pm. Arriving on time we saw almost all the customers were waiting to get in, with the restaurant having a full house on the night.
The interior decor is rather typical and standard for a sushi restaurant, but there were two sushi tables, with us unfortunately being assigned to the secondary one, a tiny separated space in a corner. I feel sorry for the chef who had to prepare the sushi behind the tiny space, not even allowing him to turn, and a lot of the foodstuff actually need to be transferred from the main sushi bar after the other chef had completed, before passing to this bar for handling. Quite a bad experience in my opinion for those seated at this secondary table.
I ordered a bottle of sake, and asked the staff to recommend one for me. I finally picked Daishichi Kimoto 大七 純米生酛 ($700), which is a famous sake brewery from Fukushima. Like many of their counterparts, the brewery has a special label designed to show the dedication of the people to fight the current coronavirus. I found this sake to be a good match with many of the 'heavier' food on the night. Overall a nice sake of good value.
Ordering the Omakase Menu ($2000 each) the first course is Chawanmushi 茶碗蒸. Great in presentation, on the surface there are some gold flakes which definitely highlight the premium of the dish, with also some black truffle providing additional fragrance. The egg is silky and delicious, the umami taste intense, in particular with the additional of obashira, the 'stem' of the scallops, is very nice.
Next came the different Otsukuri お造り, starting with Karei 鰈, a type of Japanese flat fish or flounder, with the mouth on the right side of the body so many people calling them 'Right Mouth'. The chef has cut the flesh thinly and then sprinkled with some lime to freshen up the palate, and then adding the skirt of the fish after lightly torching to bring out the fish oil and flavors. As recommended by the chef, after adding wasabi to the skirt it helps to reduce the oiliness and make it even better.
Then it was two different fish, on the right being Shima-aji 縞鯵, and the left being Farmed Saba 鯖. The shima-aji got a richer taste than the karei earlier, enhanced also by the soy sauce the chef lightly brushed on top. The saba is torched to bring out also the fish oil, and without any fishy note this type of fish generally exhibit.
Next is Raw Oyster 真牡蠣, with the chef putting in a vinegar sauce, then putting in some finely chopped chives and shiso flowers. The oyster is creamy, with some nice briny taste but not fishy, balanced well with the sour of the vinegar.
Then it is Kegani ケガニ, or horsehair crab. The chef has meticulously removed the meat from the crab, and then put together with some crab yolk on top. The rich taste of the crab yolk enhanced the delicate sweetness of the crab meat to the next level, and I prefer not even dipping in the crab vinegar sauce to enjoy the true authentic taste. One of my favorites in the evening.
Next is another of my favorites in the evening. Seeing the shiny Sanma さんま, or Pacific Saury, when the chef prepares already won me over with its freshness. Carefully removing the bones and cutting into smaller pieces, the chef put some bonito flakes on the plate before putting the sanma on top, then adding some finely chopped Japanese leek. Mixing together, the sanma is truly rich in taste and the added fragrance from the leek, and the interesting texture offered by the bonito flakes made this a creative and good dish.
Finishing the six otsukuri, next we were served the daily specials. First is the Grilled Wagyu Beef, nicely seared on the outside while having a medium roast inside, juicy and full of flavors. I like they are not fatty and having wonderful taste, and adding a tiny bit of yuzukusho further enhanced the complexity. After the beef eating the sweet and fleshy Momotoro tomato is also a nice complement.
Seeing the chef took out a clay urn, he then removed the Braised Abalone and cut it in halves, then put on top of the homemade special abalone liver sauce with a ball of rice together. Having tried this in different sushi restaurants, while the abalone is tender and nice, I found the sauce not as rich and intense as most of the other ones I tried. Good still, but not as impressive as I hope.
Before proceeding to the sushi, the chef has prepared the prime Otoro. A generous big piece, the chef torched the outside to liven the fish oil and made the fish even more fragrant. Personally I am not a big fan of the fatty tuna but following the chef's recommendation to add a bit more wasabi to the fish helps to balance and neutralize the oiliness.
The first sushi served was one of my favorites, Shiroebi 白海老, or Baby White Shrimp. Coming from Toyama, I always failed to understand how the shell of these shrimps could be removed as they are so small. But on the taste it is pure heaven, with the sweet and creamy texture of the shrimps truly a wonder. A must-try if you have not experienced it, and once you had that, I am sure you would order whenever it is available.
Next was Kinmedai 金目鯛, or Splendid Alfonso. The meat of this deep water fish is having a beautiful pinkish color, with delicate and tender texture. With a light brush of soy sauce, the chef was able to bring out the umami flavors of the fish to a good degree. A nice piece.
Having the Otoro earlier, the chef prepares this Chu-toro sushi with a twist, putting some purple sea urchin on top, along with some caviar. A premium edition certainly, the different texture and flavors did blend quite well, and I can imagine this will appeal to many customers. Personally though, I am more a traditional person who prefer to enjoy the original taste of each of them separately.
Then it was another prized fish, Kurosutsu クロムツ, or Japanese Bluefish. The taste and texture of this fish reminds me of the Kinmedai, but having a heavier fat contents and richer flavors. Eating this one did bring a sense of joy to me for no reason. Another of my favorite sushi on the night.
Coming to the fifth sushi, it was something I had many times but first being used to prepare a sushi: Gindara 銀だら, or Black Cod. Normally used to do a grill dish with miso, I found the fish to be quite fat as expected, with the chef torched the surface a bit to again liven up the fish oil. The texture is tender, and overall it is good in taste too.
The chef then put some rice in a small dish and scooped up some Ikura いくら, or Salmon Roes. Marinated quite well, the salmon roes are not too salty, and on each bite the juice is tasty and eating together with the sushi rice a wonderful treat. The main issue for me is the texture of the roes, being too tough and chewy. Not sure this is how it supposed to be, but at least not in my experience.
Nearing the end we were served the two uni sushi, with the first being Kurouni 紫うに, or Purple Sea Urchin, from Mexico. Very sweet in taste, the sea urchin is certainly very good, and no surprise that this sushi restaurant has a reputation for uni.
The other uni sushi is same Kurouni, but this one is wild from Japan, and the chef told us that the restaurant had to place a high bid to secure that in the market. The color is darker and while equally sweet as the last one, this sea urchin is more flavorful. No wonder it can fetch such a high price internationally.
The chef then brought a Fish Miso Soup to all of us. Very rich and intense in taste, this to me may be the best dish on the night, with the soup boiling hot, with the right amount of chives to bring in fragrance. A sense of warmth and content passed through the body after drinking, it is a good finale to the meal before the dessert.
The dessert is a piece of Melon, sweet and juicy. And together with some Black Sugar Mochi concludes our meal. I would say the service is decent, but our chef comparatively was too quiet, apart from introducing briefly each of the dish did not try to have conversations with the customers. Hearing how on the other sushi table the laughter and explanation we feel greatly let down on the other table.
The cost on the night was $5,170 which is not cheap considering the food, the dining experience and even the location of the restaurant itself. For that amount there are so many choices which in my opinion provide better value.
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