Frankly I rarely go to TKO, with prior visits basically just to see one of my best friends, who had moved to UK for a year already. Today we paid a special visit to The Parkside, not to see the nice apartments in the neighborhood, but to enjoy a teppanyaki dinner.
Arriving early evening, we were the first group of customers. The first thing that got my attention was the large fish tank in the main dining area, featuring some live seafood. There are also a few private rooms, each with their own teppanyaki station. Seated in one of those, it is quite spacious and comfortable, with nice décor but nothing extravagant.
I had pre-ordered the Omakase Menu ($1,940 each), to be served by Chef Terufumi Mihara himself. The staff then brought us the ingredients on the night, featuring a wide assortment of seasonal, very fresh delicacies from Japan.
For starter we were served a Salad. On the appearance it was rather ‘no-frill’, with mix of vegetables, corn, and cherries tomatoes added with a white cheese dressing, as well as a bit of crab meat. The taste was true to the look, quite simple too.
Next came Chawanmushi, the traditional Japanese steamed egg custard. I liked how the chef had paid a lot attention in beautifully presenting it. To me, this looked like a painting featuring a flower (salmon roes) with leaves, with a piece of shiitake mushroom on the side reminding me of a mountain in the background, all on a yellow canvas. The taste was also good, with nice umami from the dashi in the egg custard. The shrimp also provided a nice bite to the silky texture.
Witnessing Chef Mihara in action, he started with King Crab, or Tarabagani. After grilling briefly, he removed the thick crab meat from the shell, adding a touch of butter and soy sauce to season. Cutting to bite sizes, the crab meat was served on a lotus leaf, together with a delicious sauce prepared from brown meat and miso, before adding some shiso flowers on top. The crab meat was very sweet, every bite giving me a wonderful, luxurious enjoyment on palate. The sauce also was in perfect harmony with the crab meat, not masking its delicate taste but enhancing the total flavors. Really good.
Next course was Eel, or Unagi. Pressing the skin down repeatedly on the teppan to make sure it was evenly grilled, Chef Mihara was able to make the skin crispy while the meat still soft. With a bit of the thick eel sauce added, the sweet and savory notes was pleasant. The white corns however were a bit old and fibrous.
Then it was Surf Clam, or Hokkigai. Again, they were very fresh, with the chef separating the skirt from the main body to grill separately, to ensure not overcooking this thinner part. He also cleverly heated the shell to hold the clam meat, adding a rich mushroom sauce to accompany. On the side was a piece of maitake mushroom. While the clam was sweet and matching surprisingly well with the mushroom sauce, the texture was a bit too chewy, especially if compared to eating them raw in sushi restaurant. I think the ingredient itself was good, but perhaps it was not the best option for teppanyaki style.
Coming to the sixth course, the Australia Lobster, or Isaebi, was extremely lively, still moving intermittently after being cut in halves. The chef asked the staff to bring the head to the kitchen to prepare a soup, while grilling the tail briefly to remove the meat from the shell. Adding some butter in the grilling process to make it even more fragrant, he also mixed with some soy sauce to increase the umami taste. It was done perfectly, fully cooked but not a touch over to make the meat rubbery. The lobster sauce paired was also delicious.
The chef then started grilling the Tilefish, or Amadai. Using the signature method to prepare this fish fillet, he fried the scales making them stand up, with a crisp bite, while the flesh was able to remain soft, a testament to the chef’s skill. In serving, the chef put the fish on a piece of radish that had been simmered in a parsley broth, before adding a piece of grilled green chili on top. The broth had a nice fragrant from the herbs, intense in flavors from the daikon as well as the diced bacon, and I finished every drop at the end.
Before preparing the Abalone, or Awabi, the chef asked how full we were, as he could add another abalone for us. Knowing that there were still beef and rice coming, and the Aomori black abalone was large, we decided to just share one among ourselves. The sliced abalone was perfect on texture, with a nice bite but not too chewy. I also like the sour buttery seaweed sauce which cleverly use the tartness to balance the heavy creamy body. The chef also served the liver and paired that with some charred garlic condiments.
Next was Wagyu Beef from Miyazaki, with the prized cut seared beautifully, and cooking to our requested doneness. The beef was juicy and tender, caramelized on the surface. Together with some deep-fried garlic slices, salt and black pepper, the taste was fantastic, truly delivering the wonders of wagyu beef but not overly fatty. The chef further added some Hokkaido Sea Urchin, or Uni, on the side to create a contemporary surf and turf. The sea urchin was very good, sweet and while seem out of place initially, did match quite well with the beef overall.
Coming to Fried Rice, I was puzzled to see the staff took from the kitchen some steaming hot rice, unlike most other teppanyaki where overnight ones were preferred. I got to know the reason when Chef Mihara spread the rice on the teppan to make a pillow-shaped onigiri, and instead of stir-frying, he began pan-frying on both sides after mixing with some minced garlic. Seasoned with a bit of charred soy sauce, he also prepared a pan-fried egg, and then serving everything in a bowl, with some spring onion and condiments of sesame and charred garlic mix. Quite a different experience, the taste was decent, but I would perhaps prefer the fried rice we usually got. Serving on the side was the Miso Soup using the lobster head to prepare, and it was very sweet in taste.
For dessert it was a Brown Sugar Pudding with Warabimochi and Red Beans. The pudding was very soft, while the mochi had the signature gummy texture which I liked, an interesting contrast. The red beans and the black sugar sauce provided the right sweetness to the mochi, but the pudding was a bit too sweet comparatively. Still a nice finale to the meal.
Throughout the meal I asked Chef Mihara some questions and was surprised how well he could answer in Cantonese. While he briefly explained the main ingredients of each course, he was quite quiet and to me perhaps lacking the interactions. I think that was a downside sometimes with a Japanese chef. The bill was $4,342 and the price was reasonable. A good choice for people in the neighborhood who want teppanyaki with high quality ingredients, but perhaps might not prompt me to come all the way if living far away.
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