This restaurant is located at Standard Chartered Bank Building in Central. The first section after the entrance is a bar and walking through another sliding door is the main dining area, with a teppanyaki counter on one side, and a sushi counter on the other, where we are seated on the night, served by Chef Sam.
Unlike the traditional sushiya, the lighting is quite dark to create a more contemporary dining experience. The very beautiful mural on the wall depicts two fish in a wash painting style. Using darker wood in the sushi counter to match with the ambience, the atmosphere is cozy and relaxing.
We order the Omakase Menu ‘松 Sho’ ($1,980), and a bottle of 釀し人九平次 別誂 純米大吟釀 ($1,280). There is a slight fizzy mouthfeel, with a sweetness of ripe fruit on the first sip, then evolve to umami with an elegant sourness to balance. Really a pleasant sake to pair with the food.
The Seasonal Appetizer is made from three types of prawns, including Botan-Ebi, Ama-Ebi, and Spanish Red Prawn, chopped to small pieces, with a bit of Caviar on top. The crunchy texture of spot prawn, sweetness of sweet shrimp, and the intense flavours of red prawn are highly complementary and enhanced the taste of each other.
Then comes six different kinds of sashimi. The first is Taraba-Gani タラバ蟹. The Hokkaido red king crab has a delicate taste, perfectly paired with some home-made vinegar jelly. The shiso flowers are a genius touch to give a bit of spicy note but not overpowering the flavours of the crab meat.
The second is Kue 九絵. The thinly sliced kelp grouper has been brushed with some white shoyu, with a delicate taste. The chef has marinated the finely chopped fish skin as seasoning to the sashimi, also providing a contrast of more chewy texture. The menegi, or spring onion sprouts, on top gives a touch of additional fragrance.
The third piece is Tsubugai 粒貝. Added with some yuzu shavings, salt, and a tiny bit of lime juice, the whelk has a crunchy bite, with the seasoning helping to freshen and highlight its natural umami flavours.
The fourth piece is Botan-Ebi 牡丹蝦. The spot prawn is from Hokkaido, with the chef using the Shaoxing wine to marinate briefly to enhance the flavours. On the side are the roes where a bit of mustard is added to season, with also a puree made from the brown meat, very intense on its flavours, to accompany.
The fifth piece is Katsuo 鰹. The chef has grilled the skipjack tuna using charcoal, vitalizing the fish oil on the skin and infusing it with a great fragrance, while leaving the inside raw. Paired with some deep-fried nori on top, with a puree prepared from onion, I found the onion puree surprisingly matching too.
The last sashimi piece is O-Toro 大とろ. The wild tuna is caught in Miyagi, and the chef has aged it for half a month to soften the texture. Having taken my wife’s share as well since she does not prefer the fatty tuna, the chef has added a marinated egg yolk, instead of using soy sauce, to season the tuna, with another surprisingly good effect. Rich in umami and flavours.
Next is Steamed Seasonal Oyster with Caviar. The Hokkaido Akkeshi oyster has only been steamed briefly, retaining a good degree of soft creamy texture just like a raw oyster. Adding a bit of caviar on top to increase the umami flavours, the chef also paired with a bit of vinegar as dressing.
While waiting for the next dish, the chef prepares a Pickled Daikon for us, which has been marinated with plum sauce and shiso leaves. A pleasant pickle to cleanse our palate for the subsequent course.
Then it is the Agemono Dish 揚げ物, or deep-fried food. The Ama-Dai 甘鯛 has been beautifully deep-fried, with the scales all becoming crispy and edible, while the flesh of the fish remains soft and juicy. It is paired with a morel sauce to give an earthy taste as well, with ginkgo on the side.
The Steamed Dish is Chawanmushi 茶碗蒸 with Fukahire 魚翅. The silky soft egg custard essentially slides down the throat, with a nice umami taste from the chicken broth in the egg custard. There is a piece of shark’s fin inside, with the crunchy texture a good contrast. One of the best dishes on the night.
The Suimono Dish 吸い物 is a highly flavourful and tasty clear broth with a piece of Ainame 鮎魚女. Drinking the soup brings me back the good memories of times spent in Japan. The fish is delicate in taste, with Matsutake 松茸 to add to the fragrance and Junsai 莼菜 to give a nice crunchy texture. Another of my favourites in the evening.
There are a total of six pieces of sushi. The first one is Ishigakigai 石垣貝. When the chef hits the Bering Sea cockle its muscle retracts, showing how fresh it is, with the crunchy texture and delicate sweetness very pleasing.
The second piece is Sayori 針魚. The chef has added a bit of yuzu kosho on the Japanese Halfbeak to add a bit of spicy note to the delicate taste, giving a bit more complexity but without masking its flavours.
The third piece is Sanma 秋刀魚. I always have a preference on the silvery fish and the Pacific Saury is one of my top picks. The chef has brushed with a special garlic soy sauce, with a bit of grated ginger and finely chopped spring onion, which are the perfect condiments for the fish.
The fourth piece is Marinated O-Toro. Instead of featuring the lean Akami Zuke, the chef has chosen to use the fatty tuna, with the soy sauce seeping into the outer part of the flesh only. Adding a bit of mustard as condiment, it has a completely different mouthfeel and flavours than the lean tuna, with the richer fish oil much more dominating.
The fifth piece is Ikura 筋子. Instead of using soy sauce to marinate the salmon roes, the chef has used miso instead, less salty with a bit more sweetness on the taste. I also like how the chef has prepared the sushi, showing good skills in kneading the irregular salmon roes without resorting to the gunkan sushi format.
The last piece is Uni 海栗, using two types: the red and white sea urchin, using a nori sheet to hold the sushi. The red sea urchin is farmed while the white one is wild, with a bit of different texture, yet both creamy and without any weird taste. Probably not exactly the best season for sea urchin now, it is however a bit mediocre in quality.
Included in the menu is Temaki 手巻, and the chef has prepared an Unagi 鰻 handroll. The grilled eel is very fragrant and the chef did not brush the special sauce during the grill process, only doing that upon finishing, so the flavours are not dominated by the sauce. The handroll also has sufficient shari to fill up the stomach so even for big eater like myself I do not feel hungry.
The Tamago 玉子 is quite nice, with the egg fluffy, having a nicely caramelized surface but not overly sweet, with a great balance of umami flavours, which I believe come from the seafood broth added to the egg mixture before baking.
The Yakimono 焼物 is served towards the end, featuring Wagyu Beef from Miyazaki, with slices of yurine, or lily bulb, on top, with also a green chili. The beef is tender and rich in flavours, melting in the mouth and a great finale for the meal on the night.
For dessert there are two kinds of Seasonal Fruit, including Persimmon and Melon. The persimmon is sweet and crunchy, while the melon is soft and juicy, providing a contrast in flavours and texture for the two fruits, another thoughtful arrangement.
Service is good, and the chef is interactive and introduce the different ingredients to us throughout the meal. I like how the team has developed different pairing in sauce with the food, showcasing a more fusion approach while not losing the characters of the main ingredient. The bill on the night is $5,764. A good place to explore another type of omakase experience.
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