With travel resuming, many people have immediately booked their tickets to go to Japan. For me, the one thing I miss the most is the fantastic kaiseki dinner staying in the onsen hotel. In Hong Kong, there are not many restaurants serving kaiseki, and my best experience was Kashiwaya. Unfortunately, it was no longer in business. The good thing is that their chef, Teruhiko Nagamoto, has re-opened a restaurant under his own name earlier this year, at the same location, but adopting a more kappo cuisine style.
We came here on a Wednesday evening, and there were only four customers including us so we could enjoy the full attention throughout the dinner. Located on 8/F 18 On Lan Street, the restaurant has completely renovated, with a long L-shape wooden table looking at a preparation station. The soft lighting, beautiful flower arrangements (by the chef himself), and the high-end yet comfortable ambience wins us over versus the more traditional setting in Kashiwaya.
Before starting the November Menu ($2,380), I ordered a pot of In Autunno Porcini ($550), an interesting sake from Fukuoka 三井の寿. This seasonal ‘Autumn Sake’ has unique fragrance which to me reminded me a bit of a slightly aged sake, and as its label shows, a bit of mushroom character. With nice acidity it pairs well with the different courses serving up.
The Sakizuke 先付け is 雲子酒煮 舞茸 芹. The Shirako, or Cod Milt, comes from Hokkaido, with creamy texture and delicate in taste, having a touch of plum paste to increase the flavours. The seasonal Maitake Mushroom has a nice earthy tone, and on the side is Seri, or Japanese Parsley, crunchy in texture. The chef also deep-fried its roots to make good use of the whole vegetable, with all the ingredients harmonized through a homemade yuzu vinegar sauce.
The Kae 替え is 鮪漬 長芋 菊菜. Featuring Akami Zuke, with the Lean Tuna having marinated in soy sauce for 7-8 minutes, to highlight the umami flavours, with a touch of yellow mustard to further enhance its complexity in taste. The two white pieces is Nagaimo, or Chinese Yam, crunchier in texture and a bit sweeter than the type of yam we often use, having good balance with the savoury taste of the tuna. Pair with the homemade egg yolk vinegar sauce, the chef also adds some Kikura, or Vegetable Chrysanthemum, which tastes similar to crown daisy, with some edible chrysanthemum flowers to decorate.
While his assistants are explaining to us how to make dashi, Chef Nagamoto prepares a tasting experience for us. He pours a small portion of the Kombu Soup, which has been boiled for 12 hours, in a shot glass. Its original taste has a bit of saline and seaweed flavours but very delicate. Next, we eat one piece of the bonito flake on its own, and it does not have much taste as well. But when mixing the flake in the kombu soup for a few seconds, and then drinking together, the umami flavours are much more intense and apparent. Chef Nagamoto then pour in a large amount of bonito flake into the kombu stock, which is no longer heated, and then sieve to get the first run dashi for the next course. The remaining dashi is taken back into the kitchen, where the chef uses filter bags to squeeze out all the essences for other usage.
The Nimono 煮物椀 is 吹き寄せ真蒸 蕪 椎茸 人參. Upon opening the beautifully painted bowl, the citrus fragrance permeates from the nice yuzu peel. In the soup there is a Homemade Fish Cake embedding shrimp, wood ear, pine nuts, chestnuts, and gingko. On the side is the Japanese Turnip, with sweet taste and very juicy. Coupled with a nice piece of Shiitake Mushroom, and a piece of Carrot that has been artfully cut into a maple leaf shape, the soup is very delicious and reminded me of the times traveling in Japan enjoying some of the best experiences in my life.
The Tsukuri 造り has Ika (Squid), Hirame (Olive Flounder), and Taichio (Largehead Hairtail). The reason this is not referred as sashimi because in the Kansai dialect, sashimi sounds similar to an unlucky word, so people changed to call it tsukurimi, which evolved to tsukuri now, and is normally used when the sashimi is presented in a platter. The fantastic knife skills in cutting the squid many times on the surface helps to break the texture making it soft and not chewy, and the delicate and sweet taste of the flounder is also great. The best among the three is the largehead hairtail, with the skin slightly grilled to bring forth the aromas of fish oil making it highly appealing. The different condiment and dipping sauce also show the chef paid attention in matching flavours. The Boufuu is a touch of care, with the herbal leaf good to repel the ‘cold’ from eating the raw ingredients.
The Oshinogi 御凌ぎ is a course with small amount of filling ingredients arranged in the middle of the course. The chef has prepared 姫寿司, with the Katsuo Sushi added with a bit of shiso flowers and grated ginger as condiment, plus the homemade yuzu sauce. On the side is the pickled O-Kabu, the large Japanese Turnip, to accompany as a complement to cleanse the palate afterwards.
The Hassun 八寸 is a gorgeous feast of seasonal ingredients, including 鮑軟煮 鮑肝 海胆 蟹味噌和え ギャビア 蓮根煎餅 柿なます 胡麻だれ. The upper left is the Miyagi Abalone and Liver, paired with Hokkaido Bafun Sea Urchin, on some Hokkaido Rock Seaweed. Moving to the upper right is the Lotus Rice Cake, with abundance of Female Snow Crab Meat on top, with some Caviar to supplement. The lower right is Persimmon Salad with Homemade Sesame Sauce, plus some Pickled Shredded Cucumber, Carrot and Turnip. The last one is Snow Crab Roes and Yolk, accompanied with skirt of the Olive Flounder. Not only is the combination of colours a wonderful presentation, the different texture and flavours are simply unstoppable.
The Yakimono 焼物 is 鰤塩焼 柴漬卸し. The Mature Japanese Yellowtail has been grilled and seasoned with salt, perfectly done keeping the flesh moist while the surface is crispy. With the Pickled Eggplant and Cucumber helping to remove the heavy mouthfeel from the rich fish oil of the Buri. I also order another pot of Kokuryu 黒龍 純吟 ($550) to go with the remaining dishes.
Coming to Hachimono 鉢物, it is 和牛 海老芋 水菜.The chef uses the shabu-shabu cooking at low temperature of 68 deg Celsius to lightly blanch the Wagyu Beef. On the side is the Ebi-imo, with the yam deep-fried, having a powdery and tender texture, and the Mizuna which has a slight peppery note. The beef certainly is very delicious while not fatty, with a melting-in-mouth texture, but I would say the Shrimp Taro actually taste even better than the beef. Really fantastic.
Coming towards the end, the Shokuji 食事 has 秋鮭きのこ釜御飯 いくら 味噌汁 漬物. The rice is cooked in traditional claypot, using Yamagata rice which has a good bite on the outside while the interior is soft. There are also Autumn Salmon, Salmon Roes, Enoki, and Hiratake Mushroom, added to it. The taste is so good I cannot resist and have a total of four servings. There are also pickles, including the Kombu used to prepare the dashi earlier, Hakusai marinated with plum to infuse with the fragrance, and the stems of Japanese Turnip, making full use of every part of the ingredients to good effect. A warming Miso Soup to go with the rice helps to complete the wonderful shokuji.
For dessert, 甘味と抹茶, it starts with 季節の果物 with refreshing seasonal fruit of Pear with White Wine Jelly, Shine Muscat, Kyoho Grapes and Raspberry, with some Pomegranate Seeds. The other dessert is 栗粉餅, with the bottom layer being the Hokkaido Red Beans Paste, follow by Pumpkin Dumplings and Mashed Chestnut on top. There is also the Matcha to go with the dessert, which is prepared in the traditional way.
The service is very good, with the three staff very friendly, and able to explain in great details the different elements of seasonal ingredients, cooking techniques, and other interesting facts. They are able to make all the customers feel important and treasured, which is not common in Hong Kong. The bill on the night is $6,446 and it is definitely worth the price. And I cannot resist but to immediately book my second visit in a few days, to enjoy the special snow crab menu, which is available for two weeks only.
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