This Japanese restaurant is located in Zing! in Yiu Wah Street, Causeway Bay. The decor is grand and modern, having nice soft seats as well as a sushi bar where you can see the chef busy at work preparing the dishes. We have chosen to take the sofa seats, which are comfortable and cozy. Although sacrificing the chance to see the skills of the chef, it allows more intimate conversation.
After ordering a nice sake to start, we decided to go for the omakase, choosing the premium Kishoku set which featured entree, 7 types of sashimi and 5 types of sushi. But before that, the staff provided us a complimentary appetizer of Crispy Codfish, which are codfish thinly sliced and then grilled to crispy. Dipped with mayonnaise it is certainly highly appealing and is a perfect complement to drinks.
The entree features three beautifully flavored starter. The first is small white shrimps seasoned lightly with soy sauce, which highlighted perfectly the original flavors of the shrimp. In the middle is the sea urchin with sea urchin tofu, supplemented with some vinegar jelly to enhance the overall taste. The sea urchin is very fresh and sweet as well. The last part is shredded crab meat lightly seasoned with salt. All three emphasized the true and original flavors to a phenomenal level. Amazing!
Next comes the sashimi, including snapper, conch, yellowtail, white fish, mackerel and oyster. The staff explained each of them and recommended the best way to enjoy them, with the snapper pairing great with the vinaigrette and chives. The conch is crunchy, giving good contrast in texture to the other sashimi. All of them are very fresh, as the mackerel would have a strong fishy smell and taste if it is not of the freshest. The oyster has a 'yakult' sauce which is interesting too.
If you count the types of sashimi in the last dish you would find there should still be one remaining. Yes, next comes the tuna which got the fatty and the lean flesh. The tuna is served with a piece of seaweed which can be used to wrap it with the basil leaf together. The fish oil essentially seep out upon biting into the flesh and is very delicious. Also interesting is the piece of cactus leaf which helps to cleanse the palate afterwards.
Finishing the sashimi we had the hot dish before transitioning to the salad and sushi. The hot dish includes deep-fried white noodle fish sprinkled with fine seaweed, as well as boiled spring vegetables. The tempura coating of the noodle fish is crisp and thin, not oily at all, demonstrating the high skills of the chef. The seasonal vegetables are tender, and boiled in the broth to impart great flavors to complement the original taste.
Then it was the salad, featuring the ice vegetable, a piece of juicy and flavorful tomato, along with a white wine jelly. The ice vegetable has its signature crunchy texture, seasoned with a bit of salt. The tomato is equally nice, but I like the jelly most as it was highly refreshing, strengthening the delicate taste of the vegetables, and also serving as a seamless transition and palate cleansing component before the sushi.
Following is the sushi, including prawn, ark shell, kinki with chive, and lighted grilled sea bream with truffle. The prawn got a great texture, again super fresh and the chef had added a bit of roe which greatly enhanced the flavors. The ark shell sushi got a good bite, while the kinki is good, with an amazingly strong taste of the chive permeating. The sea bream is also very good with the truffle sauce adding a strong aroma and addition to the fish.
The remaining piece of sushi is the highlight of the evening in my opinion. It is in fact a small mountain of natural wonders, with two different types of sea urchin, crab meat, salmon roe plus some sushi rice. If I have to describe this dish, I would compare it to an orchestra of amazing flavors from the individual components, mixing and matching to such a harmony that it is pure pleasure having those. Not sure whether this one is available in a la carte menu, but if so, strongly recommend one to try it out.
Wrapping up there is the miso soup but unlike the normal one, Kishoku had made the effort to prepare a beef soup, very rich in taste. The beef and yuzu had a wonderful chemistry in the flavors, complementing each other with the yuzu cleverly balancing the fat and oiliness of the beef. A warm, rewarding and fulfilling conclusion to the meal.
Last was served the dessert, which got a piece of apple, a strawberry and a green tea mochi with red bean paste. All of them are good, but maybe comparatively they are also less of any surprise. Nevertheless it is a great meal and we all enjoy it very much.
A good restaurant that is putting a lot of effort to emphasizing and highlighting the origin flavors of the great ingredients, some people may think they are not 'sophisticated' enough. But I always cherished this boldness of any restaurant choosing to showcase original flavors, which are more difficult to do.
The service is quite good, with the staff coming to explain each dish with some details, and also advising how to best enjoy them. The staff even offered to provide some additional sake for free when I finished the half bottle. Seeing how they interact with other customers, it is apparent that many of them are regulars visiting often. And after this meal I can understand why.
For two persons having the Kishoku Omakase, plus a half-bottle of good sake, the bill on the night was $4,609 which is not cheap but also not unreasonable considering the food quality, service, environment and everything. Another place that I would recommend for Japanese sushi lovers.
沒有留言:
張貼留言