Sakae Sushi @ Lot One

My parents would visit this outlet each time they are in Singapore. Reason being that Lot One is close to the place that we are staying. Otherwise, the other option would be Ichiban Boshi at Jurong East.

The menu at Sakae has been revamped and it is pretty decent. Am having a thing for aburi sushi and they do have 4-pieces of aburi salmon for $10. Not a bad deal. Especially if the size of the sushi is not too minuscule that it then becomes irksome.

Aburi Salmon Sushi @$10 (4 pieces)

pretty good

For me, I'd usually do 7-pieces of sushi for a meal. As in every meal, there should be some greens, so I got myself a plate of wakame (seaweed) sushi. Just loved those saltish crunchy texture of the seaweed.

wakame ワカメ

The last finale piece, was a handroll. Been ages since I last ate one. Oops, for this meal, I'd consider the amount of rice in the handroll as x 3 of any sushi piece. Means, I ate 9 pieces of sushi in total. No wonder I remembered feeling rather full after that.

California Handroll 手巻

Kan Sushi @ International Plaza

Having cravings for sushi and decided to give Kan Sushi a try. Reservation was fairly easy via eatigo app. The restaurant is located at Level 2 of International Plaza. Took the escalator up and was nearly late for the lunch as as I went towards the opposite direction. Coincidentally, there's another Japanese restaurant at this end. Nevertheless, Kan Sushi's signage was easily recognizable.

Walk past the 暖簾 (noren) and Chef Kan was right at the door. Showed him the reservation and was pointed to a counter seat. The shop is small and cosy. It was rather late, near to 1.45pm when Cherlyn arrived.

counter seat view

interior

We started with lobster salad, which was a rather dense bowl of lobster in mayonnaise dressing. Pretty similar to potato salad in terms of taste but with chunks of lobster in it. Tasty.

lobster salad  ロブスターサラダ @$10

Next, there's grilled mentaiko. That's something new. No, not the mentaiko but the fact that we are eating it as it is. Makes a good topping for a bowl of rice though. Or to be had with alcohol, but we weren't drinking. Very salty but somehow addictive. To be eaten together with the cucumber slice.

spicy cod roe  辛子明太子 @$13

Have not forgotten the main purpose! To have sushi! Alas, anago sushi is not available. What a bummer! The tuna sushi was having a promo, so we had one.

Chef Kan said to eat it as it is. So we did. There was a tiny bit of wasabi in it and it had a drop of soy on its surface. Start light.

hon maguro akami 本マグロ赤身 @$10

Next, Chef Kan places a piece of sushi that none of us recognizes onto our board. "Meat from tuna head." He said. Was about to say that we didn't order this, but he said, "Service." Wah, thank you Chef! This was an impressive piece. Stronger flavours with nice oily texture that almost melts in your mouth.

tuna head sushi (complimentary)

Next, aburi salmon belly. Served with a dot of yuzu ontop. Loved the smokiness from torched sushi combined with the oily mouthfeel. Yummy.

aburi salmon belly トロサーモン @$5

Another of my favourite sushi, the hotate. Raw scallop sushi, so sweet! Can't get enough of the fine taste of fresh scallops.

scallop ホタテ @$6

For sushi finale, ended with chutoro. Save the best for last, they say. I think I need one more!

medium fatty tuna chutoro 中トロ @$12

Cherlyn ordered the maguro kama or also known as the grilled large tuna cheek. A large piece with plenty of flesh. Quite a struggle to eat with chopsticks, so Chef took pity on us and brought out the fork and spoon. For easier digging. The tuna cheeks is definitely meant to be shared. I think it'll be quite jelak to finish it on your own.

鮪かま @$28

To end the meal, we had coffee with a Snaffles cheesecake. The staff had to collect it from the nearby Snaffles shop though. Maybe it's a collab or something. Quite liked the black coffee. Not too acidic. Just nice.

Black coffee with Snaffles cheesecake (sorry, ate some!) @$6.80

Thank you Cherlyn for the treat! Enjoyed our short lunch break and till next time!

Aburi Sushi Heishirou @ Westgate Jurong East

Chanced upon this shop when I was browsing through the JPassport app. It was offering 5 pieces of aburi sushi for $10 (usual price $18). Plus, was looking for a place to dine with my bro as he is working at that area. The deal clincher? 1-for-1 on bottled beer during Happy Hour (till 730pm). Cool~

The shop is located at Level 3 of Westgate, next to Papparich. Nearby, there's Tsukado Nojo and Ippudo. The Japanese chef at Heishirou seemed grumpy that day, though he'd still nod his head at you when eye contact is made.

Orion bottled beer $9++

The menu seemed limited with most of it being sushi, aburi sushi, donburis and the usual sets. Then, there's the tamagoyaki section which states that these are made upon order. Well, that's that and wouldn't miss the chance to try.

For the two of us, we ordered a seafood salad, plain tamagoyaki, a dragon roll and that plate of aburi sushi's on promo plus our beer. An abundance!

seafood salad @$15++

The seafood salad was actually mainly aburi salmon belly salad, with a bit of ebiko and seaweed that made up the 'seafood'. It was pretty looking, and loved the fresh vegetables. Pour in the salad sauce with abandon and enjoy! With this size, the salad could have fed 4 pax as starter.

aburi sushi - salmon, tuna, kajiki, scallop and yellowtail @$10++ (u.p $18++)

Am heartened by the size of the sushi at Heishirou. It was of the right size. If it was those tiny tiny sushi that some joints are serving nowadays, I'd be angry. Seriously.

plain tamagoyaki 卵焼き @$12++

The tamagoyaki was slightly sweeter than expected and its texture not as smooth. Enjoyable nonetheless. Hot eggs and beer. Yums.

When the waitress said their dragon roll is the biggest, I was amused. But she tells the truth. While it may or may not be the biggest, it was certainly impressively large. Tasty and not too overpowering.

our meal

It was actually too much food for the two of us. Felt so full after that. Hahaa!

Estimate to spend about $35 per pax for a meal here with a drink.

Aburi Sushi Heishirou

Location: 3 Gateway Drive, #03-05 Westgate Mall, 608532
Contact: 6369 9489
Website: http://www.aburiheishirou.com.sg/
Business Hours:
Lunch: 11am - 230pm 
Dinner: 5pm to 930pm

Sat, Sun, Public Hols - 11am to 930pm

[Media Invite] Kinsa Sushi @ HillV2 Bukit Timah

Kinsa Sushi is not a stranger to the folks staying at HillV2 area. If you're a foodpanda user, you might've come across this restaurant or had tried its signature dish of wagyu don. If you have not, that's ok too as you can read about the experience here.

Recently, we had a mini reunion of sorts at Kinsa to try out some of their new healthier choice creations.

One of those dishes was the Kagoshima A4 Wagyu Kamameshi. Well-cooked purple rice (or also known as the forbidden rice or black rice) cooked in a small steel pot and topped with savoury deliciously tender Kagoshima wagyu beef slices with some naruto (ナルト/なると), sweet peas and shimeji mushrooms. Add an onsen egg for that extra moistness.

Kagoshima A4 Wagyu Kamameshi @$26.80++

鹿児島市高级和牛釜飯

The portion of rice in the kamameshi may have looked smallish, but purple rice has similar properties to glutinous rice and one gets full pretty fast by consuming this. Purple rice is also high in antioxidants and fibre. Taste wise, with the savoury sauce, it was similar to eating claypot rice but with a 'healthier' feel. Interesting indeed.

Have you heard of mosaic sushi? Kinsa is offering a version of this trendy food. When we think of mosaic sushi, it is usually colourful, squarish and arranged very neatly. Almost perfect for the OCD in us. The version at Kinsa is like a summer version with other items alongside the mosaic sushi set. The Kinsa Mosaic Sushi set is available from 1 November to 31 December.

Kinsa Mosaic Sushi @$38.80++

One gets a 3 x 3 squares of sushi that has various toppings including tako, ebi, unagi, inari, tamago, surimi with tobiko, ikura etc, lobster salad, pidan tofu, assorted fried items including fried oyster, soft shell crab, pumpkin croquette and soba tempura. Plus a small plate of 3 cute imported Miyazaki mochi. The mochi fillings had either mung bean or red bean.

Miyazaki Mochi (part of the Kinsa Mosaic Sushi set)

Other than that, if you'd just want to sample purple rice, I'd recommend the Black Beauty or the Salmon Mentai Yaki.

Black Beauty くろかれい @$16.80++

The Kurokarei (Black Beauty) has shisamo, mayo, purple rice, tobiko and ikura. I liked. But, in terms of flavour, I'd strongly recommend the Salmon Mentai Yaki. Very nice, with the texture of crunchy (rice) and soft (salmon), bursts of umami'ness from the ikura and the saltish goodness of the mentai, not forgetting the smokey flavours from the aburi'ed salmon. Yums!

Salmon Mentai Yaki @$15.80++

lovely flavours

And sometimes, green tea is not the only choice.

cheers!

Thank you Shannon and Kinsa Sushi for the tasting and Hence for the invite.

The place was observed to be rather busy on weekend and it was still crowded between 130pm to 3pm. If you feel like having wagyu kamameshi or wagyu don, and staying around Hillview area then head on to Kinsa to try it as it is conveniently located around your neighbourhood.

For lunch, the prices ranges from $15 to $22 per pax, and dinner prices ranges from $16 to $30 per pax, mostly with some specials to cost more.

Travel | Hokkaido mid-May 2015 | Sushizanmai Susukino すしざんまい すすきの店

Prior to visiting Hokkaido, the planner in me had made a list of potential eating places around Sapporo. Places like Ramen Alley and Ebiten were added to my Sapporo Eats Google Map. However, it took me quite a while to walk to Susukino from Sapporo Station as many detours were made to visit the touristy sights along the way.

And so, it was already 2pm when I finally reached Susukino. It also took me longer than expected to find the famous Ramen Alley. Surprisingly small and since it wasn't exactly lunch hour, the place was kind of deserted. Prices for a bowl of ramen there ranges from ¥1000 upwards.

must have picture when in Susukino

Next, wanted to check out Ebiten Bunten for its fried tempura but sadly, it was already 245pm when I found it. The shop was having its mid-day break then.

Finally settled on having sushi for lunch as I spotted Sushizanmai from across the street. The shop was quite spacious and was really empty. Guessed no one eats sushi for tea-break.

Weather was hot, and it was rather tiring having walked from Sapporo to Odori, and Odori to Susukino. An order of beer is a must.

draft beer @¥450 with compulsory otoshi @¥200

Was seated at the sushi counter and had access to the chef. For drinks, the waitress took the order. For sushi, one could inform the sushi chef directly.

The cold beer was served together with a compulsory otoshi お通し. As usual, a warm towel or oshibori おしぼり was provided as soon as you're seated. The otoshi was vinegared vege and seaweed. Tasty.

As I was the only customer then, chef was able to serve out the sushi fairly quickly. The North Island platter has botan ebi, uni, ikura, hotate (scallop), kani (crab) and shellfish. Adequate wasabi has already been added to the sushi hence, there was no need to request for more. I did, and chef really gave a large pinch of wasabi.

North Island 6-piece sushi platter 北海六宝盘 @¥1080

Was kind of awkward to be sitting at the counter since I can't converse in Japanese. Chef would go about his activities, which included chopping up the leftover odd pieces of the sashimi.

The botan ebi was nicely firm and full of seafood umami. Was sucking the head of the prawn when chef suddenly came over and took the prawn head from me. Was a tad surprised. He then helped to break it further so that its easier to suck. Haha.

Loved the scallop for its sweetness. Fresh tasting uni that's creamy and non-funky. Enjoyable and inexpensive. Made an extra order of hamachi for ¥148 a piece. I think 7 pieces of sushi is about the max for me. No more room, otherwise, there's still chutoro and otoro! Come to think of it, I didn't get any of those during this trip. -_-'''

TODAI @ Marina Bay Sands

Can you believe how fast time has snucked past? Still remembered when TODAI first landed in Singapore. In a blink of the eye, fast forward to 2015 and TODAI is celebrating its 4th Anniversary! 축하해요!

As such, TODAI Marina Bay Sands is offering a March promotion of "Experience Birthday Dishes around the World at TODAI". Interesting to not only find out, what dishes do the other cultures eat during birthdays but we get to taste them too without having to leave the country.

experience birthday delicacies from various continents

When we think of TODAI, what's the first thing that came to mind?

cold crab legs

steaming hot

There were plenty of people during weekdays, so only managed to snap a few photos for your viewing pleasure.

oysters

sushi

pizza

tempura items

desserts - chocolate fountain

When thirsty, an iced cold draft beer is always a welcomed.

draft beer, order from table (alcoholic drinks not included in buffet)

My choice starters? Crab leg and oysters. Liked the briny oysters best.

cold seafood

The sashimi was pretty good too, especially the swordfish and salmon belly.

sashimi moriawase

Done with the cold, in with the hot food. But before that, a swig of that beer. Yums.

oxtail stew, spicy pork belly, beef short-ribs, crispy tempura pumpkin, teppan beef tenderloin and escargot

The oxtail was likeable. Tender yet firm texture, sweet sauce but not overly so. The short ribs was thin, slight chewiness, sweetish but tasty. The paper thin pumpkin was crispy but a tad oily but deep fried pumpkin always tasted soo good!

Beef tenderloin, best eaten when sliced into smaller pieces. I gobbled one (hey, it looked bite sized okay!) and it was hard to chew but when sliced into quarters, it transformed into tender flavourful bites.

Escargot, was one that I couldn't fathom. How do you cook an escargot that it became so tender yet crunchy? Similar to button mushroom texture. Amazing.

deep fried battered scallop balls, grilled wings, sausage, more crab and stir fried asparagus with prawns

Back to birthday dishes, what are the customary food that one eats? My Hokkien grandma would cook mee sua soup with pork and mushroom slices, and a hard boiled egg for her sons' birthday.

Chinese custom usually associates longetivity in birthday dishes such as longetivity buns and noodles. Live long and prosper!

shoutao 寿桃 - longetivity bun

yi mein 伊麵 - longetivity noodles

In Korean shows, we always see the birthday boys and girls having miyeokguk, or sea vegetable soup in the mornings of their birthday. This soup is highly nutritious in calcium and iodine, and women consume it after giving birth.

miyeokguk 미역국 - seaweed or wakame soup

But I didn't know that Japchae is also a birthday dish. Nice. Love these sweet potato noodles that's chewy and smooth.

Japchae 잡채

From the exotic countries of Nigeria and Ghana, here are its birthday dishes; Jollof Rice and Oto.

Jollof Rice

Jollof Rice is kind of paella-like, in the sense of its moist rice texture and taste. Appetisingly sourish, and with some spices.

Oto

The Oto is a sacred dish, and eggs in Ghanaian culture symbolizes purity and fruitfulness.

But where's the birthday cake?

From Russia, we have the 4-layer birthday cake. It's a doppleganger of rainbow cake! Rich, buttery creamy and not too sweet.

Russian 4-layer Birthday Cake

At TODAI, one gets to experience not only tasty food in its abundance and variety, but also an appreciation of different cultural context and meaning, especially in these birthday dishes from around the world.

After a whirlwind tour of the world cuisine, let's wind down by having desserts.

For some, dessert would mean wine and cheese.

Sauvignon Blanc (not included in buffet, chargeable)

cheeses

For most of us, desserts mean cakes, sweets and ice cream!

pretty

cakes galore

If you are at TODAI in March, you may even get a chance to win TODAI Free Pass. Check out the March promo at TODAI's website.

Special thanks to Brandon and Nisha for your hospitality, and HGW for the invite.

잘 먹었습니다~

TODAI SINGAPORE

Location: #b2-01 The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, 2 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore 018972
Contact: +65 6688 7771
Website: http://todaisingapore.com/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TodaiSingapore