Kinsa Sushi @ HillV2 Bukit Timah

Was invited for a tasting session at Kinsa Sushi, located at HillV2. HillV2 is a shopping mall, located at Hillview Rise. Kinsa Sushi aims to bring affordably priced Japanese dining to the heartlands.

signboard

interior

kaiten sushi counter

imported seafood

Kinsa Sushi will be running a Mother's & Father's Day promo from 10 May till 30 June 2015. The theme of the promo are of oysters and salmon.

promo menu

Let's take a look at the Salmon Set (for 2 pax) @$59.90++.

Salmon and Roe with Japanese Yam (@$6.90++ ala-carte)

Salmon with Butter (@$11.90++ ala-carte)

Deep Fried Salmon (@$9.90++ ala-carte)

Salmon with Ikura Sushi (right)

The salmon with ikura sushi (鮭（さけ親子すし) was lovely. Simple in looks, goodness in taste. Loved the bursts of flavours from the egg globules.

鮭（さけ親子すし (2 pcs @$13.90++ ala-carte)

The main course for the meal, is the Salmon and Vegetable Hotpot (Ishikari Nabe). Tasty broth, plenty of vegetables and salmon belly simmering gently. Nice. My mom will like this.

Salmon and Vegetable Hotpot (@16.90++ ala-carte)

Next up, let's have a peek at the Oyster Set (for 2 pax) @$69.90++.

Oyster with Ponzu Sauce (@$7.90++ ala-carte)

Oyster Sushi (@$15.90++ 2 pcs ala-carte)

Grilled Oyster and Cheese ($12.90++ 2 pcs ala-carte)

Deep Fried Oyster with Shiso Leaf (@$13.90++ 3 pcs ala-carte)

Oysters were imported from Hokkaido, and fresh oysters eaten simply with ponzu sauce had a clean feel to it. Grilled oysters in cheese was saltishly good and probably best to be eaten, with a small sip of sake.

My favourite oyster style, had to be the Kaki Kaori Age or deep fried oyster with shiso leaf. Mild herb taste and freshly fried with luscious juicy oyster. Yums.

Similar to Salmon Set, Oyster Set too came with a hotpot full of vegetables and the delicate oysters. Soup base tasted very similar, with the salmon hotpot made slightly richer by the good oils from salmon belly.

Oyster and Vegetable Hotpot (@$24.90++ ala-carte)

If you're not a salmon nor an oyster fan, fret not. There's still plenty of options to choose from Kinsa Sushi.

How about giving its signature Wagyu Don a try? Slices of tender beef, accompanied by a lovely wobbly onsen tamago and drizzled with sweetish savoury sauce, now doesn't that sound exciting?

Wagyu Don @$24.80++

Break the egg, and let it flow~, let it flow~ Gosh, how corny was that *gasp*. Hahaa!

perfect

Then, mix it all up and let the soft flowy yolk covers every single grain of the rice.

mix it up

Very likeable bowl of SooGyu Don, of wagyu A4 grade from Kagoshima. A taste of luxury, brought closer to home.

interesting tea pot

Ended our meal with black sesame mochi balls, which was enjoyable and slightly chewier than usual. Goes well with the green tea.

congregation of mochi balls

anatomy of mochi

Thanks to Shannon for hosting the dinner, and Hence for the invite. Much appreciative to Hazel for lending her hand for one of the pictures.

Kinsa Sushi @ HillV2

Address: 4 Hillview Rise, HillV2 #02-02, Singapore 667979
Tel: +65 67107278
Website: http://kinsasushi.com/HV/

Miam Miam @ Westgate

Dinner at Miam Miam. Indoor seats were full, so we sat outside and shared table on a weekday.
The squid ink rice was of such a small serving when compared with say, spaghetti carbonara.

squid ink rice @$16.50++

seafood

The risotto takes quite a while to arrive and it's served piping hot. The prawns felt larger as the dish was so small! Firm and good. Rice was tasty but oily. And, loaded with sodium. Give it a good stir before digging in.

valrhona chocolate souffle @$13.80++

Chocolate souffle was nice, and scorching hot as well. Moist, cripsy edge and soft center.

Miam Miam is expensive and water is chargeable at 50cents per head.

天晴 Appare Udon & Tempura Japanese Restaurant @ Novena Square 2

Back at Appare, second time in a week. Liking the food and it has the least lunch crowd, comparatively.

Objective was to keep to a budget of below $15. Colleague wanted soupy option so she got herself a prawn tempura udon soup.

Was pleasantly surprised to see large prawns. Snowpea added a touch of colour to the dish.

prawn tempura udon soup

Mine was a beef rice bowl, served with miso soup. The beef slices were so tender, fatty and very good. Sauce was nicely savoury but not overly so, and the pickled ginger nicely matured and provided a little distraction from the soft beefy taste.

beef don

Enjoyed every bit of it.

good till the last grain

Not too big a serving but big on satisfaction. Yums.

Read about other dishes that I've tried during previous visits here , here, and here.

RamenPlay @ Velocity

Novena is sure getting crowded these days. Introduced a new colleague to RamenPlay, and this was the first time she's having an oyakodon.

tori momo don

corn miso ramen

Shall not have any ramen especially those Hokkaido type since I can get those in its origin place soon. Wheeee~

teriyaki chicken don set

The dishes at RamenPlay do look pretty, right? Lunch sets are served with either salad or agedashi tofu and clear soup.

closer look at teriyaki chicken don

It was rather unfortunate that the teriyaki chicken was dry.

Service was also harried, and requests for water were usually left ignored. Perhaps, a self-service flask at the table for diners to help ourselves?

NG AH SIO Bak Kut Teh 黄亚细肉骨茶 @ Rangoon Road

Was late at night, working on stuffs in the office and might have just grabbed some snacks for supper later, if not for a friend who was hungry and wanted to get food. We ended up at this place, as there was a parking available.

menu

dinner/supper

Two meats and one vege, that's a balanced meal. Tried the braised duck (single portion) for $10+. The flesh was a tad harsh. The plate of blanched lettuces was good. Of course, a bowl of Signature Pork Ribs. Premium ribs were good, cooked till tender. The soup at Ng Ah Sio has a strong peppery presence. Soup refills were pretty automatic with staff being pro-active.


The fried dough fritters (油条）is purely to soak up the soup 'coz its fun-eats this way. Hahaa!

On our night of visit, the place was rather quiet.


Adjourned to nearby L’Etoile Cafe for desserts. Sugalight ice-cream which are egg-free. First time trying. Cold treat that's light in sweetness, and melts pretty fast.

Bailey's + Strawberry

Loaded on carbs and fats with bak kut teh, then had low carb, light cholestrol, low fat dessert. And, it all happened at Rangoon Road.

天晴 Appare Udon & Tempura Japanese Restaurant @ Novena Square 2

It's been a while since the last visit. Dropped by for lunch on a weekday with colleagues. The Japanese chap manning the store seemed to have lost quite a bit of weight.

lunch menu

dainty tea cups

My colleagues have become a fan of this restaurant for its tasty udon.

Mentaiko Cream Udon (Regular) @$12.80++

Tomato Udon @$9.90++

"That's because the soup stock was made from bonita flakes dashi." Said my colleague. そですね.

ingredients for good soup base

Liked the tomato based clear soup. Very refreshing and whets the appetite.

assorted tempura for sharing

California Sushi @$12.80++

Usually, I'd get the chirashi don but this time round, decided to try their California Sushi roll.  Liked the bright colours and the taste. Sweet, savoury and creamy.

closer view

Expect to spend about $18+ per pax. The restaurant does seemed understaffed but they do try their earnest to serve the customers.

Read about previous visits here: Part 1, Part 2.

J's Restaurant @ Purvis Street

If you're looking for some halal Mexican food with select few Spanish influenced ones, then J's the right place to be. Limited seating downstairs but I heard that they can fit 20 pax upstairs.

menu

Menu selection is somewhat limited, but it's good that they chose to focus on what they do best. At J's, one could expect nicely presented food, and of good portion size.

Started off the meal with Chef's Salad, which was served in a very elongated plate. Yes, very.

Chef's Salad @$18++

daily servings of greens

Though the long plate enabled easier sharing amongst two tables, it was a pity that the ingredients aren't evenly distributed. One end had all the smoked salmon, mozarella while the other end had some good eggs with soft yolk. Unless you need your greens and your main course doesn't have any, then go for this. Otherwise, skip this and go for other appetiser.

Soup of the day - mushroom @$8++

Mushroom soup was served very hot, and thus be warned. Tasted smooth and liked the enoki mushrooms in it.

For main course, our table had quesadillas, paella and sirloin beef.

Chicken Quesadillas - $22++

The quesadillas looked good, and bet it tasted good too.

yummy

Paella seemed like a perennial favourite amongst the patrons of the restaurant. Almost every table has it. But fajitas might well be the top favourite as I saw plates after hot plates being served.

Paella (single serve) - $28++

Paella (servings for 2) - $39++

The saffron paella looked appetising with its yellow hues but the proteins in it which consist of chicken, salmon and tilapia all tasted somewhat the same. Liked that the paella was done with extra moistness. How about a seafood version soon?

sirloin beef @$32++

grass-fed New Zealand beef - done medium rare

The beef was done up pretty good. Pink center and its sides charred appropriately. Good meaty chew, juicy at center parts and smokey char good at its outer sides. Loved the garlic mash. So yummy. Enoki appeared again and it was so good to be eaten with the garlic mash. Didn't fancy the carrot though.

Didn't have a chance to get desserts though as the churros were sold out by the time we finished our mains.

Expect to spend about $40 to $50 per pax. With the Entertainer App, you could enjoy savings when dining at participating restaurants. J's included as one of the Entertainer Singapore 2015 merchants.