**Warning** Super long review of a 10-course Omakase lunch ahead, so be prepared to sit down and drool, heh.

Seated in a private dining room with a captivating view of the weekend streets in town, we were first served a platter of appetizers consisting of a number of Hokkaido produce - Bicolored Corn, Lotus Root, Chuka Kurage (Seasoned Jellyfish) and Deep Fried Sakura Ebi (Small River Shrimps).

And next up are 2 plates of Sashimi! First off is the Flounder Fish cut into transparent slices and there is an accompanying sauce where you throw in everything on the plate (except the sashimi itself) and later used it as a dip. The 2nd plate of sashimi is a platter of Hamachi (Yellow Tail) , Hamachi Belly, Hokkaido Wild Salmon and Ama Ebi. I really can’t find fault in the freshness of the sashimi, so my compliments to the restaurant in this area. Oh, the restaurant is pretty proud of their wasabi as well, which is made from fresh wasabi roots. Just a tiny dab is enough to clean off the sashimi taste from earlier on, the spiciness comes and goes in a split second and doesn’t linger at all.

After the Sashimi, a small bowl of Tougan (winter melon) Broth with Abalone Mushroom is being served. The Tougan itself is light in flavor but you can detect a slight orange peel scent that is hidden in the broth. The scent only becomes more obvious only when you drink the remaining broth on its own after finishing the Tougan, and it works well to open up your taste buds for the upcoming dishes.

Following is a that seems pretty interesting by name. The appearance of this dish came as a surprise as it doesn’t look anything like Foie Gras and doesn’t look anything like Chawamushi either ^_^;; The Chawamushi is uncovered from the bottom after you take a scoop, and along with it you can see some crab roe and very very thin strings of crab meat, we suspected there are strands of shark’s fin hidden within the bowl too, heh. This dish was actually quite a refreshing change from your usual Chawamushi, but after consuming a few more spoonfuls you’ll find it overly salty.

Voted the favorite dish by all of us, the Grilled Sanma is honored as the undisputed champaign of the meal this time round. Beautifully grilled as a whole, the Sanma’s skin is bronzed to a crisp covering the scrumptious flesh lying underneath. Just squeeze the lemon onto the fish to get rid of the oilinss, dab a bit of daikon oroshi on it, and you’re in for a yummy treat!

Hmmzz.. the moment you try this next dish you’ll notice a special taste that doesn’t belong to any of the usual fried rice ingredients, and probably you’ll give a “Ahh~ I see~” when told that it’s actually Uni Fried Rice. I’ve previously heard of Uni prepared this way but this is the first time I’ve tried it, it is an interesting twist to our usual fried rice but it’s a pity that creamy texture that we look for in Uni is totally non existing. But then, I suppose nobody will be using premium Uni this way, hahaha~

I nearly squealed in delight when I saw the Tai Sushi (Sea bream). I always like it when I see sushi with the fish sliced longer than the rice, not only it is so visually appealing, when you bite onto the sushi you’ll feel that the fish is wrapping around the rice. The other came as a pleasant surprise as well, sprinkled with pepper spice and topped with some spring onions, it has a much stronger taste and left me a deeper impression than the Tai Sushi. This was the first time I’ve had Mekajiki done this way and I’m so tempted to go back for more~

All good meals come to an end and ours ended with a selection among 4 ice cream flavors. Unable to decide between Matcha, Peach, Yuzu and Sesame, our side of the table decided to order one flavor each for sharing. My personal favourite was the sesame ice cream since it was placed closest to me and I had most of it ;p

There are loads more photos posted on my blog, enjoy yourself!

I went to this restaurant with husband and another couple friends. Having all lived in Tokyo for an extended period of time we are constantly trying to find a good Japanse place to sate our appetite for good sushi.

We went on a Saturday for lunch and the place was virtually deserted. There were two other tables when we got there but by the time we finished we were the only ones there. The restaurant had minimal decor. The windows look out to some ugly construction cranes in the distance, which could've easily been blocked by placing some tall potted plants, such as bamboo, on the balcony outside.

We went for the omakase course, which ranged from $60-$200/person for lunch. We decided on $100/person to get an idea of the quality of the place. First came a sashimi platter that had really amazing salmon, ootoro, tuna, amaebi and some other fish. We couldn't tell because on weekends the restaurant had mostly part-timers who barely spoke English, let alone explaining to customers what each dish is, which is what you should expect with any kaiseki or omakase courses.

Back to the sashimi. They are definitely top quality, even by Tokyo standard. So needless to say, our expectations now are high for the rest of the meal, but things went downhill from there.

What came next is a clear broth with noodles made of fish paste. Done well, the broth is refreshing yet full of subtle flavors. Ours, however, was tasteless. We then had a decent grilled Saba, followed by the most disgusting chawanmushi I've ever had. It had goose liver in it, but all it did was to smother the eggs in a thick layer of orange greese without adding any flavors to it whatsoever. The dish that came next was equally strange. It was eringi mushroom in a sweet broth. The delicate flavor of the eringi was completely overpowered by the sweetness of the thick broth, which had a very strong butter undertone. We all looked at each other and kinda went, wtf? In lieu of rice or noodle, we were served nigirizushi at the end of the meal. There were only three pieces: anago, hotate, and a nondescript white fish. Again, no explanation whatsoever from the waitress. The quality of the fish was good, but the sushi rice was too cold, which did nothing to compliment the fish. At this point I was so disappointed I forgot to ask for sesame ice cream and we got green tea instead.

If a restaurant is trying to go the high-end route, then they must pay attention to every detail. I don't mind paying premium prices, but please don't leave me feeling that I'm given second class food and no service at all.

All in all, my conclusion is, this place is only good for the fish. So next time I might pop by for a quick bite of the sashimi platter ONLY and go somewhere else for a second dinner.

p.s. the food got a 7 only because of the quality of the fish (sashimi, sushi, and the grilled saba). Take the fish out of the equation and it's a 4 at the best.

Haha maybe a little more lah!

Here’s the newest baby of Chef Thomas of Tomo Fine Dining. With a Japanese restaurant so confidently named Hokkaido Sushi Restaurant, you’re already almost guaranteed the freshest seafood all year round where an entire menu is built around the lush seafood this region is known for. HSR just opened to the public last Sat 26th July, and of coz I had to go! ASAP!

Most of HSR’s supplies come directly from the Sapporo Central Fish Market, Hokkaido, which means they bypass the main supplier, and accordingly the produce about 40% cheaper (I think that’s what Chef Thomas told me and you know how expensive Hokkaido stuff is!). The sushi counter seats 20 and it is partitioned from the main dining area (like Tomo) to provide privacy. There’s also a teppanyaki room which accomodates up to 20, as well as 3 private rooms available for private dining and intimate gatherings. It’s the biggest sushi restaurant in Singapore to date, and to authenticate the menu, Chef Thomas is bringing in his Hokkaido Chef all the way from Hokkaido (where else?) this week.

Of coz I went omakase this visit and was very well fed by Chef Thomas. :) I had a trio of bi-color corn, horenso ohitashi and dried fish snack for otoshi, then the sweetest kegani (hairy crab) that’s in season now. I especially love love…the kegani “miso”. This is the crab roe that’s so deliciously creamy and rich it melted like butter in the mouth. Like crab butter!

My sashimi platter was as pretty as a portrait. The stunning palette consisted of expertly sliced shima aji, salmon belly, yummy and fatty, crunchy fresh tsubugai (sea whelk), sweet ama ebi and voluptuously milky botan ebi. The aji tataki was sans its usual fishiness and when showered with shungiku (perfumed chrysanthemum leaves), tasted so marvelously clean. Otoro when seared, all the flavors came to life where the oils melted to that perfect state of juiciness.

Chawanmushi was made even more delightful with every burst of ikura oils; the simmered abalone mushrooms came soft and spongy. Gyu somen was bouncy and the broth naturally sweetened with dashi. Dessert(S) yes desserts, were a slice of sweet furano melon and as per my request a scoop of Tomo’s delish goma ice cream. Oh soo…dee…licious!

Every produce was soo…soo….excellent but the best thing that happened to me that visit was the Hokkaido Don Chef Thomas specially (thank you Chef!) prepared for me. This is like a baby chirashi but I swear it’s got to be the most luxurious I’ve ever eaten! My dream chirashi! It’s mini coz of the petite portion of tasty sushi rice below, but the seafood crown was so bountiful I could almost see the whole of Hokkaido floating on top! There’s negitoro, aji tataki, sweet scallops, a raw shrimp, glistening ikura pearls and so very very much aka uni!...all topped with kizami nori (shredded seaweed) and gooey tororo. It’s so thrilling to swirl everything up coz the Japanese yam just binds them altogether like magic. Oh! I savored the aka uni sashimi on its own though coz I felt it’s such a waste to mix in the sweet sea urchin roe!

At one point I got so excited over this one piece of sushi that Jack-san insisted that I “must… must have”, I devoured immediately as it came! And guess what I actually forgot to snap a picture! :( It’s really a pity coz the aburi swordfish was such a novel and beautiful number. The sushi was a stroke of creativity that went down very well. It’s lightly showered with some spicy pepper, seared to perfection, and crowned with slices of raw garlic then dabbed with a sweetish sauce. The juicy fish was infused with such a seductive smokey flavor. Simply awesome! And to think I didn’t like swordfish in the past! Hmm…I think now the only way to get me to eat mekajiki is to have it done aburi-style. :)

There are set menus available for both lunch and dinner with reasonable prices to boot. The teppanyaki sets look very appealing too with many options for meat or seafood courses. Otherwise, be like me. Just sit at the sushi counter and wait to be fed good food! :)