Rakuzen

When I looked at the menu, I told my friend "it's so like Sushi Tei". When we paid the bill, then we got to know that Rakuzen is really the "relative" of Sushi Tei.

The service staff is very friendly & attentive. When the waiter is taking order, not wanting us to lift up our heads, he actually squatted down to take the order. Really thoughtful of them. We ordered Dai Dai roll, the Nato lotus cold dish (VERY SALTY!), sashimi rice set and beef tapanyaki rice set.

We were very satisfied with the order we had. The tapayaki beef cubes were indeed a nice surprise as the beef was tender and the sauce highlitghted the taste of beef even more. LOVE IT!! There are still alot of items I would like to try, so definitely will be there again!

Meeting fellow food bloggers for the 1st time was akin to going on a blind date. Will there be awkward silences? What if we don’t click? Well, butterflies in the stomach begone! Because with food as the universal icebreaker, we were laughing and chatting like newfound old friends. And it was such a cool sight as 2 DSLRs and 2 compacts started snapping away once the food arrived!

The meal started off on a nice note with the fresh Sake Sashimi ($10++). Hard not to like the firm texture of the fatty salmon.

Rolled omelettes are indispensable at any self-respecting Japanese restaurant. This rendition of Atsuyaki Tamago ($6++) was juicy enough to please.

I like natto and I like lotus. So you would have thought I’ll be partial to the Renkon Natto ($8++) but nope, it was too salty. Though the taste of the sticky and stringy fermented soybeans was not nearly as pungent as I would have liked, the mildness made it suitable for those who are trying it for the first time.

Supposedly one of the more popular dishes, the Spider Roll ($8++) was found wanting. Too much rice and not enough fried soft shell crab made this forgettable.

The Stamina Roll ($14++) fared so much better! Avocado added a creamy and velvety dimension while the roasted unagi was soft and moist.

I always save the best for last! Maguro Yukke ($18++) is something I’d order again in a heartbeat. Lush and rich avocado formed a bed for freshly chopped tuna sashimi, topped with a cute raw quail egg and sprinkled with white sesame seeds. This one definitely had both looks and substance!

For photos/reviews, visit My Food Sirens =)

Since their opening 2 years ago, Rakuzen offers unique and innovative dishes, not only catering Japanese cuisine but also Asian-Japanese fusion. Finely detailed wooden decoration and stylishly designed, Rakuzen is set to provide Japanese food lovers an alluring ambiance and enhance their dining experience.

We had Renkon Natto ($8) as the starter. Having tried natto for the first time, we must say that we took a liking for it. We were told by fellow food bloggers that natto would be an acquired taste, and Rakuzen's rendition of natto had a milder taste as compared to others. Though it was a little sticky, the natto did not taste as fermented as we thought it would be.
A & J's rating: 3.5/5

Atsuyaki Tamago ($6.00)
If you like omelette, this is certainly a delight. Unlike the usual sweet tamago, Atsuyaki Tamago is more savory than sweet. The thick rolled omelette was moist and juicy. Elaine shared with us that rolling the tamago actually locks in the sauce and contributes to the juicyness of the tamago.
A & J's rating: 3.25/5

Salmon Sashimi ($10)
Having read that Rakuzen imports fresh fish directly from Akita, how can we give our favourite sashimi a miss? The salmon sashimi was thick and firm but having tried better sashimi elsewhere, the ones here paled in comparision.
A & J's rating: 3.25/5

Spider roll ($8)
Though nicely decorated with flying fish roe, the entire taste of crispy soft shell crab maki was subtle and rather bland. The rice was a little sticky and we wished there was more flesh in the crab.
A & J's rating: 3/5

Stamina Roll ($14) - Unagi and avocado within, top with more unagi
Impressive name indeed but the unagi maki failed to match up with its name. The unagi was rather dry and rubbery. It would be better if they drizzle a bit of kabayaki sauce over the unagi.
A & J's rating: 3/5

Maguro Yukke ($18)
Maguro Yukke stood out from the rest with its unqiue combination of tuna sashimi with fresh, creamy avocado. Tuna sashimi sat comfortably on pieces of avocado bed topped with black bean, soy sauce, sesame oil and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. A finishing touch of a raw quail egg completes the dish beautifully, definitely a sight to behold at its exquisite presentation. The savory taste of black bean and soy sauce with delicate taste of tuna sashimi settled in nicely with each other.
A & J's rating: 4/5

Visit SistaFood for full write-up and more reviews!

Rakuzen as a Japanese eatery features dishes that contain fresh ingredients, skilled craftsmanship and delicate taste that aims to rally devotees of traditional Japanese cuisine and perhaps those looking for a fusion between the East and the West.

A very wide variety is available in the menu and choosing what to eat would probably be very hard to decide. For me, I chose to go with the crowd and decided to order the Maguro Yukke as its uniqueness and pairing tuna with avocado called out to me.

The Maguro Yukke or Tuna Sashimi served with Avocado is upfront a very raw dish. There is a layer of sliced avocados acting as the base, chopped fresh tuna sashimi as the second layer and a sprinkle of sesame seeds, black beans and sauce on the top. Of course, the design is complete with a touch of a raw quail egg yolk.

When it comes to taste, the Maguro Yukke is surprisingly very cool and delicate. The only instance when a strong flavour strikes is when the salted fermented black bean pairs with tuna. Other than that, the dish itself stands out as light and airy with the creamy texture of the avocado.

Read the full review at http://j2k3blogs.com/?p=2683

Came here about 4 times already.
The standard is always consistent. Which is great.

Sashimi / sushi are always fresh, its good!

Rakuzen Salad is one of my favorite. Comes with 3 types of sauces to pick. Rakuzen special (creamy, buttery sauce) is my favorite. Can't remember the names of the other two, but one was something like sour plum sauce used on Katsu (2nd from the list). Can't remember what the last one was, but didn't really like that one.

Tried sukiyaki as well, for $18 they gave moderate amounts of vegetables and meat. Tasted decent.


Be careful though, they sometimes market unique fishes from japan. You'll pay a huge premium for them due to their rarity. But being rare doesn't equate to tasting nice. Some fish they intro'ed were quite bland or the texture was kinda creepy =/

There's not alot of special dishes for main courses so do note. But they are good with what they have =))
Rather have few good ones then 100 dishes which all are half assed/average.

Great variety of food.

After craving for Jap food for almost a month, went to Rakuzan with a colleague to kill off the crave!

My colleague ordered ladies Set A and I ordered the Sashimi and Unagi Zen set from the lunch set menu. The ocha was great too; I could smell the nicely roasted smell of the green tea!

Despite that it was packed, service was very prompt and the staff were very attentive to customers' needs. The only thumbs down I would give was the orientation of the dining area indoor. It was too open and the distances between each table are too close for comfort! They have VIP seats which are in its own cubicle, but I think you need to have at least 4 guests.

Overall, the food is good and fresh.. sashimi are great!

Went there for dinner recently. This was my 2nd time there, the first time was with my gaming geek friends. The first time I was there, I thought the food was really not bad. Maybe the company matters. Anyway, the 2nd time I was here, I realised that the menu looks pretty much like Sushi Tei and other sushi joints, just that the set meals and sashimi are more expensive.

Had Spider Roll, Salmon Neck, Salmon Sashimi and Sakura Charashi Don Zen.

Spider roll is pretty decent. Quite yummy but the seaweed inside is a little soggy.

Salmon neck.. well, sad to say, is not as nice as Shin Kushiya's. I fell in love with Shin Kushiya's salmon neck. Me and my friends polished it clean down to the bones the other time we ate at Shin Kushiya. But the salmon neck in Rakuzen.... the salt was only sprinkled on the side of the fish (on the fins) and the meat was not really well prepared, to the extend that there was blood on the meat, which freaked my partner out. Blood in beef steak = yum. Blood in fish meat = yuck
Sorry, but fish blood should be cleared before eating.

Charashi don is... ok. The fish slices ain't really as fresh as the salmon sashimi. And sad to say, the salmon sashimi has BONES in them. I had eaten sashimi from a lot of restaurants, and even sashimi from the earliest sushi joint back in 1995 and even those ulu sushi joint 10 years ago don't serve sashimi with bones in them. Obviously, not very well prepared.

Well, ambience is good, the service is not bad. If they should prepare their food better, perhaps it won't be so empty at night during dinner time.

Rakuzen has an ala carte buffet at $48++ on weekends from 11.30am - 4pm. I ate so much within the 2 hrs I was there that I couldn't walk straight after!

Sashimi: Fresh, juicy, yummy!
Kaminabe: we tried the crab with spicy base, and the seafood with miso base. initial taste wasn't fantastic, but as the soup continued to boil, the flavour of the soup base and the ingredients combined to make the overall taste yummy! i preferred the spicy base as i felt that the miso base was a bit bland.
Rakuzen salad: fresh veg and seafood. there was salmon sashimi, fresh clams and prawns i think. the salad dressing was served in a separate bowl so you can add the amount that you want. the amount of the salad dressing was adequate.
Carpaccio: they have salmon and amberjack (i think!) carpaccio. didn't really like the taste and i felt that the slices of the salmon was too thick for a carpaccio dish.
Soft shell crab: a little too oily and salty for my liking.
Tori karaage: fried to a crisp! yummy!
Tempura: tried the ebi tempura, which is pretty normal only.
Miso soup: normal
Chawamushi: very smooth, yummy!
Citron ice cream: the citron was a bit sour, and combined with the sweetness of the ice cream, it really helps to cleanse the palate after all the food we ate!
Macha/Black sesame ice cream: the macha ice cream tasted quite normal. i'm not a fan of black sesame but once i tasted their black sesame ice cream, i was hooked!
Japanese rice ball with red bean: normal dessert that you can find at other jap restaurants.

The service staff were polite and prompt in clearing our dishes. They were also prompt in responding to us when we called them, unlike some other restaurants where you wave your hands for a million years before they acknowledge you.

That about covers my whole experience at Rakuzen. I think the buffet is worth it, but to order stuff from the alacarte menu may be abit more expensive. It was my first time there but definitely won't be my last~ just writing this review makes me hungry again!

Came here for buffet lunch on National Day. Stuffed ourselves silly during those 2 hours. The menu was extensive and we had
Sashimi - was generous but quality varies. Salmon was good, tuna was below par. Taco was ok, ikura was good but the sweet prawns were so so. So the Sashimi platter (with salmon, salmon belly and roe) was more highly recommended than the sashimi moriwase.
We only tried the hotate sushi which was decent. The 2nd pair we ordered was not as sweet as the 1st pair.
Tempura was good. The prawns were big and the batter was light.
Unagi kabayaki was a very big slab and immensely satisfactory.
Seafood salad was fresh with a good dressing and generous amount of crab meat (real one).
The spider roll was very good. The deep fried soft shell crab was fresh and crunchy and the prawn roe on the rice was bursting with flavour. This must have been my favourite item of the day.
Yakitori was good and the kushiyaki platter offered 6 sticks of different items, including chicken wing, chicken with leek, mushroom, green chilli, bacon with asparagus and something else.
Yakiniku was decent.
The crab hotpot was generous but we over cooked the crab, making it less tender (our fault).
3 kinds of ice cream were offered as dessert - the black sesame and yuzu sherbert were divine. The green tea (served with red bean) was average. 2 of us shared 5 scoops and we had no space for other items.
Service was attentive. The waitress at our table was new (not familiar with the menu)but pleasant and tried hard.
The atmosphere was pleasant.
Green tea was free flow.
We love the place:)