tesss

Lunch at Fat Cow's is always a treat, somehow I've gone past seeking the most value for money wagyu don and have come to terms with paying for quality. Fat Cow Premium Donburi ($98) Having tried their uber value for money wagyu set lunches, I thought why not for their special edition - and I guess the only way of finding out what makes the premium is to try it for myself. Ha, all sorts of justifications sometimes. Portions are definitely larger - more beef, rice and I get a special topping of caviar, ikura roe and uni. Strangely at such a price tag, I'd have imagined a kagoshima cut at least or more marbling, the beef at medium rareness was delicious but missing out on the melt in the mouth. Which then made this bowl of wagyu beef foie gras don more precious because of the foie gras and sea urchin. The hilarity about this was the onsen egg which I gingerly avoided breaking because, judge me not but I prefer my eggs hard boiled or three quarts boiled. And he had to say it a...

I was on a roll with my steak meals and being in Kyoto made it more so. Japanese beef is a class of its own and we decided to go luxe with Isshin and also try a mass favourite - Otsuka that is both popular amongst tourists and locals. To be fair, the lunch crowd consisted mostly of tourists which I suspect has everything to do with the Japanese guides plugging this place to no end. Well, it does not hurt to try. Directions are clear from a street away and infact, the neighbourhood is a rather quaint one. I found my #housegoals just walking through the neighbourhood. With the short lunch hour from 11 am to 2 pm, one cannot help but either arrive very early for brunch or late enough to skip the queues and still have tunch. Stools are provided to make queueing comfortable, word has it that queues can last up to an hour sometimes. It was almost instinctive to fill my name on the list and wait to be called - or it seems that everyone knew what to do! Roast Beef Set A (JPY 1,700) Rice with a...

For the longest time, the moniker piqued my interest - an Australian concept with casual vibes and focused on in-house curing and grilling. If that was not interesting enough, they specialize in a luscious array of cuts from various parts of the animal. Aye, Salted and Hung I was already sold before going. We were game enough to head for the set to get a taste of everything. The dishes showcased were cooked using a number of techniques - from smoked brined cured, roasted, fermented fried braised, grilled seared charred and frozen churned and baked. Oysters and sea grapes as appetizers, loving this aprodisac-ish start already!  Charcuterie Board Somehow charcuterie boards hardly impress, at least those that I have eaten before. Until this platter - from the duck proscuitto to the pork loin, each of them wowed differently. Plenty of promise for their cured section in particular and things were definitely off to a great start. Not to mention those cumin crackers that made everything la...

I love dining by the robata counter in a Japanese restaurant because of a view like that. Having the day's freshest laid out infront of me, is definitely a sight to behold. Dining like that makes me spend more somehow, because all these temptations somehow egg me on to make more orders. Who says you need a cute chef? And part of the robata experience includes the novelty of taking my dishes from the oar! #cheapthrills In true Mikuni style, we get offered these ebi crackers as appetizers and my main grouse till today after so many meals is - why not more? Or even have these addictive nibbles sold in jars! I can never tire of the Robata Set Lunch that is a steal at $68, just the kagoshima beef itself already makes this so worthwhile. Since this is the nth time I am trying the set, I shall let the pictures do the drooling. Truffle Sea Urchin Tofu ($38) Beancurd, tofu, truffle soya, caviar I had to do a closeup of the sea urchin shell topped with sea urchin and tofu. Visually very p...