Yummy omakase Japanese Food at Hachi
Sometimes we visit a Japanese establishment and find that we are drawn to foods that we are comfortable with, and tend to stay away from the stuff we don't recognise. Cue the brilliant concept of omakase (Japanese for 'I'll leave it to you'), where the chef decides on the tasting menu for the evening. It's a great way for people to sample many ingredients and dishes that are less commonplace, but deliver truly unique and exciting flavours.
One evening, after a friend’s trusty recommendation, we decided
to give Hachi a go. Stepping into the restaurant, we immediately notice the
minimalist feel, and a layout designed to allow patrons to look at the counter
from whereever they're seated. This was a great decision, allowing everyone to see
how the chefs put the finishing touches on the dishes, especially for curious eyes like mine.
We started the night with a round of sake as we took in the
surroundings. From that moment,
the anticipation started building up. What would be our next dish? Would we like it? Thankfully the sake helped me to relax.
On to the food!
Our first course was a medley of mountain yams, roe, and konyaku. The
crunchy yams and lightly sour hints from the konyaku set the expectation high. It was simple and easy to eat, and a good starter to prepare our taste buds
for what we were about to have next.
Our second course consisted of a beautiful sashimi platter, and the fish
was really fresh. We expected no less than grated wasabi and was pleased to
find that it was top notch. Only regret was that we wished we had more!
The next dish was Salt grilled fresh
Canadian (sic) oyster covered with mentaiko. This was no doubt the best oyster
dish I ever had!! The oysters are kept live until ordered,
which the manager later explained was of absolute importance to maintain the
freshness. Covered in creamy mentaiko and grilled shortly, this was an absolute
delight to have. After my first bite my eyes literally widened! I’ve been raving about this to many friends and definitely
want to have this again the next time I’m back!
The next course was a Japanese vegetable dish that was a good welcome after the delicious oyster. On the right was some vegetables, which I'm not a big fan of, but thankfully we didn’t waste any food as my date finished this for me. :D The soup in the little cup was a mini oden, and I finished that happily.
Not a huge fan of soups, but we were served a clear fish broth which it looked plain, but my date found it surprisingly good.
Sushi Platter: It's not a complete Japanese omakase without some good
ol' sushi. Only wished there were more! I normally dislike ordering roe sushi because
I prefer smaller amounts of it, atop of some sushi rolls. This time, it allowed me
to focus on the roe juices enhanced by the vinegar sushi rice, which I had come
to appreciate only after this.
Wafu salad. The beef was so-so, and we finished this quickly because I
loved the salad sauce. Hehe.
Soba; I was too full to finish it by
myself, but these handmade noodles were made wonderfully and was a good end to
the meal.
My sweet tastebuds wouldn’t allow me to do without dessert, which was
Yuzu ice cream with mandarin oranges. The chef commented that he came up with
this dessert because it was the CNY season and it was my first time having Yuzu
ice cream! It was so good I wanted seconds despite my full tummy.
Our sake cups: Can you guess which was mine?
Managed to take a picture with the head chef behind the counter! He delighted us with some cheerful banter and I tried to reply in my broken Japanese.
It was a wonderful evening at Hachi. The chef designed a menu that showed
off their high-grade ingredients and even gave us a complimentary refill of hot
sake. The price was a little steep (over $100/pax; you have been warned) but we enjoyed the friendly staff and surprises
at every course.
Would definitely be back again!
Favourite dish: Grilled Oyster with Mentaiko
Overall Rating: 4/5
Hachi
6 Mohamed Sultan Rd, 238956
Tel: 6734 9622
Closed on Sundays
