The stairs down to where it all happens was almost like going into one of the Prada stores in Hong Kong's Tsim Sha Tsui where there is an anticipation of things to come... we were lead to our seats at the sushi counter so we can also be entertained by the chefs at creation.
The menu was pretty extensive with seasonal offerings also so we took a while to place our order.. during this time, we felt the discomfort of being watched over by 3 to 4 wait staff... the attentiveness was just a tad overdone, where a slight twitch of the body resulted in someone bending over and a "yessir" or "yes maam". I never thought I'd say this but we were grateful when the restaurant started filling up and the wait staff to guest ratio was no longer 3 to 1.
Surprisingly, the food came fast and furious, which was unlike the inital deliberate service. We couldn't eat fast enough, especially the hot food, which got cold pretty quickly from a healthy draft.
We started with the baby squid in miso sauce - tender, fresh squid with the sweet miso, which was not cloying. Good start to break the hunder pangs from 3 solid hours of tennis. The uni or sea urchin served in its own thorny shell was spoonfuls of creamy goodness with just enough hint of the brininess to keep you thinking of the sea. The Ayu (sweet fish) tempura was a combination of light batter with the natural sweetness of the fish and did not feel oily or heavy at all. My main event was my chef's sushi platter which was a selection of the choicest cuts over well marinated sushi rice. Of worthy mention was the sea eel, which was seared just right and painted with just enough sauce, as well as the fatty tuna roll, which was a nice blend of chopped tuna and chives rolled and chopped into 6 bite-sized pieces. I ended the meal with sakura ice cream, almost as light as a sorbet, and at the mistakenly charged price of $56, has got to be one of the most expensive in the world. Thankfully, that mistake was caught and I have since seen my refund on the recent credit card bill.
The meal did end with a record time of exactly an hour, but perhaps the chef was training for the F1 race this September...
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