Akane

Last Saturday morning, I went about my usual routine of flipping to the back page of The Business Times and flinched in shock as the words "Sayonara Akane" flashed right before me.

After more than three decades here, sushi chef Nogawa has decided to pack his bags and head back to Japan (careful at the customs, Nogawa-san). Every Japanese chef in Singapore probably longs for the word "Nogawa" to be on their CV. It would be akin to graduating from an Ivy League, an assurance of a job interview with the Big Four, Fortune 500- it's what separates those "on the way up" from those "on the way out".

Beyond my world of conveyor belt sushi chains and Rated-G family restaurants, I knew I needed to visit Akane before the appeal was lost of me -gasp- forever. Just so happened, a fellow foodie was feeling the jitters and we made it a point to head there for lunch the very next day. On my way there, I couldn't help but feel a slight sense of dread. With simplicity engrained in its tradition, haute Japanese cuisine often seemed underwhelming and what if I felt disillusioned by what I had at Akane?

Seated at the sushi counter, I was glad to have arrived earlier for it gave me a chance to quietly observe the sushi chefs. Alas, the maestro wasn't around but the docile-looking Kondon-san exuded serenity and clear dedication to his craft.

We started off with the sashimi set and sushi set, which came with miso coup, chawanmushi and fruits.



The sashimi set came with premium cuts of yellowtail, scallop and tuna. It wasn't as visually appealing as my neighbour's brightly hued chirashi but the freshness was undeniable.





The sushi set consisted of a neat ensemble of old favourites. When I saw how the fish caps over the sweet vinegar rice like a canopy, I suddenly felt sickened by those butchered versions served in those horrible colour-coded travesties.

So what made people 'swear by' this place? One word- consistency. Be it premium cuts of sashimi or the complimentary miso broth, every dish bore a quiet persistence to excellence.



The miso soup was delicious and a huge prawn head bobs within, a not-so-subtle reminder of where the sweetness came from. The commonplace chawanmushi rose in standing, when topped with ikura and shark's fin broth.



We decided to share the cold Soba and tempura and the waitress was thoughtful enough to serve two separate dipping bowls. I flicked a pinchful of nori and spring onion into the mirin-shoyu sauce and gently dipped the plain looking buckwheat stripes.



The noodles hosted a chilled unblemished taste, which immediately made me think of how sensational it would be to slurp this on a hot Japanese summer day. The tempura, covered in thick batter, was less of a revelation.



Another seemingly simple but difficult-to-wow item was the tamago, but here at Akane, the tamago delighted with a soft, almost cake-like texture.

Quite frankly, it all boiled down to an ego problem... make that two ego problems. Half the sushi counter was filled with folks whose gold-lacquered tableware bellowed 'omakase' while our commonplace black tableware wore like the Star of David. Our egos refused to let us leave without experiencing something extravagant and being seated in front of the otoro did nothing to quell my curiosity.



Behold, the otoro!

The fan-shaped delicacy was decadently laced with fat and the uni (sea urchin) bore an "interesting" non-existence texture. Perhaps I had been expecting an epiphany but truth is the first thought that came to my mind was "hmmm.. slinky".

There was nothing complex in the preparation, nothing fancy about the presentation but every bite brimmed with Poseidon-certified freshness.



Sayonara, Nogawa San and thank you for all that you have given us.

G-A-S-P!

Garibaldi is serving salmon ravioli for lunch- sWOONS.



I think I've been watching and reading too much about Gordon Ramsey, The F-word and his ravioli dishes... becuse I have some weird ravioli craving going on. I would really love to try Salmon Ravioli with Zucchini and Mint Sauce from Garibaldi...