Kaunta Singapore, Onze @ Tanjong Pagar

9 years! Can you believe we've been married for almost a decade? Crazy times! Crazy but good times 😁 We had a quick anniversary lunch at Kaunta (quick, not because of our kids but the insane meetings WFH has brought about) and times like these do make us grateful that there are still moments worth celebrating. 

We went with the Omakase Aoi set, which comes with 8 sushi pieces, appetizer, hot dish, miso soup and dessert. A key differentiator here is Kaunta ages their fish, which results in deeper flavours. I also really loved their hotate, which had been lightly dipped in sake. We had space for another piece of sushi and the chef prepared aburi engawa, which never fails to deliver. 

While we loved the sushi sizes here, the chef is a little heavy-handed with wasabi and I requested for less after a couple of pieces. Honestly, I can't nitpick much but it does lack a wow factor and the service was a little rough around the edges. There are still plenty more places to hit up for omakase and if I do ever find myself in the mood for value-for-money omakase, I would hit up Miraku again. 

To many more years with this one xoxo

Dinner Omakase at Miraku, Pickering Street

The funny thing about phase 2 is we kinda miss the quietness of Circuit Breaker. Being such homebodies, we still don't go out as much and we have definitely done a terrible job of keeping in touch with our friends. Then again, it just reminds us of the people that really matter and those we keep in touch for the sake of. 

Two friends I am most keen to keep in touch with are WZ and P. Following a most delightful lunch at Miraku, we made plans to have dinner there with them. Our last meal together was another omakase - at Teppei - so we know they would be game for more sushi. 

We all went for the Sushi Omakase, which at $128/the ++ scores you a seasonal appetiser and Chef’s signature appetiser, 11 nigiri sushis, 1 sushi roll, uni ikura bowl, soup and dessert. To be honest, I can't remember exactly what we had but we had such a great time and the sushis were amazing! Miraku is surely one of those local small-time restaurants that I hope stays around for a long time.  

Birthday omakase at Miraku 味楽

Over the past few years, I have graviatated towards chirashis or omakases for my birthday meal with KW. With all that has been going, something light and fuss-free sounded even more appealing. I came across Miraku, a largely under-the-radar Japanese restaurant, and we promptly made a reservation. To our surprise, there were 2 seatings and we were on the waitlist for the 11:45am slot - looks like it's just us who's not heard of them.

KW and I opted for their 15-course Lunch ($68), which comprised of 3 appetisers, 9 nigiri sushi pieces, Wagyu sukiyaki, a soup and dessert. The appetizers, while seemingly plain, were tasty and prepped our guts for an onslaught of sushi.The sushis then came fast and furious - 'cause we were late - but it wasn't an issue since we are fast eaters. The sushis are admittedly on the small side, but delightful nonethless. All were seasoned well, either with soy, or light touches of kosho and flavoured salt.

Service was exemplery - we were massively late but they were very accomodating and thoughtful about our experience. That and the sushi is worth a return trip. Miraku is launching a new menu around mid August - something to look out for when we want to treat ourselves.

L: Enoki salad

R:Braised Wagyu

L: Iku

R:Sake (we ordered)

L: Tai (Seabream) 

R: Saba

L: Tai (Seabream) 

R: Aburi Kinmedai

L: Botan-ebi

R: Otoro

L: Ikura

R: Uni

Wagyu sukiyaki with onsen egg 

L: Red miso soup

R:Perila plum sorbet

Father's Day Weekend

Last weekend, fathers around the world came out of Mother's Day shadows and finally got their big break. However, even with Phase 2 in full social-distancing-swing, I am still not comfortable with going out to take a stroll in the mall or dine out at restaurants. Maybe I'm just a true homebody who really just enjoys staying at home (HAHA!). But without losing the celebratory spirit, we had meals with our parents and in-laws separately at home over the weekend.  

With my parents, we ordered assorted otoro and akami sashimi from Kuro Maguro by Maguro Donya! They were super fresh and I loved the cube cuts. On top of that, we also got some delicious AF squid ink pasta sauce (we didn't know it was just sauce and luckily had spaghetti in the pantry) and pizzas from Ristorante Luka.

With my in-laws, we beefed out with MB6 and MB6 Wagyu steaks, alongside kale salad and roasted potatoes. My mum-in-law made a super moist chocolate cake that we downed with copious amount of vanilla ice cream. 

Hope you had a good one, stay safe. 

Omakake at Teppei Japanese Restaurant

So... we've finally tried the famed omakase at Teppei Japanese Restaurant and it was quite THE experience. While KW favours a more traditional sushi omakase, I loved how this omakase played with different flavours and cooking methods. 

Many of you might know that Teppei features a different town or region every month and for the month of November, the spotlight was on Shimonoseki City. We were served about 15 courses - ranging from small bits to small dishes, and by the time the main course arrived, we were SO STUFFED. 

There were many birthdays too - four that night - so if you want somewhere special to celebrate your special day, I'm not sure if that's the best place to do so. That said, it was a really enjoyable meal and I wouldn't mind going back to try another theme. 

APPETIZERS // Croquette, fugu skin jelly, persimmon mochi, mozuku ponzu jelly, sausage

SASHIMI // Salmon, toro, tako, saba, kampachi, kue

CHAWANMUSHI // Amaebi, ikura

HANDROLL // Negitoro, tempura flakes

*Sexist handroll alert*

SMOKED OYSTER 

DEEP-FRIED ARROWROOT

SPOONS // Crab, ikura 

FUGU // Braised, fried

SPOON // Foie gras, akamutsu aburi

ANKIMO MISO

WASABI LEAF

STEAK // A5 steak, bushroom, fried burdock

UNI FRIED RICE 

WASGYU FRIED RICE

SOUP // Sanma mizore soup

DESSERT // Shimonoseki mocha with red bean