Tatsuya

It's not new, They have appeared in reviews, in several food blogs, and uttered from reputable references dozens of times I am sure. Probably was a little later then expected, but I finally got myself to a small table, and subsequently, to a counter at Tatsuya.

The omakase menu ranges from $180 - $200, a brave higher than Tomo. But at the end of the dinner, I would say it was worth it. The all-smiles service treats you like royalty and that to me, is essential in the service industry and worth the every cent.

When we arrived at 8, I was disappointed that my earlier reservation for a counter seat at 8pm was ignored and we were seated at a table. "I want counter!" comes my bratty insistence. And the nice waiter obliges and says he will arrange for that as soon as 2 opens up. "Or we get chef to come here and make sushi for you." he jokes. I was seriously hoping that would come true of course!
I stressed to our jovial waiter when we got seated, "sashimi, sushi many many yah.." and to my gleeful happiness, that's what we got. We had a smattering of cooked items streaming from the kitchen to whet our appetite.

I wasn't too unhappy to see the familiar crustacean snack, after all, they tasted absolutely great when Tomas had them sent to our table at Tomo. The right amount of salt, with a touch of crispiness, it gets you all psyched and eager for dinner to start.

From the grilled and cooked selection, we had a river trout each. Not to bad, considering I am not a fan of grilled fish.

A leisurely hour later, we finally got our counter seats. And we were straight away put under loving care of the Chef.

Greeted with his cute smiles and Japanese interspersed with as much English as he can muster, the experience was endearing to the heart and not to mention the stomach!

We started with some sashimi. My highlight was of course the toro sashimi which I presume comes from the southern bluefin tuna. Next we had an individual assortment of sushi and Chef's blow-torch bore a very significant responsibility throughout our dinner. Chef's aburi toro was excellent, just the right "melt-in-your-mouth" textures.

I would say the sushi that torched, wrapped and moulded after came in all yummy kinds. Creative is probably an understatement. Interesting, will probably do no justice to the jovial and endearing experience Chef gave us that night.
To mention a few, we had fresh chopped squid served with a miso sauce and torched to provide that perfect warm, melted taste. The seaweed is so fresh, it doesn't stick to your teeth and provided that extra crunch.

Of course I had to have my hotate and I asked Chef to prepare that for us. But don't expect the no-frills traditional fat scallop smacked on rice. He pairs it again with a nice sauce, throw on some crunch fresh salmon skin and broils the combination to give it that char-grilled soft and yummy taste.

And they kept on coming. Unveiled in different shapes and combinations possible. It was like a mini fashion show, using rice and seaweed as models, Chef piled on the different ingredients, expertly combined, skillfully tweaked and grilled till each is a masterpiece. True evidence of a creative passionate mind.

Earlier gym session already clearly wasted, we had to stop Chef even though I was really keen to see what others he could pull out from his hat. But we have to be kind, they had to wash up, and keep some fish for the next day. So we surrendered and finished with dessert.

And fortunately so! The vanilla creamy pudding that followed dispelled any notion that this Sushi Chef cannot multi-task! The caramel was freshly made and the burnt sugar taste so rich and natural it added that little contrast to the smooth and fragrant creamy spoonfuls I just couldn't stop shoving into my mouth.

And to cleanse the palette and end the night on a high note, a nice refreshing slice of Musk melon and an ultra sweet big Japanese strawberry on ice. Normally I would frown at the thought of fruit to end any dinner, but tonight, I more then welcomed it. With a nice hot cup of tea, it was the perfect ending.

Tatsuya

270 Orchard Road

#01-05 Park Hotel Orchard

Tel: 6737-1160