rev:text
| - Thoroughly impressed given that it is kaiseki in the very very land locked Phoenix after all...
It's Sunday night and we were the only people there at 7:30PM, then only 1 more couple joined the restaurant around 8PM. I was quite surprised by emptiness here, made me worry slightly for a quick second but that was quickly dissolved as the first dishes came out and can't said I minded too much. It's a nice respite from all the very loud restaurants in LA.
1. Sashimi: Fluke has a nice texture to it but I found it just a tinsy oily.
2. Tsukuri (6 tastes): Kanpachi, firefly squid, blue shrimp, Hokkaido scallp, oyster with uni, octopus. Everyone was very good. My favorite was probably the shrimp, it's deep fried after all =) And the oyster-uni combination. Least, though still good, was the squid, it had a slightly different taste to it that I can't quite describe.
3. Mushroom and clam soup: 5 different types of mushrooms which I loved, my friend is not a mushroom fan, so more for me! My bowl didn't have too much broth in it though.
4. Toubanyaki: Grade A3-A4 Washugu beef, very tender and tasty. I really enjoyed the accompanying salt and sauce as well. Maybe you do need to go up to A5 for it to be "melt in your mouth like butter" feel but this was still fantastic.
5. Sushi course: I honestly can't tell you what is what but every piece was very fresh. My favorite was by far the otoro, which was probably 1 of the best I've had to date. Now that is like butter.
6. Dessert: Chawanmushi (egg custard) with fruit. This was fantastic, tasted like a very light version of creme brulee without all the sweetness. Really nice with fresh fruit on top.
Overall: Fantastic dishes and honestly at $100 per person and considering the generous portion sizes, this is a great deal (at least by LA standards). Sake list is also very reasonable priced. While not every bite was my favorite ever, given the standards for location and value, this is a 5 star place!
|