It has been barely 6 months since my last non-memorable trip to Sushi Mitsuya; My friend and I went on a weekday then, and we felt our lunch was very rushed (chef Sean must have thought we belonged to the lunch crowd when we were in fact on leave). But because my dear Jap-foodie-GF insisted Sushi Mitsuya is really good and that I have to head back with her to (re-)do omakase, reservation was thus made for 3 people for a weekend lunch. This time, with head chef Ryosuke Harada.

Taken from their website, head chef Harada started sushi making at 18. He spent 8 years honing his skills in Tokyo before venturing to Hong Kong, where he also picked up cantonese. For this, I was really impressed! In 2011, he returned home to set up Sushi SORA at the 5-stars Mandarin Oriental Tokyo, before coming to Singapore. And at Sushi Mitsuya, head chef Harada serves sushi in the ‘edo-mae’ tradition interlaced with his innovative creations, also known as “Harada-style” sushi.

And oh yes! If one has been following my instagram, one would know of @felhuang (whom I’ve also been addressing as ‘my Jap-foodie-GF’ on my blog) and @lailian27. I got to know these 2 wonderful ladies through instagram, and we’ve recently created a hashtag for ourselves; #TheSushiUNIstas. How cute right. Haha.

So yes, our lunch at Sushi Mitsuya was also to celebrate @lailian27’s and my birthdays! =)

And from the menu (pages 1, 2), we ordered:-

1) Kasha (chef’s recommendation), $180 comprised of:-

(A) Dish #1 (above) – Cucumber with sweet fish (ayu) roe.

(B) Dish #2 (above) – Beancurd skin (yuba) with fillings of walnut and bean.

  

(C) Dish #3 (above) – Right-eyed flounder (karei) sashimi. To be taken with ponzu sauce, chili and radish.

(D) Dish #4 (above) – Amberjack (kanpachi) that had been aged for 1 week and marinated in a special (3 years old) soya sauce to achieve a slightly slimy texture from the usual powdery texture of amberjack. Really smooth!

(E) Dish #5 (above) – Fresh dada-edamame. The staff explained ‘dada’ meant uncle. *Shrug* But when this was placed in front of us, we could immediately smell its pandan-like fragrance.

  

(F) Dish #6 (above) – And for this, we watched head chef Harada roll marinated kohada with perilla leave and ginger before grilling, slicing, and mixing it with sesame seeds, wasabi and soya sauce. Pretty good! I really enjoy coming to sushi-yas and be introduced to new (yet still somewhat traditional) creations.

  

(G) Dish #7 (above) – Leek and bonito flakes rolled with the skin of amberjack (kanpachi). This was so good! It’s almost like our bacon-wrapped asparagus, but the healthier version. Keke.

(H) Dish #8 (above) – Short spike sea urchin and white small shrimp (aka-uni shiro). I almost wanted to lick this spoon-shaped plate clean. So good! One of my favorite combinations!

(I) Dish #9 (above) – Sea urchin that’s lightly grilled on pine tree skin (yaki-uni).

  

(J) Dish #10 (above) – Grilled eel, served with salt and pepper at the side.

(K) Dish #11 (above) – Premium fatty tuna (otoro).

(L) Dish #12 (above) – Grilled cheek of kinki fish. Kinki fish is one of my favourites and I was genuinely surprised when this was served. So good. Meat was tender and juicy. I ended up using my hand too to ensure I ‘sucked’ the meat clean from the bones.

  
  
  
  

  

(M) Dish #13 (above) – Before we started with our sushi course, we were each given a cloth towel. An indication for us to use our hands. And we were given an assortment of nigiri sushi of butter fish, scallop sprinkled with black salt and yuzu, lightly seared mackerel, sea urchin (murasaki uni), medium fatty tuna (chutoro) that’s freshly brushed with soya, medium fatty tuna marinated with soya, pressed sea eel (anago) where the rice was also mixed with anago, tamago (the savoury version as it contained fish and shrimp) and maki roll (satay style). Oh yes, satay style. It was interesting as we watched head chef Harada skewer the rolls before grilling them. And that introduced a unique smokiness to the maki roll.

(N) Dish #14 (above) – And because we mentioned there were 2 birthday girls when reservation was made, birthday girls were presented with ‘birthday cake’ sushi. So cute! The rice used was the same as with the pressed sea eel sushi’s. And after a birthday song, head chef Harada assisted to cut chop the ‘cake’ into smaller slices.

  

(O) Dish #15 (above) – Clear soup with fish cake.

(P) Dish #16 (above) – Hokjicha-flavored ice cream and melon.

So did my opinion of Sushi Mitsuya changed with this lunch? Well, it sure did! The dishes were executed beautifully. I enjoyed it when head chef Harada expressed his creativity in his dishes. My Jap-foodie-GF who has been to Sushi Mitsuya quite a fair bit commented that head chef Harada still surprises her with new creations with every visits.

Service was wonderful too. Our cups of tea were topped up promptly (and I am quite the fast green tea drinker), while head chef Harada was friendly and had a good sense of humour. Ask him questions and he’s more than happy to share his knowledge!

So I conclude… If one wants to have a nice and non-rushed lunch, one should come on a weekend. And to experience the ‘real deal’, request for head chef Harada while making reservation. But I always say, to fully enjoy the omakase experience, do loosen up and have fun. Where possible, do interact / converse with the chef.

Related posts:

Lunch @ Sushi Mitsuya [Revisit] Lunch @ Ginza Sushi Ichi | Sushi Restaurant in Orchard Lunch @ Hashida Sushi [Revisit] Lunch @ Aoki Restaurant [Revisit] Lunch @ Sushi Dai // CLOSED