Since its Inagiku days, I promised to head there for a meal. Until Chef Moon took over the reigns and made a sparkling display at Savour 2013 that reignited the interest.
A not so traditional setting with contemporary pieces.
M for Mikuni.
Delicate orchids to adorn the dining table.
Holders of seasonings, so pretty!
The ala carte menu that is exactly the same for dinner sans the lunch sets.
Prawn crackers to tease the tastebuds. Light as can be but peppered with enough spices for it to resemble a prawn cracker. Kudos to the creativity and culinary skill!
Salad with japanese dressing always works for me. Top it off with crunchy bits, double win.
Business Bento ($58)
Organic salad, king prawn with hokkaido uni cream, truffle salmon sashimi, futomaki, kakiage tempura, egg custard, tonjiru and dessert
I always think that business bento sets are meant for those on the go. The presentation of this in two lacquer boxes already set the note for luxury. Even with the larger than usual portion of miso soup, I wonder how fast can this be consumed?
Freshly grated wasabi, the only epitome of a real Japanese restaurant.
The star of the bento set, lobster smeared with hokkaido cream uni. Sea urchin and lobster, I die happy as a clam. The flavours so wonderfully executed. Truly a gastronomical firework display. Right to the accompany corn and garlic, wonderful pieces of edible art.
The truffle infused kampachi had me at hello at Savour 2013, once again the magic is replicated in this salmon alternative. Faultlessly delicious.
Belittle this fried bush not, this has to be the best tempura eaten alive. Light and made with such a lovely variety of greens, I suppose any vegetable haters could be converts just for this.
This would be more of a korean sushi than Japanese with the usage of bay leaves, a miss for most because of its strong smelling characteristics.
We also attempted one of their teppanyaki lunch sets to have an idea about their other culinary prowess. They specialise in robotaki as well.
Australian Beef Steak Set ($70)
Chawanmushi egg custard, australian beef tenderloin, vegetables, rice, pickles, miso soup, dessert
Garlic fried rice or white rice and the choice was clear. I am still not over the fact that Japanese fried rice is hardly as tasty as the hawker or cantonese ones. Looking the part with a hue of brown from the soy sauce, the dish is lacking in flavour, expectedly. Yet nothing a dash of shoyu or dab or grated wasabi cannot save.
Love me tender, love me sweet. A row of generous chunks of australian beef.
Seared to a perfect pink, these were almost melt in the mouth. There were pieces that were particularly too big to attempt in one bite. Wagyu this is not but the tenderness is amazing!
Topping the garlic rice with a sinewy chunk, bliss is heaven.
Chawanmushi with a dosage of ginger juice.
I dislike the curdled texture and coarseness of a supposed silken pudding. Overcooked perhaps? Or a lack of skill.
There was an option of topping up for the other desserts in the menu but at this juncture, we were simply too stuffed. I was just hoping both fruits were from Japan, sour strawberries and uber fragrant melon.
Warm green tea to end of this lovely meal.
Dining at Mikuni is an exquisite affair, probably the most exquisite of all lunch affairs at Japanese restaurant. I count Nadaman and Mikuni as personal favourites no doubt Takuya serves up decent fare too. A different touch altogether from the experience to dishes served, raring to return to try out more!
Mikuni
Swissotel Fairmont
Oh my you must go back and try their teppanyaki with king prawns in golden sauce! Uber delish!
ReplyDelete@ice: yes i will!!! returns on the cards soon!!
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