Wasabi Tei, Far East Plaza

If I ever had to make a call on the quintessence of form without finesse in Japanese food, Wasabi Tei (14 Scotts Road, #05-70 Far East Plaza, tel : 62388216) would probably be it. There is very little of, if at all that can be associated with the elegance that one would associate with the traditional vein of Japanese cuisine here. Frills are virtually non existence and presentation takes no precedence. But the food was actually pretty decent with all things considered. While it's far from being beyond reproach, it was not half bad at all. Doesn't really look it at a glance. One comes to this hole in the wall place to get their bellies filled and leaves.

 

Everyone got served an otoshi which consisted mainly of what I was educated to be simmered hijiki seaweed and bits of chicken. The seaweed reminded me a little bit of a pickled tea leaf salad I once had. While it didn't appear to be very much, the starter was quite flavourful in a savoury sweet manner and I thought it was quite good.

 

I would simply describe the mixed sashimi here was generously portioned, thick sliced and straight to the point. We got the usual suspects of sake, hamachi, mekajiki, maguro and a fat piece of hotate sliced into two. They're as you can see them, literal slices of meat with little, if any style on the knifework. The slices of fish were chilled, firm and quite fresh tasting.

 

The uni gunkans were unfortunately not one of the better ones I've had. It did look a little suspicious on delivery especially when one was already toppled and both were barely (badly) wrapped. The sea urchin did look slightly mushy and while the taste wasn't as bad as what my nagging suspicion had indicated, it didn't quite put a smile on my face neither.

 

This was surprisingly, one of the better tasting unagi makis I've had. Certainly not the best looking one, but the grill scorched aroma was very evident on the still crisp caramelized skin of the eels. I suspected that the extra char was how it was intended to be done since I did look a little more so than usual, but it was really quite nice. I'll need a revisit opinion on the unagis.

 

The chirashi bento was quite similar to the sashimi platter - on rice. Plus a little bit of ikura, a crabstick and no scallop. Not much else to be said about them that I haven't already mentioned, but my parting comment would be that the salmon they served was actually not bad too. Good as in a way of having definitive fat that slicked my soya sauce with grease. Caveat lector : do mind their little in house rules they have for their customers though.

Wasabi Tei : cooked food edition

Dare I say that the unagi don from Wasabi Tei was actually not bad in spite of the charred appearances. I thought that I detected a little bit of that greasy fattiness underneath the grilled skin of the eel. Not much can really be to the quality of eels locally, but I guess there are some places that do serve a pretty decent non-Japanese import of those fishes and this was one; in generous portions and a warm bowl of sticky rice to boot.

The unagi nigiris did surprise me a little since I wasn't expecting them to be so large. As expected though, they weren't much to look at, but the sizes were nothing one can complain about. The rice at the bottom barely held the weight of the grilled eels on top.

I generally don't hold much hopes for gyudons since I've never really had any that was really worth remembering apart from the savoury rendition at Yoshinoya which was surprisingly quite addictive. Pity that they're just another chain that takes no pride in what they serve  charging quite a bit and delivering pathetic portions. Wasabi Tei's rendition was nothing short of comfort food with sliced beef. Well blended were the flavours of the thinly sliced strips of sautéed onions and bits of garlic that worked really well with their salty sauce and greasy thin slices of cow on top of the warm rice. Again, it's form over finesse in generous quantities. Did I mention that they have a mushroomy tasting chawanmushi that's loaded with Shimeiji mushrooms too?

The ghost of Wasabi Tei

The title of the post might have been a little dramatic. Long gone has been the irascible chef who has moved on and again; I haven’t a clue what’s happened to that man at present time. Left behind was a legacy in the form of his old little frills free “hole in the wall” counter seating shop at the 5th floor of Far East Plaza. Run by a current management that had in honesty, made an effort to keep things very much the same as before. Right down to the $2 per seated person "cover" charge that comes with a drink. The vintaged decor had never changed too and apparently, not much has changed with the food as well.

Otoshi still came in the recognizeable form of braised hijiki seaweed and minced chicken. The flavours do seem a little thinner though.  

Here's an oyako jyu, a cooked chicken and egg over rice bento which I've never tried before. Brimming with sweetness from the mirin and onions, that went comfortingly delicious with a splash or three of light soy sauce.

For supplement, some sliced maguro. Thick and chunky replicas of those lack of finesse knife-work that this little joint was known for.

But what's changed are the people running the restaurant. The don't look so much on the edge and are visibly more amicable. And I think I have an idea......

Cod-dling up at Wasabi Tei

Not doing any advertising for Wasabi Tei if that's a thought that's in your head but I needed to give myself a chance at their grilled cod which caught my attention the last time we were here. Due to probable inconsistency, it also turned out not as thick and large as I remember seeing them but there weren't any regrets. And yes, it did look quite charred, like their unagi and grilled chicken which were nice in that charred manner. I'm quite sure that many would have something to say about the quality of the cooking but it didn't taste as burnt as it looked. In fact it was fragrant on the outside while tender and moist on the insides. This was also an opportunity to try the cod in claypot which never fails to turn up on someone else's seat every time we visit. What we learnt was that at each seating, only 4 of these can be served up since it takes about a half hour for the cooking to be done. It was actually not bad. What you got from the hot bubbling pot beside from the fish was a whole lot of soft boiled cabbage, seaweed and golden mushrooms in a lightly sweet dashi broth. I'm not an expert on fishes nor do I order them very often, but I've eaten them enough in my life to recognize that these were pretty fresh as they go.

More from Wasabi Tei

Safe it is to say for me that Wasabi Tei is not the place for me to have sushi. A little can be said of their generous and thick, but formless sashimi slices and I would admit to having enjoyed the salmon quite a bit. Otherwise it's really not what I'm looking for. Might have been a bad fish day today, but I don't think it's a valid excuse. The nigiri was simply not satisfaying and for something that is considered to be a form of art, this was really far too abstract. Lol. Just like Picasso without the brush. And fingers. The mekajiki and maguro that was really sinewy today. There was also ankimo on the menu, something that normally gets my attention and this one was a little different from what I've had before. Tasted a lot like pâté. Really a lot like pâté than any fish liver. Hmmm.....stick to the cooked food I will.

Gindara mentaikoyaki from Chikuwa Tei

There are talks on how standards of food have declined in Chikuwa Tei after the founding chef Peter Ho has left and started another restaurant, Mitsuba by Yurine (I hear he split from that place too). Even before he had left, there had been comparisons on how Chikuwa Tei was different from his first gig, Wasabi Tei. I happened to be one of those that have been eating his food from the days of yore at Wasabi Tei so I guess I can personally attest to those degrees of truth.

So it's been a while and we decided to drop by to check out how things are with what they are serving these days. Sadly, while food remains very edible, it wasn't on par with ancient history. The ankimo servings were dry and minuscule in portions. The chirashi don looked like it had gone on a diet as well. But I found their gindara mentaikoyaki good. It was a very nicely grilled cod that was flaky, juicy (or oily) and tasted like it was good cod along with that nice salty flavourful crust of mentaiko. But it sure was pricey at $28 for a set option. For that price, I had hoped for a fish more substantial. And I was disappointed that the rice that they're serving these days aren't even close to the quality of what they did in the past. Barely sticky. Not to mention that there's less of it these days in the bowl too.

Sometimes, one cannot blame the older folks from missing the good old days eh? There's probably a very good reason why the word 'nostalgia' exists in the dictionary.

Gindara teriyaki and others from Chikuwa Tei...

I've been craving for grilled teriyaiki cod of late and remembered that it used to be pretty good down at the old Wasabi Tei. So this was the update of what they used to do down in Chikuwa Tei these days. Things didn't change very much for that. It still appeared as burnt as I remember them, but I think they might have overdone it a little this time round. The application of the sauce was a little sparse this time round but the meat was still pretty juicy and oily. The skin was remarkably crispy even though it was a little bitter from all that char.


Grilled cod wasn't bad but it didn't quite satisfy my craving.


Meanwhile, we had a bunch of other items on the side which included some pretty juicy and breaded deep fried kaki, their signature laden chawanmushi and an ugly looking favourite of mine, ankimo. The creamy textured fish liver drenched in ponzu and flavoured with scallions were nicely chilled and tasted exceptional this time round. Good stuff.

Chikuwa Tei, Mohd Sultan Road

Rising from the ashes of the old Wasabi Tei is Chikuwa Tei (9 Mohamed Sultan Road, #01-01, tel : +65 6738 9395).

Clearly, this place would be of interest to the people who once clamored to the drab 16 seater that once graced Far East Plaza. This new location by the former chef looked almost nothing like before and it seems that quite a bit has changed.

For one there was a larger menu now in the restaurant and there were actually a few wait staff manning the current premise which is much more spacious than before. The place even accepts reservations these days it seems. Changes as they were, did not come totally and some remnants of the old trademark of the now smiley chef could still be seen. Hell, even the cuts of the raw fish looked like before and their ankimo still looked like the maimed chunk of discolored wet clay.

After a few orders, one could also say that the quality of the food did not change but however, portions have become a little less generous and prices have gone up. Certainly, some of the dishes which I've never had the chance to order still came in rather large portions. Noticeably the hearty and comforting oyaku don which came a in a large steaming bowl of rice laden with the sweetish egg, chicken and onion over the top and a very nicely grilled squid which wasn't shabby at all. There were even the seasonal sawagani (small deep fried river crabs) which were lightly salted and nicely crispy and crabby in flavors.

Still, I think I would have preferred the old and regularly overlooked stall back in the day where one could not call up for a seat and had to queue 45 minutes in line waiting for the moment when either the chef of the wife would give the signal that we could enter and be seated. The slightly frantic but subdued shuffling of 16 pairs of feet into the restaurant where customers would quietly eye each other across the U shaped table as they got quickly to the seats and ordered quickly and then proceeded for the next wait over the preparation of the food.

What I had missed about that experience was a sort of anticipation of the unknown coming from the once dreaded service with a scowl.

sawagani

ankimo

sake

amaebi

oyaku don set

chirashi set

cod hot pot set

grilled squid

Bon Goût, Robertson Quay

Found another place which I could get myself some pretty good home styled Japanese cooking right down at Robertson Quay (60 Robertson Quay, #01-01 The Quayside, S238252). After hearing about the rather unfortunate change of management down at Wasabi Tei, Bon Goût could just be the next best thing to happen. Funny thing is, I've actually eaten here once quite a few years back. Didn't really register much except for the fact that the shop was a bookstore of sorts as well. This time round, I found myself liking the food that I dropped by in consecutive nights for dinner.

With little idea of what was good from the place apart from what I had heard about their curry, I decided to wander off the beaten path to try something else. Landed myself a maguro zuke don and their beef steak don. Both of which turned out to be good choices. I couldn't really identify what about the tuna that was great. Perhaps it was the fact that the slices of tuna was of a suitable temperature. The result was tender and flavourful meat. Delicious with just a drizzle of shoyu and accompanied with a bit of that strong wasabi, it was something that I couldn't get enough of. Already deciding to come back again.

The beef steak don came in a form of sliced pan fried beef done medium with little but shoyu and butter. This was also really good stuff. These couple of dons have assured my return at least for the next couple of times.

2nd dinner

Having had a good impression of their "beef steak" we tried their beef steak curry with rice which was very decent by its own. But it wasn't something that wowed me that I would order again soon. I would have preferred enjoy the flavours of the beef without having the sweetish and mildly spicy curry come into the picture. But still, it wasn't bad at all.

Another pleasant surprise came from their curry pork udon which featured a more savoury curry in comparison to the one that was used for the rice. I don't order udon much and I guess this would be one of those times that I'm pretty glad that I did. The noodles were soft and springy without being overly chewy and I'm guessing that this ought to be the correct texture. Now that Wakashachiya is no longer around, this would probably be the next place I'll be seeing myself getting curry udon. The generous portions of shabu thin slices of pork buried underneath that savoury curry made up for it. Awesome option for those cool weathers if only they would come more frequently.

Kaiware Japanese Restaurant, TripleOne Somerset

shiro maguro don

some pretty smooth seafood dumplings

gindara mentaikoyaki

I found out about this place (#02-15 TripleOne Somerset, 111 Somerset Road, tel : +65 6735 2345) from a tip off. The location was actually where Ikkousha used be in the same building. Would not have gotten my attention to if not for that fact that I had been informed that Peter Ho - formerly of Wasabi Tei and Chikuwa Tei, runs this joint. I never understood the reasons for his patterns of running restaurants and then leaving them. But I'm not here to understand his business model. I'm just visiting for a hit of nostalgia.

There's a shiro maguro don on menu here. They only response they could give to my inquiry was oil fish but I'm pretty convinced it's escolar. So proceed to eat with caution and responsibility. The bone white slices of the fish were smooth and buttery, comparable to chutoro. There's some rather tasty seafood shu mai which I've never seen them do before and a very decent gindara mentaikoyaki to be had too. One can even get a similar cod hotpot just like the ones they used to do that came with a fantastic lemon/chilli/soy  sauce dip.

Izakaya Nijumaru after 2730 days...

It has been a very long while since the first and last time we were in Izakaya Nijumaru. Little has changed as far as I could see and the restaurant seemed as packed as I remember. I think perhaps, this particular re-visit was steered by a subconscious drive to understand the popularity behind this joint. Today, we sat very close to where we did the last time. Right at the opposite end from their little counter where one could steal occasional glances at a window into another world while waiting for the food.

The servers recommended that we try their grilled beef on skewers claiming that it was very juicy. We topped that suggestion with an order of asparagus wrapped with bacon. As far as grills went, I couldn't say that it was bad. But we've been pampered by great places and as long as one doesn't start comparing with the King two floors up, these were actually quite edible. That comparison almost never ends well so we will not start.

Won't be ordering that beef skewer again though. I'm usually a meat with salt and pepper kind of person usually and this was very marinated.

Their teishoku are well received here. We had one with gindara teriyaki. That particular one was quite sad. Two points to be made here. The quality of the fish was mediocre and it was doused with that same garlic sauce used on the beef skewers which pretty much buried any teriyaki flavours - not that I could even tell that there was teriyaki sauce. The second was that one could easily get very decent stuff at a similar cost or less at Nakajima Suisan Grilled Fish.

Fortunately there was a omureto (omelette if you didn't catch it) set that made up for the cod. Who would have thought this? The egg was light, tender and piping hot with bits of mince pork inside. An almost childhood-like simplistic tray of comfort food. By the way, the stewed hijiki that's part of their teishoku was forgettable. These don't even come close to those that the old Wasabi Tei provided.

We had a horensou salad which the menu described to be a bacon and spinach salad. I'm not sure what the vegetable was but I was imagining baby spinach. After being thrown off for a little bit, I realised that these were actually pretty similar to baby spinach. Meaning that there wasn't much flavour in them and after I had accepted that, this was actually a pretty good eat. Thanks to the bacon and their rendered fat of course.

And a nasu dengaku that arrived right at the end. The grilled juicy eggplant glazed with sweet miso was definitely something to be enjoyed while it is still hot.

The Sushi Bar, Far East Plaza

This place in honesty, looks to be still trying to find its own feet. The Sushi Bar (14 Scotts Road, #03-89 Far East Plaza) is essentially what seems to be a one man show behind a space optimized counter. I had discounted the wait staff as manpower since she looked confused a third of the time, milled around and served food to the wrong tables and somehow thought it was a normal thing to relay a customer inquiry to the chef if they served curry fish head. In a little joint called The Sushi Bar that has only about 4 tables. Seriously.

I think the food is pretty decent for what they charged. One shouldn't come here expecting expensive types and cuts from higher end Japanese restaurants. I have a gripe with the uni and would have loved for it to have been a better experience where the creamy was creamier and where the aroma, I had hoped to be more ethereal. These guys need to portion more rice into their food. Wouldn't do at all for any of those premium don that does not fill. And no miso soup too.

Did I mention that their scallop carpaccio mentaiyaki was pretty mouth watering in a smokey manner if a little measly in portions. This place is not yet at the level of the once vaunted Wasabi Tei for that frills free value edition of decent Japanese food. But I sense an earnesty that might get them there.

hotate mentaiyaki

ikura & uni don

premium chirashi

deep fried amaebi head