Tuesday, November 23, 2021

Lunch at Hana Hana (華花)

Hana Hana (華花), Tras Link

We haven't eaten at Hana Hana since the first time we were here. Non omakase ranchi was walk in only so we tried our luck today with lunch.

Hana Hana (華花), otoshi

Think that's their otoshi. A strip of salmon in a bowlful of daikon soaked in a sweet broth. I kinda liked this.

Hana Hana (華花), grilled oysters

They had grilled oysters on menu. Tasted nice but they were very small and pricey at $8 a pop.

Hana Hana (華花), cheese tamago

The cheese omelette was also a bit of a let down in spite of appearances. Couldn't taste much of the cheese.

Hana Hana (華花), a4 wagyu aburi don

But I was here to try their A4 wagyu aburi don that I saw on their poster outside the restaurant. The image of that donburi conjured memories of the aburi wagyu meshi I had previously at Kuro Maguro. Hence I was excited and therefore expecting better from Hana Hana.

Hana Hana (華花), the real a4 wagyu aburi don

This was the reality. WTF?! More like sukiyaki beef with all that sweetness than the torched thin slices of wagyu I had imagined. It didn't taste bad but the flavour from the meat wasn't telling at all. I did enjoy the bowl in spite of the sweetness and light gingery notes - thanks also to those bits of fried garlic that perfumed it. Just not worth the 30 bucks and I felt misled. 


Hana Hana (華花), barachirashi beef stew

Today's lunch included their Bara + beef stew. Their marinated cubes of fish still holds up today even though not much has changed. That beef stew though - it's gyu suji to be more accurate. No extra flavouring in there to mess with the flavour of those chunks of tender beef cushioned with bits of fat and tendon. This was so good.

If you're wondering whether regular rice or shari - it doesn't make a difference to me. Regular is logical because of the flavour bomb you already have from the toppings but if you feel like the sushi rice with those - who's to say it cannot happen?

Hana Hana (華花), Tras Link

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