Japanese Restaurant Shun Sai Tomi     旬菜富日本料理  

I've come to learn that there's a certain cache if you're a Japanese restaurant on Minden Row/Avenue including the exclusive "K" restaurant which I've only lunched at. With less than an hour to spare on a Friday night, I still tried my luck for a reservation - I have this fetish for having people laugh or sneer at me. Tomi was the second number I dialed and was lucky enough to get the last 3 seats.

I was told I have to settle for sitting at the open kitchen. I said in retort: "Isn't that the idea?" and she tried to explain to me that it's really an "open-kitchen" .. yada yada yada. Well, I wasn't paying much attention already, trying to pack up office before the weekend and racing out to meet the dining companions. I only realized when I got to the restaurant that it is really just sitting by a totally functional and quite the opposite of what one might find at the L'Atelier in Central.

Poring through the menu back and forth, we still settled with the first set dinner (akin to a Kaiseki), and were hopeful of a decent meal. Although service was a little abrupt, we did get served promptly and had our teas refilled now and then. No small talk, no pushy sales.

Steamed Japanese Hairy Crab or Kegani
First up: steamed hairy crab. Yes, it is as simple as it sounds. But simply done means you can savor the natural sea sweetness of the crustacean. Served with a crab vinegar laced with crushed ginger, this is simplicity at its best.

Consomme of Abalone and Sharks' FIn topped with Uni
This came together a lot better than it looked. The consistency of the consomme was thicker than usual, which I'm not really a fan of, but the good news is that it was less gooey than the run-of-the-mill Chinese sharks' fin soup. Both the abalone and fin were of passable quality and the Uni and vegetables over the top when stirred into the hot soup, made for a fragrance and taste that was uniquely oceanic in the face of a fresh breeze.

Assorted Sashimi - Akagai, Ebi, Shima Aji, Tai, Maguro, Ika and Vinegared Mackeral
A decent choice of Sashimi, and while you cannot expect top-notch quality, they were fresh and there was enough variety to actually make this a more substantial course than expected.

Grilled US beef
Unfortunately, this was in my book, the worst course. The beef was way too chewy for me, and way too much effort to finish. A real pity since the taste wasn't half bad. If only they used a cut that was easier on the molars.

Steamed Abalone
This was tasty and the abalone was well steamed to be firm but not rubbery, and tasty from the infusion of soy. Nothing overly special but enjoyable, especially after all the work I had to do with the preceding beef.

Oyster in a half shell
We found it odd that we went back to cold food after several courses of hot food. Perhaps the limited kitchen was a factor, perhaps the young chefs forgot, perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.. but it was a decent oyster served chilled to my liking and really, perhaps, a nice way to "freshen" the palate before the grand finale.

Kamameshi with Uni and Salmon roe
I really liked the mini Kamameshi topped with Uni and Salmon roe. Allowed to warm with the lid on, the steam wilted the roe and sea urchin without cooking them, allowing the 2 distinct flavours to seep into the rice. The result: a burst of the deep sea on your palate as you chew into each mouthful of rice. Only complaint: the rice wasn't allowed to sit long enough for the sides to get crispy.

Japanese glutinous rice dumpling with Azuki red bean paste
Dessert was a traditional glutinous rice dumpling akin to a "mochi". They used pretty good quality flour and the dumpling doesn't overly stick to your upper palate as you try to work your way through it. And of course, the only type of red bean paste I enjoy, made from Azuki red beans, smooth and not a trace of "sand" in this healthy dessert, and an uncloying way to end.

It's not Wagyu Kaiseki Den - this is the casual version, but for the price, it's fairly good value.

For the original post, visit edeats.blogspot.com

Treated my friend to a nice japanese thank Q dinner at Tomi.

The dinner began with wasabi漬物. Much spicier than wasabi root, but very refreshing especially for the staring a big meal.

For this special dinner we ordered,

金目鯛sashimi - The texture of the fish is always nice. A little bit chewy with a good bite. Not always come across fresh 金目鯛魚. That's why I was very happy to see it is in the menu.

Sashimi Set with 9 assorted items, include sweet prawn, scallop, tuna, hamachi and a few more. The freshness and quality of the sashimi are all very nice. Yet, there were not much surprises to the set. For similar value, 湖舟's sashimi set would have better selections on the cuts/fishes.

Sweet tomato - it is served with cucumber and lightly salted. It is the first time I tried a simple dish with tomato prepared this way~ The chef must be very confident in the tomato quality. As proven with the dish, the tomato are super sweet. The salt enhanced the sweetness in the tomato. My frd almost mistaken the tomato are been seasoned with sugar. It was a great dish. I would go back to Tomi for just this tomato dish.

Vegetable strew - simple strew, but the soup base is sweet and well seasoned. Simple, but nice & refreshing.

帆立貝海膽燒 - the look was nice, but I felt that the scallop was a bit over cooked. It would be sweeter if it is not too fully cooked.

carb & prawn tempura cake - this dish was nicely done. the tempura was not heavy or oily at all. Light, airy with strong flavour. I should thank the waitress for suggesting this dish.

Had dinner in this restaurant before, and it was quite nice although pricy. So my family came again today to try their lunch. We all ordered set lunch of various types, on the whole standard of food/cooking was acceptable but definitely not outstanding. Decoration is simple while elegant, but service was only average. However, most disappointing was portion size which is 10~20% smaller than those of "Kenjo" across the street, but price is 10~20% higher Kenjo. Think we won't come here again for lunch, maybe dinner is still possible.