IKYU - 'Gourmet Traveller' Menu (13-30 Nov)
There is no shortage of Japanese restaurants and their promotional menus, but Chef Takuma Seki of IKYU has taken a step further by launching an eight-course culinary treat through Japan that combines the best of meticulously selected seasonal produce from 15 different prefectures.
Following the rough order of an Omakase, the Gourmet Traveller menu ($188, additional $98 for alcohol pairing) consists of Zensai (appetizer), Sashimi, Mushimono (steamed), Yakimono (robata grill), Agemono (deeop fried), palate cleanser, Syokuji (main meal), and dessert.
Chef Seki starts us off with a trio of Japanese Chinmi (delicacies)—pillowy Hokkaido Shirako (cod fish sperm), flavoursome Ibaraki Ankimo (monk fish liver) accentuated by a delightfully light ponzu sauce, and Fukuoka Mentaiki (marinated cod roe) with an intriguing texture of compressed bubbles—before plating up glistening slices of Kagoshima Maguro Chutoro and Chiba Buri, complemented by delicate beads of Okinawa Umi Budo (sea grapes).
Steamed Alaskan King Crab—chef had switched out the Echizen snow crab from Fukui for the night—is a tad conventional and fail-proof, but it was the meltingly tender Miyazaki Champion Beef, unprecedented two-time consecutive winner of the 'Wagyu Olympics', enlivened with a homemade yuzu ponzu that won us over.
Equally impressive is the brilliantly executed, deep fried Hokkaido Panko Oysters that is kept crisp, simple, and teamed with comfortingly homely, eggy tartare sauce.
Highlight of the menu is no doubt the Kaisen Chirashi Don paired with top-of-the-range Junmai Dai Ginjo. The amalgam of Toyama Shiro Ebi (white shrimps), umami-packed Hokkaido Uni and Kagoshima Maguro presents a dulcet mouthfeel, which Ikura and touch of heady wasabi relish adds complexity to.
Also noteworthy is the hot Nara Miwa Somen—purportedly thinnest somen in the world at 1mm thick—a reminder of how a simple when done right, can be amazing.
The eight-course menu ends off with ice cream, but not just any type of ice cream. Made from a blend of cream and Niigata Koshihikari rice—the highest grade of rice in Japan—it possesses a unique texture that almost seems to thicken in the mouth. And at the end of so many course, it is fragrant but thankfully not too sweet, and doesn't distract from the selection of seasonal fruits.
IKYU's Gourmet Traveller menu runs from 13 to 30 November 2013, and is priced at $188, additional $98 for beverage pairing.
IKYU 5 Yong Siak Street Singapore 168643
Tel: +65 62239003
Operating hours: Closed on Mondays Lunch: 11.30 am – 2.30 pm Happy Hour: 5.30 pm – 7.30 pm Dinner: 5.30 pm – 10.30 pm