Sushi Goshin by Akashi

The obligatory tissue and chopstick shot

Following up to my ongoing quest of immersing myself to as many authentic Jap restos as possible, I went to Sushi Goshin last week to try the nice and affordable sushi as recommended by food bloggers. Located in basement 1 in Robinsons Orchard, the setup already piqued my interest as I saw servers in Kimonos, sushi Chefs busy preparing the orders and lastly, I didn't hear the cringe-worthy Irasshaimase (or maybe I was too hungry to notice).

No trying-hard posters of Japanese whatever. They mean business.

They served us edamame (green soybean) as side dish while we were ordering in their iPad. I wonder if this is already the norm in Japan. I liked the whole resto's simple layout, the wooden chairs, tables, the plates, the lighting, etc. Everything looked nice.

They gave us a lot actually. I just remembered shooting it when it's nearly gone.

"What did I just get myself into?"

Since I now seldom eat raw food, I ate 1 ika (squid) sushi, 2 tako (octopus) sushi, 2 aburi salmon sushi, 2 kani mayo sushi (crab w/ mayo), 2 inari (beancurd) sushi and 2 tamago (egg) sushi. Both the squid and the octopus were very tough to chew. It lacked flavor and the chef put a lot of wasabi, which made me tear up and clear my nose. The salmon was fresh but nothing too special about it. I'm a sucker for sweet food so the beancurd and tamago sushi for me were the best (and the biggest) compared to its class in other restos that I have been to. Lastly, my favorite there is the kani tobiko sushi; the taste of crab meat and roe mixed with Japanese mayo exploded umami all over my mouth.

Yep, I ate 53% of sushi in these plates.

I can already taste the wasabi from here

Crab meat + roe + Japanese Mayo = Oishi!

I still want those blackened sears at the side.

Overall, it was a good experience for me to appreciate one of Japan's biggest contribution to the food world. You can expect quality sushi here at an affordable price. Service is good, the servers were conscious on our tea cups and empty plates. The sushi chefs were quick enough to prepare our order. But there were maybe 4 or 5 tables occupied then so I wouldn't know if service will change a bit in a full seat resto. I wouldn't mind going back here as I really enjoyed my dining experience and highly recommend you to try it as well. 

Teppei Japanese Restaurant

Finally tried out this sought after omakase (leave it to the chef) style resto - Teppei Japanese Restaurant. Located at 1 Tras Link in Orchid Hotel, this 21-seater restaurant might not look like a high-end Jap resto but when it comes to fan-base and food reviews, it makes the other big named franchises run for their money. 

You can get a glimpse at the snaking queue that will welcome you there

The omakase style meal is during dinner time so we have no choice but eat the lunch set. The choice is quite limited but looking at their kitchen, it seemed that they are already preparing the ingredients for dinner. I understand as they have a plethora of customers to serve and have to make each dish a tongue-blowing experience.

Tempura, Tempura, Tempura and yes you guessed it.. Tempura

The man behind the kitchen bar is Chef Teppei Yamashita, already a double finalist for World Gourmet Series Award of Excellence for Asian Cuisine Chef and Asian Restaurant for 2013. Watching him prepare the food, how he carefully slice and marinate the sashimi, makes you anticipate the food more because you are assured that he doesn't take the dish for granted. It seems like that he doesn't just want to serve you good food but he wants you to be happy and get that "shiok" moment.

Da Man!

The final slices should be divisible by three and should be divided by pi radius of the square root of a prime number

This is not an in-depth food/resto review as I did not do a breakdown of taste. I just went there more for the experience (since I have been dreaming to eat in Japan). 

There were three side dishes offered. All of it were braised veggies. The braised daikon with yam, carrots, mushroom and some sliced fish can already make you full so I have to avoid getting a lot of it next time. I'm not sure if it was braised kangkong or spinach but it was refreshing in the mouth. The other one is just ok.

Free flowing braised veggies

Their specialty is the Bara Chirashi Don, a mixture of marinated yellow-tail, tuna, salmon, ikura with seaweed and sesame on top of rice. I tasted one slice of tuna and it was really fresh and the soy-sesame marinade did not overpower the taste. 

Bara Chirashi means "Rose Leaflets". which I think is closer than other translation, "Gay men Scattered"

I ordered the Big Tempura set which comes with two King Prawn tempura, three vegetables (radish, eggplant and I think kale) and white fish. The tempura is really huge and it even included the tasty part inside the head. One thing I noticed is that the Tempura sauce lacked taste and it did not contribute nor compromised the Tempura. But it is still OK compared to the salty , umay-inducing sauce of common Jap restos. 

What I liked the most is the rice. I think it is the best Jap rice I have tasted so far. It is posted in the restaurant that the brand is Koshihikari from Toyoma, Japan. The small and sticky grains have this nice texture that it might be the offspring of sushi and sticky rice. Luckily, they also serve it as free-flow. Woohoo!

I forgot that they serve cold tea (free flow) as well.

So what's my final verdict on this one? I really liked the service, it was quick, accommodating (they always check if we have enough appetizers and tea) and makes you feel you are in Japan (you won't hear the cringe-worthy, fake and unpracticed Irasshaimase)  However, since this is an omakase resto, I need to go back during dinner to fully experience what people have been placing reservations for. Unfortunately, Teppei is fully booked until 30 June 2014 and can place reservation on end of March. Sooo, while waiting, I'll immerse myself again to more Jap restos and make myself feel that I traveled there. ITADAKIMASU!

Bishan - Ang Mo Kio Park

Sharing some pictures we took last week when we went for a stroll and ate a heavy McDonald's breakfast. What a way to celebrate a bright and sunny March 1st!

Gardens by the Bay

I was never really interested in flowers when I was kid. All the flowers I knew back then (in the Philippines) were the normal one you can find anywhere in the streets: suntan, gumamela (ooh bubbles bubbles), sampaguita, kalachuchi and of course, roses. I can still remember that you can buy multicolored painted roses other than the natural colored ones(oh poor roses!). Not sure if they are still selling it now.

How come this white and bright flower reminds you of death? from savorthebite.blogspot.sg

Thankfully, my wife have introduced me to a lot of beautiful flowers. However, it raised the budget of giving her one - LOL. Tulips and Lilies are in, Mums and Gerbera daisies are out! I realized now that instead of giving the predictable and typical bouquet to your loved-one, you can bring him/her to the flowers! 

I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing - from assets.diylol.com/

Gardens by the Bay is one of the latest attraction in Singapore. It houses a lot of gardens from different parts of the world. The gardens and conservatories are self sustained - meaning power/energy is obtained within its environment and nothing goes to waste  - How cool is that! For more details, check out their website and go for a quick tour.

Some (or most) of you think that buying flowers nowadays are a waste of money. I can't blame you since flowers will eventually be forgotten in a couple of days and it wilts as fast a kid eating ice cream for the first time. So, instead of paying SGD$60+ for a bouquet, pay the same amount for thousands of flowers and unforgettable memories. Then tell your BF/GF that they are also saving the world in the process. That's cheesiness and nobility in one. Boom!

Will you let this melt? - from cutestfood.com

Since we went there at past noon, most of my pictures were overexposed and since my photography skills deteriorated, I forgot what settings to adjust (excuses excuses). So pardon my few pictures below but I assure you that there are a lot to be seen there at Gardens by the Bay. You will really get your money's worth.

The famous Supertrees

The Lost Garden

Cloud Forest

Flower Dome

It's the year of the wooden horse!

Flowers galorrrreeee!!

The most beautiful flower

Overhaul - again

As you may have noticed, my blog has undergone another overhaul. But no one really follows my blog anymore so it didn't matter. Lol!

I like your attitude Morpheus. from www.memecenter.com

I want to thank my wife Lavinia for helping me with the cool logo. Hopefully she'll revive her blog soon :D! I love anything minimalist so no more fluff in my blog (but will post some every now and then ;-) )

Soooo let's get on with the new posts and hope you like my new and improved site!

-H-