Sakari Sushi Restaurant @Tanjong Pagar

Chef Paul-san with fresh sushi

It was our long-awaited Omakase dinner at Sakari!

Located at Orchid Hotel (where the famous Teppei and its infamous queue was also located), we had previously came here once for omakase dinner, also organized by Ms J. This time however, we had specially requested for pitan tofu, with the tofu homemade by Chef Paul-san, so we were totally looking forward to it!

We had also requested for the $120 omakase instead of the $100 one, so we were looking forward to even better food this time round 🙂 Just a disclaimer that since J was a super regular customer, we might have gotten a discount for the omakase. Also, J said that there is always something new that she has yet to try whenever she comes here (and it appears to be at least once a week), each omakase meal is different.

Homemade Pitan Tofu

First dish was the long-awaited Pitan Tofu!! Apparently everyone has heard so much about it from J, so all were very excited to see the dish… And it lived up to our expectations! Smooth, creamy and light, it tasted almost like egg custard, and the thick gooey century egg puree and tofu combination was excellent!

Sashimi Moriawase

Second dish was the Sashimi Platter, which consisted of Ootoro (fatty tuna), Aoyagi, Saba (mackeral), Hotate (scallop), Hirame (flounder) with shallots, and Hirame with Uni (sea urchin). We loved the sashimi here as it was always very fresh! The fatty tuna literally melted in our mouths and sent us high into the clouds. The oh-so-creamy Uni with its intense flavour went very well with Hirame.

Firefly Squid with Miso

Next up was the Firefly Squid with Miso. The liver squirted out when we bit into it, giving us a pleasant surprise! The miso was a bit tangy, adding a refreshing element to this dish.

Fried Ayu

Fourth dish was hubby’s favourite, which was Fried Ayu (香鱼). Chef Paul-san shares that this fish was usually captured in July/August, when it was about one year of age. The fish had a lovely fragrance, and the meat was tender and moist. The fine bones and tail bones were crispy enough that we almost finished up everything, meat and bones! The accompanying sweet potato slices were really sweet and tender too.

Negima – soup with tuna, leek, onions and toufu

This was followed by Negima, soup with tuna, leek, onions and toufu. There was yuzu soy sauce by the side for dipping, for the sweetness of the meat had mostly vanished into the very rich and excellent soup. One could also add a little bit of the sauce or sake (Japanese wine) into the soup to further enhance the flavours.

Snapper with Daikon

The sixth dish was Snapper with Daikon (white radish) and the fish was done perfectly! The daikon had soaked up all the goodness of the broth and this was possibly the best daikon I have ever had!

The seventh dish to arrive was the Sushi Platter, and this time, we had Hirame (flounder), Chutoro (mid fatty tuna), Aji (horse mackerel), Aburi engawa (dorsal fin), Uni (sea urchin) and Hotate (scallop). As Paul-san was preparing the sushi, he shared with us that sushi was usually served with bamboo leaves as they are able to kill germs. To think I always thought it was just to make the platter look more pleasing.. Haha!

Hirame (flounder), Chutoro (mid fatty tuna)

Aji (horse mackerel)

Aburi engawa (dorsal fin)

Uni (sea urchin)

Hotate (scallop)

Aburi Wagyu Beef Sushi

By now, we were actually quite full, but because J had been recommending the Wagyu beef sushi till we were all salivating, almost everyone decided on an additional order of Aburi Wagyu Beef Sushi ($18). The beef was very well marbled! With just the right amount of fats, the glistering beef was another melt-in-the-mouth and sent us sky high to the taste heavens!

Miso Soup

We ended the meal with a heartwarming Miso Soup and by now we were so full :p

We were very lucky that J saved the corner bar counter seats for us, as that meant a more private seating and we got to see Paul-san in action. This meant that we were usually in a seemingly stoned position with our eyes so glued to watching him, which apparently happens to everyone sitting in these seats, haha!

We got to watch him slice up the very huge Tako (octopus), and when he lightly slapped the octopus with his knife, the octopus moved! Paul-san explained that this implied that the octopus was fresh as the muscles were still able to react. He also told us that not all parts could be eaten raw, specially the very dirty suction parts.

It was a very enjoyable night with delicious food, great company, and a wonderful chef who takes pride in preparing his food and so willing to share!