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2023-08-19
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We had a wonderful experience in the last visit to Tenzushi in February this year, but since it was lunch, I really wanted to try the full dinner omakase course of this famed and difficult-to-book restaurant in town. Making the reservation on the spot then, today, after six months, we came back again with anticipation.For this occasion, we were seated at the main dining room, with Chef Horus servicing all 14 customers with the support of a few other chefs. The dinner Omakase Menu was $2,480 each
We had a wonderful experience in the last visit to Tenzushi in February this year, but since it was lunch, I really wanted to try the full dinner omakase course of this famed and difficult-to-book restaurant in town. Making the reservation on the spot then, today, after six months, we came back again with anticipation.
For this occasion, we were seated at the main dining room, with Chef Horus servicing all 14 customers with the support of a few other chefs. The dinner Omakase Menu was $2,480 each and I also ordered a bottle of 遠野小町 純米大吟醸 ($720). There were some Edamame 枝豆 provided as a starting snack.
The first course featured Kurage 海月 and Junsai 莼菜 in sparkling tea. The former was Jellyfish from Ariake Sea, with a crunchy texture while the latter was Watershield from Akita, a type of aquatic plant growing in ponds with an interesting gelatinous coating. While all three components were very mild in taste, the shiso flowers and vinegar helped to give some seasoning to the dish. Refreshing.
Then the chef showed us the three types of sea urchin we would be eating on the night. Featuring in the second course was Shiro-Uni 白海胆 from Hokkaido, wrapped in thin slices of Madai 真鯛 from Akashi. The White Sea Urchin could be seen through the translucent roll, with its creamy texture contrasting well with the nice bite of Japanese Sea Bream, aged for five days. Tasty.
The third course was Tsubugai 粒貝. The meaty Whelk came from Hokkaido, with the chef carefully sliced into thin pieces, seasoned with yuzu shavings and Awayuki salt, which had the appearance of pink snowflakes but was in fact combination of rice and salt. The preparation of the whelk was testimony to the skills of the chef, as the wrong thickness would certainly affect the texture in the bite. Very good.
The fourth course highlighted Katsuo 鰹. The Skipjack Tuna came from Kanagawa, was smoked beautifully over hay to infuse a wonderful smoky note, after three days aging. To provide a more refreshing palate, the chef had added shredded onion from Awaji, and also karasumi, or salted mullet roes, plus toasted sesame, before adding a vinegar dressing. The complexity of flavours is truly amazing.
The fifth course was Awabi 鮑. In a creative way, the large Australian Abalone was steamed in chicken broth to great tenderness, and apart from its own great flavours there was an extra layer of delicacies. Also paired with a rich and umami liver paste, there were some sushi rice for scooping up the remaining of the paste to enjoy.
Coming to the sushi, the sixth course was Hiramasa 平政 from Fukuoka. The Yellowtail Amberjack had a firm and crunchy texture on the bite, a clean taste with slight sweetness. Very good.
The seventh course was Hokkigai 北寄貝 from Hokkaido. The Surf Clam was very large in size, super fresh and meaty. While it was a big piece, how the chef had cut the clam illustrated a way to make it chewable easily, with each bite seeping out nice sweetness and flavours.
The eighth course was Takabe 高部. The fish lived in the reef and were generally small in size, but fatty. Having aged for seven days, while it might not be intense in flavours, the chef used charcoal to lightly burnt on the surface to invigorate the fish oil to give a nice fragrance. Silky smooth and delicious.
The ninth course was Akami Zuke 赤身, with the tuna coming from Boston in the United States. Having marinated in shoyu briefly, the lean tuna was infused with the light saltiness which spotlighted the umami wonderfully. The sourness of the flesh was fantastic with the ageing for 23 days, another example showcasing the specialty of this restaurant in ageing the fish.
The tenth course was Ika 烏賊 with Uni 海胆. With the Sea Urchin from Amakusa sandwiched between two thinly sliced Squid from Fukuoka, with the inner side cut lightly to shreds, allowing the creamy sea urchin to integrate to the squid to amazing effects. Definitely a signature worth trying.
The eleventh course was Shima-Ebi 縞海老 from Hokkaido. After kneading the grey prawn sushi, the chef had added prawn roes on top, before adding a few drops of prawn oil, extracted from the heads. The intense prawn flavors, together with the sweetness, was memorable.
Serving as a transition, the twelfth course was Sweet Corn from Aomori and Amela Tomatoes from Shizuoka. The corn was tender and without any residue on chewing, while the tomatoes had been seasoned with a bit of salt, balancing the refreshing acidity but also enhanced its sweetness.
The thirteenth course was Deep-Fried Ox Tongue. Using the middle part of the meaty ox tongue, it was cooked perfectly, tender with pinkish hue, and the thin batter was just phenomenal. Paired with the dipping sauce made from yam and shiso leaf, the taste was amazing and definitely one of my favourites in the meal. A must try.
The fourteenth course was Botan-Ebi 牡丹蝦 from Hokkaido, and after removing the flesh from the Spot Prawn, the prawn roes were put on the side, together with the homemade paste made from the prawn butter, the chef also deep-fried the legs to crispness, becoming edible and in fact was the most flavourful among the different parts.
The fifteenth course was Taraba-Gani 鱈場蟹 with the chef recommending us to mix the red king crab meat, crab butter, shari, and the broth together. The delicate and refined taste of the crab meat was significantly enriched by the stronger flavours of the butter and broth, making a nice wanmono 椀物.
The sixteenth course was Taichio Hakozushi 太刀魚 箱寿司. This was a traditional way to make the sushi, by putting the ingredients inside a wooden box and then pressed to form. The Largehead Hairtail was grilled perfectly, with a soft flesh and nice crispy skin. A strip of fish broth jelly and sansho leaf to season, I enjoyed it very much, and seeing that the chef had kindly treated me another piece afterwards.
The seventeenth course was Jabara 蛇腹, of the same maguro where the lean tuna came from, with the chef using charcoal to lightly grill on the side to give a bit of smoky aromas and also invigorate the fish oil of this fattiest Otoro. Although it seemed to me not as flavorful from those caught in Japan, the grilling and ageing process helped to bring up its own style, and for those who did not like too fatty it was a better choice in fact.
The eighteenth course was Aka-Uni 赤海胆. The Rishiri Sea Urchin had the classic creamy and sweetness, without any weird notes, and the chef had provided a small piece of nori so we could wrap everything in. Very good quality.
The nineteenth course was Futomaki 太巻, made with Tamago 玉子, Kuruma-Ebi 車海老, Cucumber, Kanpyu 干瓢, Mentaiko 明太子, Awabi and Anago 穴子. Definitely a highlight of the meal, looking at the roll there were more ingredients than shari, full of complex flavours and texture from the different ingredients. The trick would be to eat in one go. I enjoyed this one so much I immediately asked for an encore.
Finishing the set, we were served the Miso Soup, with nice umami flavours and not too salty. Warming the stomach, it was a wonderful way to conclude the meal.
The dessert was Nagano Muscat Grape and Hokkaido Melon. Seasonal fruit and both very sweet and juicy, bringing a smile to both of us for a highly satisfactory dinner.
Service was very good, and it was great to see how Chef Horus had given opportunities for the younger chefs to handle some of the courses, giving them kind reminders and paying attention to the service, without any sternness Japanese sushi chefs were sometimes infamous for. Total bill was $6,248 and it checked all the boxes for my must-try sushi restaurants in town.
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