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2017-06-06
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I walked into Ronin with elevated expectations; reviews had been good, it’s on the top 50 restaurants in Asia list, my friend really enjoyed it the first time she went… but overall, I can’t say it was anything more than “not bad”. Food was good, liked the vibe, drinks were interesting; but to be worth it, a meal at this price point really needs to pop; good/fine/decent just isn’t enough.Over the course of the meal, only 2 dishes (Mizuna dish and Fish Tempura with Shiso) really impressed me, and
Over the course of the meal, only 2 dishes (Mizuna dish and Fish Tempura with Shiso) really impressed me, and they were successes of execution, not of extravagance. Not to say Ronin is wasteful per se, but given the quality/luxuriousness of ingredients used, more dishes should have been knockouts.
Here are the dishes – sorry about the horrible descriptions, but it’s been 2 months. I couldn’t summon either the enthusiasm or the hatred to write this review sooner.
Fresh oyster with caviar – fine but who gets excited about an oyster
Dish of various sushi/sashimi (4-5 varieties) – some interesting combinations e.g. with yuzu but the best piece amusingly was the unaltered piece of snapper.
Crab meat with Uni – this one made me sad. I mean come on… crab (YUM) x uni (YUM) should work right? but… it just didn’t. I don’t know why. Maybe uni needs to be paired with a milder base (rice?) so that ocean-y taste really comes through. This pairing felt like both ingredients were wasted. Was very fresh though.
Portabello mushrooms with Mizuna and… I’ll be honest I forgot what this was. It was excellent though – my 2nd favorite dish
Grilled mollusc (forgot the name) with butter – good but nothing amazing
Fish Tempura rolled with shiso leaf – the most impressive dish of the night. Presentation of the fish is great (spirals are creepy!) and love how it’s served with just salt. Shiso also really works with tempura as a contrast to the heaviness – fish was perfectly cooked, flaky and soft. Wonderful.
Some grilled fish – unmemorable but fine… can’t even tell you what kind of fish.
Amberjack collar – the only less-than-decent dish of the night. Tasted like it was thawed poorly.
Eel and Pickle Rice bowl – tasty way to end the meal, but pickles with anything is a winner for me.
Final Verdict: No one could say it was bad, but I can’t recommend this meal at that price. Possible it was an off night - willing to try again.
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