So, this page has remained idle for a while…we’ve been busy travelling and eating, and writing for our real jobs! Photos will be lacking from this post because well…I was dining with clients and internationally-renowned specialists. Whipping out a camera for each dish of the 12-course menu ain’t cool!
I’d like to state upfront that my dining experience at Uemura was PURELY for work. If it were my choice of a location for kaiseki, it would not be at a hotel and we’d all be reclining on tatamis. Nevertheless, I have to admit that Uemura does dish up a pretty good kaiseki.
For the uninitiated, kaiseki is to Japan what degustation is to Australia. It is basically a multi-course showcase of gastronomic artistry. I say artistry because kaiseki “balances the taste, texture, appearance, and colors of food”. The end products, as the Japs say, are as beautiful on the eyes as they are on the palate.
Without the assistance of my trusty camera, the three dishes that stuck to my mind were:
1) Matsutake Dobinmushi (Matsutake mushroom soup)
2) Tempura (deep fried assortment of goodies)
3) Fugu Tomewan (miso-based puffer fish soup with rice)
I’d like to state upfront that my dining experience at Uemura was PURELY for work. If it were my choice of a location for kaiseki, it would not be at a hotel and we’d all be reclining on tatamis. Nevertheless, I have to admit that Uemura does dish up a pretty good kaiseki.
For the uninitiated, kaiseki is to Japan what degustation is to Australia. It is basically a multi-course showcase of gastronomic artistry. I say artistry because kaiseki “balances the taste, texture, appearance, and colors of food”. The end products, as the Japs say, are as beautiful on the eyes as they are on the palate.
Without the assistance of my trusty camera, the three dishes that stuck to my mind were:
1) Matsutake Dobinmushi (Matsutake mushroom soup)
2) Tempura (deep fried assortment of goodies)
3) Fugu Tomewan (miso-based puffer fish soup with rice)
I could rave on and on about the Matsutake Dobinmushi. The Matsutake mushroom, I’ve been told, can cost up to thousands of dollars a kilo. One of the Japanese doctors sarcastically commented that we could probably buy a modest Japanese home considering the amount we consumed tonight (to which the client from New York reckons could be worth about 2 American homes given the current US economy)!!
OK, back to the dish…the flavours were subtle, yet wholesome. I could taste the aroma of the mushroom in the soup, yet the taste wasn’t as overwhelming as truffles. A few drops of lime juice magically enhances the flavor of the broth. Superb!
The tempura was nicely battered. There was the usual vegetable and seafood flair, but the best surprises were chunks of tempura abalone, and the lemon-flavoured salt. The chewy (read: non-rubbery) texture of the abalone perfectly complimented the crispyness of its deep-fried casing. Dipped in lemon-salt and then quickly bathed in daikon tempura sauce – yummyness!!
I remembered the tomewan not because my tastebuds were screaming for more, but because I remember “rummaging” through my bowl of soupy rice, and felt totally “cheated”. Where is the fugu??!! The waitress reckons, it’s cooked so well it’s disintegrated in the soup. Urrr…madam, the soup is clear!!
This post probably is too high on the word to picture ratio already. So, I’ll stop ranting right here. More pictures next time…promise…
OK, back to the dish…the flavours were subtle, yet wholesome. I could taste the aroma of the mushroom in the soup, yet the taste wasn’t as overwhelming as truffles. A few drops of lime juice magically enhances the flavor of the broth. Superb!
The tempura was nicely battered. There was the usual vegetable and seafood flair, but the best surprises were chunks of tempura abalone, and the lemon-flavoured salt. The chewy (read: non-rubbery) texture of the abalone perfectly complimented the crispyness of its deep-fried casing. Dipped in lemon-salt and then quickly bathed in daikon tempura sauce – yummyness!!
I remembered the tomewan not because my tastebuds were screaming for more, but because I remember “rummaging” through my bowl of soupy rice, and felt totally “cheated”. Where is the fugu??!! The waitress reckons, it’s cooked so well it’s disintegrated in the soup. Urrr…madam, the soup is clear!!
This post probably is too high on the word to picture ratio already. So, I’ll stop ranting right here. More pictures next time…promise…
Where: Pan Pacific Tokyu, Yokohama
Style of food: Japanese
Price: $$$
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