On our only night in Tokyo, we headed out to the Ginza district for our first Japanese meal. Kimmy’s colleague was kind enough to chaperone us that evening, and took us to a fantastic little Sashimi/Sushi bar.

This sushi bar only served sashimi, sushi, a few grilled dishes, miso and dessert. Apparently the better more specialist sashimi bars in Japan don’t serve deep fried food, so you won’t find your chicken karrage or tempuras here.

The place, like many sushi bars, was very small. Maybe 2 tables on the side and a long sushi bar where you sit in front of the chef as he artfully cuts you slices of heaven on a plate.

For the amount per person, we had A LOT of sushi and sashimi. I’ll try my best to recollect the kinds we ate that night:

Otoro: Fatty Tuna
Kani: Authentic crab meat
Ama-ebi: Sweet shrimp, served raw.
Ika: Squid
Uni: Sea Urchin
Ahi: Ahi tuna
Unagi: Eel
Hamachi/Buri: yellowtail
Oh and the sweetest, juciest strawberry I’ve ever tasted!

One thing which I wished I had was Fugu (Blowfish). I know Jono would be going “What! In Japan and I didn’t try Fugu!”. But wait… I did ask, but they were out of Fugu.

I definitely went out of my comfort zone that night and had some clam sashimi, uni and unagi, which I would usually wouldn’t touch. But hey… when in Japan, eat like a Japanese.

Here is an interesting excerpt from wikipedia about Dining Etiquette in Japan for those planning to visit Japan.

Dining Etiquette

Hot towel
For cleaning hands before eating (and not after). It is rude to use them to wash the face or any part of the body other than the hands.

Bowls
The rice or the soup is eaten by picking up the bowl with the left hand and using chopsticks with the right, or vice versa if you are left-handed. Bowls may be lifted to the mouth, however should not be touched with the mouth except when drinking soup.

Soy sauce
Soy sauce is not usually poured over most foods at the table; a dipping dish is usually provided. In particular, soy sauce should never be poured onto rice or soup. It’s considered rude to waste soy sauce so moderation should be used when pouring into dishes.

Chopsticks
Chopsticks are never left sticking vertically into rice, as this resembles incense sticks. Using chopsticks to spear food or to point is frowned upon. It is very bad manners to bite chopsticks.

Communal dish
When taking food from a communal dish, unless they are family or very close friends, turn the chopsticks around to grab the food; it is considered more sanitary. Better, have a separate set of chopsticks for the communal dish.

Sharing
If sharing food with someone else, move it directly from one plate to another. Never pass food from one pair of chopsticks to another, as this recalls passing bones during a funeral.

Eat what is given
It is customary to eat rice to the last grain. Being a picky eater is frowned on, and it is not customary to ask for special requests or substitutions at restaurants. It is considered ungrateful to make these requests especially in circumstances where you are being hosted, as in a business dinner environment. Good manners dictate that you respect the selections of the host.

Drinking
Even in informal situations, drinking alcohol starts with a toast (kanpai, 乾杯) when everyone is ready. It is not customary to pour oneself a drink; rather, people are expected to keep each other’s drinks topped up. When someone moves to pour your drink you should hold your glass with both hands and thank them.

Next Stop: Roppongi

For every day I’m in Japan, I’m going to post the highlight of the day.

I had the pleasure of having a dinner at The Standing Sushi Bar on the first week of opening (Thanks Howard!) and brought along my ex-colleague who loved sushi as second reviewer.

Loved loved LOVED the balloon arrangement outside the shop as opposed to the usual congratulatory basket of flowers. I reckon those the balloons should be a permanent fixture! Too Cute!

So I was expecting to be standing for the whole course of dinner, but to our delight, they bring out high-chairs at dinner time. So after standing for about 10mins trying out some sake, we sat down for dinner. You can either order ala carte, or opt for the Omakase dinner.

Haven’t heard of the term before? It’s basically food roulette! You never know what you’re going to get. You pretty much leave it to the chef to come up with the night’s menu.

The omakase is based on your budget. You specify what the budget is and the chef will create the menu accordingly. It begins at S$50 per person. Omakase is by reservation only and the more advance notice you can give, the better – gives them time to talk to their Japan supplier and get special items for that omakase.

I did tell myself I’d be more adventurous this year with my food choice. “I’m game… bring it on!” The minute I said that, I just wanted to take it back and shove a sock in it.

First dish, Japanese sea snails!!!! *facepalm*

The Japanese Sea Snails were served chilled with a small slice of lemon on a ceramic plate. I made sure I had a dish of soy sauce and my green tea on standby.

“Tastes like squid… tastes like squid, it’s all in the mind Angela, you can do this”

Dug it out of the shell. Drown it in soy sauce. Pop. Chew. Chew. And Chew. Swallow.

Ok, that wasn’t bad at all… it does kinda taste like squid?! A bit chewy, but sweeter.

The next dish was the Hokkaido King Crab Leg with chef Roy’s home-made Miso paste (Joan said this was the must-try dish). The chilled crab meat was so sweet! And that miso paste…I’d buy a pot of that and stick my fingers in it like Winnie the Pooh does with honey. Nom nom nom.

Next up was the Sashimi Moriwase which consisted of Maguro (Tuna), Sake (Salmon), Mekajiki (Swordfish), Hamachi (Yellow Tail) and Hotate (Scallop). Fresh! Although I must admit, I would have loved it if they threw in a slice of Otoro in the mix just to bring it to the next level.

I wish the next dish tasted as good as it looked. Karubi Beef Tataki with Bonito Flakes and Spring Onions. The meat was slightly chewy, was gnawing away for a good minute or so. I love bonito flakes with anything, especially on my takopachi balls.

After that jaw exercise, I was too tired to sink my teeth into anything solid. Thank goodness next dish was Egg plant. Seemed like it was boiled, served in some soy sauce and grated ginger. Chef Roy mentioned that it’s a good palate cleanser.

Three more dishes to go, and I’m starting to feel full.

A little cup of Steamed Hotate Soup was a little too hot to handle, so I had to wait awhile for it to cool down. Soup/broth was very ‘scallopy’ and comforting. I could just imagine myself in snowing Japan, sipping a hot cup of Hotate soup. I’d imagine it would be as amazing as a frozen Margarita on Cottesloe Beach in summer.

Just when I thought the worse was over with the Sea Snails, a plate of Maguro, Hirame (Flat Fish) and Anago (Boiled Salt-water Eel) was placed in front of me. I guess I’m just not an Eel person, but that didn’t stop me from trying a corner.

Dessert was my favourite dish of the night: Matcha Ice-cream with Green Tea Cake Roll and Red Bean Paste. Chef Roy mentioned the roll was just flown in from Japan, which makes it feel even more special and exclusive to Omakase diners.

I liked the fact that everything was not too sweet, especially the matcha ice-cream. A lot of other restaurant’s matcha is mostly sugared too heavily, and they lose that green tea bitterness all together. If I wanted something sweet, I would have just ordered vanilla.

Overall verdict, food was fresh, tasty and affordable! Now you don’t see that combo often: Fresh and affordable.

And just as I was about to leave, I got handed over this cute Standing Sushi Bar badge. It’s like getting a sticker at the Dentist, but in this case I actually WANT to come back again!

The Standing Sushi Bar
1 Raffles Place
#B1-02B OUB Centre
Singapore 048616
www.standingsushibar.com
Follow them on twitter: www.twitter.com/thestandingsushibar

UPDATE:
They have just revamped the menu to offer more lunch sets and easy add-on’s like sashimi (for cheaper than a la carte price)

The revamped menu also features the special cargo they get in from Japan a few times a week (basically makes it more discoverable so you don’t have to ask the chef)

PROMOTIONS
Click here for the MSN Coupon promotion that gets you 1 free glass of sake

Here’s something a little more fun for Blursotong Blog readers:
Say “blursotong” at the register and get 15% off any ika (squid) nigiri or ika sashimi from their in-house a la carte menu. Valid during December!

Instead of trying the same ol tuna and salmon sashimi, try the squid! Be adventurous