This year will have a brutal impact on Hong Kong's restaurant fortunes. But at far less than $100 a head, with a harbour view and a smidgeon of atmosphere, it is restaurants such as Hyakunin-Issyu that are likely to survive.
Located on the third floor of the World Trade Centre in Causeway Bay, the Japanese restaurant is excellent value.
The question is, would you rather eat five platters of mediocre sushi at $70 each over five meals, or would you prefer to blow it on a $350 selection of superb quality from a five-star venue? What this restaurant never pretends to be is anything other than what it is - middle-of-the-road. As a pit stop on a busy shopping schedule, it is a fair to good choice. It is quick, functional, and dispenses with most of the niceties, although some attention has obviously been paid to the decor.
A large space is effectively broken up into a few areas. The bar area is built around a giant fish tank, so no matter where you are at the bar you can watch the fish. This makes meals-for-one a less lonesome experience. It also beats looking at a blank wall.
Fish tanks are, in fact, a recurring design feature in the restaurant. No matter where you are seated, there are fish within spitting distance to keep you company. The rest of the decor is a mix of light or dark wood in various combinations.
The picture-book menu, too, is fairly anonymous. Steering clear of beef (a lingering fear of mad cow disease) and poultry (bird flu alert), we ordered bean curd udon ($40), tempura donburi and udon ($55), tempura and udon ($65), assorted sushi ($70) and a cucumber roll ($30).