Review: Teppei Syokudo – Singapore’s ‘best Japanese restaurant’ in Hong Kong now
Japanese chefs at Wan Chai restaurant prepare kaisen don – a big bowl of rice crowned with fresh raw seafood – in an open kitchen for all the diners to see
With fleshy, colourful cubes of raw fish topping a big bowl of rice, the kaisen don offered at a new restaurant in Wan Chai is a delight to both the eyes and taste buds.
With 12 outlets in Singapore, Teppei Syokudo was rated the best Japanese restaurant in 2015 by Singaporean restaurant guide HungryGoWhere.
At its new Wan Chai outlet, Japanese chefs meticulously prepare the kaisen don in the open kitchen in the middle of the restaurant.
Kaisen don is a rice bowl with different kinds of sashimi placed on top. It can be a surprise bowl, as there are no fixed kinds of raw fish. Once an order is placed, cubes of sashimi are scooped into a bowl and mixed with house-made sauce.
The Japanese short-grain rice is cooked, then marinated with vinegar for half a day. The slightly sour rice is made more delectable by the addition of seaweed and bean sprouts. A dollop of fresh wasabi is added at the end.
We like the kaisen don (HK$80) with Japanese conch, scallop, tuna, salmon, salmon roe and swordfish. The ingredients, imported from overseas, taste fresh. Another favourite is hotate kaisen don (HK$90), topped with four fresh, large Japanese scallops. Both bowls we tried might be too much for those with delicate appetites.
Kaisen salad (HK$80), with similar amounts of sashimi on top of greens, is lighter than the rice version. For non-seafood dishes, we like katsu curry (HK$60): a thick, sweet curry that goes well with the deep-fried thick pork pieces and mushrooms.
The restaurant, which opened recently, will introduce other fried snacks soon, including Hokkaido cheese croquette (HK$15) and fried chicken (HK$20 for 160g).
Teppei Syokudo, 6B Heard Street, Wan Chai, tel: 3706 5180. Open: noon-9pm
