Food review: Orba Japanese Restaurant in Causeway Bay

Orba Japanese Restaurant was, for many years, located on Paterson Street in Causeway Bay, so when I called to book a table, I was surprised to be asked if I was sure I knew the right address. The "new" Orba has been around for about a year, although the interior looks comfortably worn in, with a few dark wooden booths that have well-padded seats, and two private rooms.

The restaurant is izakaya-style, and the food is meant to go with drinks, so we had the house sake (HK$156).

As with many izakaya, the service is warm and friendly. The waitress - the only server - was lovely and helpful. She recommended we leave the menu up to the chef, explaining that the omakase meal (literally: I'll leave it to you) could be tailored to what we liked. But, as it was our first visit, we decided to choose the meal ourselves.

With an embarrassed laugh she handed over the English and Japanese menu, saying it was "about 20 years old". The list of dishes was fairly up-to-date - but all the prices had blank stickers over them, so we had to figure out how much everything was by cross-checking with the Chinese menu.

Botan ebi sashimi (HK$136 for two) was excellent. The shrimp meat was sticky and firm, and the grilled heads had a nice charred texture when we pulled them apart and sucked out the juicy innards. Uni nigiri (HK$110 for two) and kani miso nigiri (made from the innards of the crab, HK$56 for two) were smooth and rich.

Grilled ox tongue (HK$25 per skewer) was disappointing because it was too thin and slightly chewy. But the chicken kidney (HK$16 per skewer) was lovely for its firm bite, while the chicken liver (HK$18 each), coated with a light teri sauce, was creamy and tender.