Savour a full range of Japanese flavours at Wagyu Kaiseki Den
Tracey Furniss
Kaiseki.
The door is an imposing feature on the quiet end of Hollywood Road. Press a button, and it slides open to reveal dimly lit stairs leading up to the main dining area and sushi bar. The décor is dark, highlighting the open kitchen where chefs are busy preparing dishes. There are two private rooms to the left. The atmosphere is relaxed and friendly, and the service is excellent.
Friends and business associates.
HK$1,880 for the omakase menu without drinks.
Chef Hiroyuki Saotome helps his team prepare kaiseki dishes. We started with a light and delicate icefish with dried roe and grated turnip sauce, followed by a perfectly cooked baby octopus with bamboo shoots, peas, kinome and miso. Next were a flavourful clam dumpling soup with shiitake mushroom and the chef's selection of sashimi. Then came Zuwai crabmeat with sesame julienne in whole yuzu, white shrimp sushi with caviar, and fukinotou tempura. The seasonal dish was an ebi taro dumpling stuffed with chicken, lobster and kogami with vegetable sauce. The charcoal-grilled A5 Nozaki wagyu tenderloin was divine, and we really enjoyed the sea urchin with black truffle rice served with red miso and pickles. For dessert, we had strawberry and red bean paste wrapped with mochi cake, sweet potato and jelly made of dekopon, a half-orange, half-mandarin fruit. The chef also served us cherry blossom ice cream with salt.
The fukinotou tempura was very bitter.
Ask for a sake or wine pairing with the omakase menu.
WAGYU KAISEKI DEN
G/F, 263 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, 2851 2820
