Felt like having some Okowa for lunch. So chose to stop by Yonehachi inside of Takashimaya.
Okowa is a traditional Japanese dish. It's a steamed glutinous rice dish - steamed together with other ingredients. The most common one being red beans. The "Sansai" (a type of vegtable) is another common one as well. But autumn delivers other seasonal ingredients such as chestnuts too.
It's a nice and gentle Japanese dish. Has 'Inaka' or country-side vibes. Looking forward.
Yonehachi inside Takashimaya
391A Orchard Road #B204 Singapore
Homepage: https://www.facebook.com/yonehachisg/
Let's get right into it.
So here's Yonehachi inside of Takashimaya. It's easily located in B1 of the Ngee Ann City building.
I like how they display the variation of Okowa in the display. It nudges my appetite. I'm sure it's helpful for those who don't know what to order too.
All those signs say "Okowa" in Japanese. Make no mistake, Okowa is their main thing.
I went for the set "6" because I wanted something strong and oily today to match my Okowa.
Black Vinegar Chicken set. $16.90.
You get to choose the type of Okowa to match it with.
The red bean, Chestnut, Salmon, Sansai, or the Seasonal.
I was torn between the red bean and sansai. Both are great. I went for the more 'basic' in red bean this time around.
The set also comes with a houjicha, some tsukemono (pickled vegtable appetizers), a small salad, and miso soup.
For $16.90. Not bad.
So the houjicha comes out first.
It's actually heartwarming. It's nice.
Houjicha is roasted Japanese green tea. It's usually a light tasting tea with a warm aroma. Some high-end houjicha will have body and umami.
I wouldn't say it's a high end houjicha - but c'mon, it's free. It's a decent tasting houjicha with a nice aroma.
I think it's a great part of the service. It matches the food perfectly as well.
This is definitely a plus.
And the food.
The okowa looks legit. The shine on the rice is good. The color, balance, looks very much like a Japanese okowa.
The small black paper cup with the speckles of black and white inside - that's goma shio. (Salt and Sesame). It is to be sprinkled upon the okowa before you eat.
Here's an up-close shot for the red bean okowa by Yonehachi.
The taste is good too. It's a decent Japanese okowa.
The quality of glutenous rice used I'd say is pretty good. They've steam-cooked it perfectly. Not too hard, not too soft. The subtle taste and flavor of the red bean is nice and gentle. The sesame and salt enhances the taste.
This one's yummy folks.
For $16.90 and to have decent okowa as a part of this set? Not bad.
I mean, okowa is not exactly an expensive dish in Japan. But this is Singapore and I expect some added premium for decent Japanese dish.
Considering that? The okowa here is a win.
I'm not sure if I was just lucky here today, but the pickled vegetables I think is a "Senmaizuke". It's one of my favorite pickle dishes - thin sliced radish pickled in sweet vinegar.
It's amazingly refreshing.
Of course, it's not the high-end senmaizuke.
It's just a normal one.
But this being the choice of pickles for the set is a huge plus for me.
It matches and neutralizes the oiliness of the black vinegar chicken - which I'll get into next.
It's super, super refreshing. Definitely a plus point for this set.
Yes, so personally, this was the one let down of my lunch.
The chicken karaage was harder and tougher than I'd like. The Kurozu sauce (the black vinegar sauce) was pretty strong - piercing the tongue in a sense. I'd rather have the black vinegar sauce a tad sweeter and much more mellow. They use a pretty strong dose of ginger - which wasn't really what I like either.
I finished it. But I don't dig this dish.
Overall
For a legit okowa rice with a heart warming complimentary houjicha tea and a surprising showing of the senmaizuke, $16.90 is good value.
I'll definitely go again for the okowa. I didn't like the black vinegar chicken at all. So I'll probably go for a different main next time.
Guru Rating
for the okowa: 8.1/10
I'll probably recommend friends looking for okowa to go here. It's a solid choice.
for the lunch set: 6.5/10
I'll go again for myself when I'm around doing shopping at Takashimaya. As a lunch restaurant, it might not be too high on my recommendation list, as I felt the quality of the other dishes had more to be desired.
Comments