Being borne from the hands whom hold a rich experience, San Kai is bringing many traditional aspects of Japanese cooking all the way to the waterfront of South Bank. It keeps with the times, giving a fusion of modern and local aspects of cuisine and is one place continuously growing as it advances. We are talking at least three decades of practice here, and it is apparent.
It was the weekend, and as per usual I was meeting up with a friend of mine for lunch and a movie. As I was running through the dining options as per usual, what he felt like was some Japanese. This led us to here, being somewhere new and all that. After perusing the menu for some time, he quite liked the look of it and we were beckoned in. That is pointers for when the staff are that persistent.
From a glance it might be hard to deduce whether or not it is open (we did try another time a while back, only to hear it was not open yet), since they have it a bit dimmed down compared to the competition around. To be honest, I actually do like this approach as it gives it a cooler temperature - needed for when it was a hot day outside and it naturally relaxes you a lot more. The table the two of us were at was a simple wooden booth, next to a simple wooden wall that had a traditional design on it.
Service is pretty good, and well timed. They are polite, reserved and take their time. A good lunch should not require feeling rushed where possible. Still though, if you have places to be the food comes out in a leisurely yet efficient pace. Water glasses were filled without missing a beat, and the waitress taking the orders knew here stuff - even so that the guava drink I ordered was more juice than tea.
Starting out, the menu is pretty simple. By this term, what is meant is that the food is always presented simply and without pretension. They give a few ingredients each, and make sure that they interact well and can be deduced. Whether it be the sushi rolls, izakaya-style starters, or donburi - more is less, therefore they avoid going more for the sake of it. As for variety, it is at that point where it is generous but still manageable (you won't be stuck there feeling too indecisive); they get a sweet spot to please most people.
On top of all of the food, there is an extensive bar menu - sake aplenty among some other things. Also, to compliment sake there are items made for sharing. Even with the takeout window for quicker orders, San Kai is definitely better for the slow dining experience.
Looking at value for money, and I like to eat a lot for such value, it was the dinner sets that I laid eyes on and had a hard time looking elsewhere - except for perhaps some sushi. Each of these dinner sets came with an appetiser as chosen by the chef, a bowl of steamed rice, the main dish, a bowl of miso soup and an ice cream dessert. Additionally, at least for both of us, some seaweed was put in.
The appetiser was salmon shioyaki. This was a fresh piece of fish, lightly salted in order to bring out the original taste. On the side was a garnish of ginger. I chose the tempura dinner set, a range of different foods fried lightly in batter and with a dipping sauce. It was "moriawase" or combination. Among the items given the tempura treatment, there was several prawns, some sweet potato, some onion, zucchini and bits of fish.
Woo boy! This was a good feast. It was well proportioned, aesthetically pleasing and substantially filling. On the plus side, it was probably pretty healthy as well. First, just how perfectly they cooked the various items - they were tender, the batter was like a soft, thin sheet of paper. The prawns were crunchy were need be, with a sweet flavour to compliment it. Same goes for the soft, moreish bits of fish that they used - it must have been a mild one, as it did not over-ride anything with its taste. Then there were the vegetables, also really soft while still maintaining texture and releasing their flavour. So far, very impressed.
Then came the peripheral items. The piece of salmon was just beautiful, I mean - the texture, the subtlety of its taste and quality of the bit of meat. It just fell apart with the chopsticks, it was that tender. To compare it to its cousin, sashimi, his was like asking for jamon, and getting a bit of pork belly. A bigger, thicker bit that is just as good quality is the most apt way to describe it.
That is what the mainstays of the set were, and both were A-level in preparation and flavour. The rest of the items helped as well, with a good bowl of seaweed, a bowl of miso soup that was bigger than they usually give you, and a substantial amount of rice. Fantastic, not even the best bento box I have had can hold a candle to this great lot of food that I had.
Dessert came last, and it was a small scoop of choice of ice cream flavour. Green tea or black sesame, the former has been my favourite flavour since I was ten - so I naturally went with that. As usual, it had the soothing flavour which integrated with the high-quality cream texture of the ice cream. Not sweet, and a tad on the acquired side for taste, it works for something a bit different. Also, I did nick a bit of black sesame, also good and unusual.
From all of this, the only envy I have is not sneaking a bit of sushi on the side - not that I would have had much room left, just that seeing it freshly prepared in a window is a site to behold.
On any side of town, San Kai is some of the best Japanese that can be offered. The portions are just right, so you won't leave hungry, it is a decent value so it doesn't have the exclusive feel, and it is done with the utmost due care to the simple atmosphere of the restaurant, the quality and presentation of the food and - from the feel of it - the whole experience of dining out. I feel lucky that I found something of this caliber without the price tag.
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