Japanese Dining Sun

Came here for a leisure weekday lunch and it was not packed at all, with a few tables looking like business lunches and corporate partners instead of your usual family crowd. Thus place was nice and quiet, and probably felt more upmarket than its counterparts at Central and Wheelock.

The place can be quite hard to find for 1st timers: its not visible from the main courtyard. You'll have to access it by climbing up a fleet of stairs near Insomnia, right smack in the middle of Chijmes.

Gyoza - 6 compact pieces of the dumplings decorated with a veg on top, all on a hot plate. Very nicely grilled and served very hot, although I though the gyozas could have a but more bite than just all meat. The slightly tart sauce that came with it perked up the dish though.

Salmon roll - Cute presentation of the rolls, and salmon was very fresh although nothing excellent. Quite a mouthful for me though, but some people call it value for money.

Deep fried squid - this is on their seasonal menu, although I couldnt figure out why squid was seasonal. Small portion of bite-sized squid (note: not the rings) nicely batetred and deep-fried. A very morish snack to accompany the meal.

Hotpot rice set (seafood) - My weakness for seafood made me order this. The set came with chawamushi, miso soup, pickles, salmon sashimi, fruits, and green tea ice cream. The chawamushi was studded with ednamame peas and had ginko nuts and chicken in it. Quite heavy for me compared to normal steam egg. I had expected the hot pot to give the rice some fragrance but it did not, disappointingly. There seem to be also not much taste, except for the soya sauce that was mixed into the rice.

The seafood had half a prawn, fish roe, fish, scallops, and salmon. It looks like a luxurious combi but somehow I felt the seafood and the rice didnt gel together and tasted like they were separate components instead. The scallops and salmon was not cooked although the idea was for them to cook themselves within the heat of the pot; and I had to send it back to get them to grill it again. I can understand if salmon was not cooked thoroughly, but scallops???

Green tea ice cream - This was part of the set and was the highlight of the lunch for me. Served very chilled in a chilled porcelain bowl, it was one of the better ones I've tried so far. Smooth with just the right amount of 'grainy' feel to taste home-made and very macha than commercial green tea.

Green tea - Probably made from the same green tea leaves or mix, but I had to highlight that they apparently make their own blend for the tea, and it did taste so.

Service was not too bad, perhaps given that there were plenty of staff to handle the half occupied place. Requests for tea refill, side plates were answered quite quickly.

I actually didnt know how much was the bill as it was a treat, the amount spent is an estimate based on what I remember from the menu. The quality I think can still be improved, but because I like the place, I'll return to try their other stuff.

Mothers day - A day to show your heartfelt appreciation for all that your mum has done for you. Sorry but I don't buy that. Sounds really gimmicky to me. I personally feel one shouldn't have to wait till any one day to show his/her mum that he/she cares. Nevertheless, my family still took it as an excuse to dine out together. Deviating away from the norm of eating Chinese food, we settled for Japanese food at Sun Japanese Dining (lets call it Sun for short) instead.

Located within the picturesque and upmarket CHIJMES, some stair climbing is required in order to get to the main entrance of Sun. There, a classy and sombre interior awaits. Hanging lights coupled with stylish wooden partitions and ambient lighting make for a cosy affair. Together with plush cushions thrown in at corner tables, it is really cosiness personified. Sun practises an open kitchen concept, which allows customers to observe what goes on in the kitchen. In most cases, this would have been a disaster in the absence of a good ventilation system. But not at Sun. The ventilation system was excellent, allowing us to walk away at the end of the meal not reeking of oil fumes.

Oboro Tofu - Homemade Bean Curd - As you know, the Japanese are famed for their home made beancurd and rightly so. The Oboro Tofu was served on a bed of ice and was cold to the touch. Delightfully smooth yet firm, it slithered down my throat with great ease. No complaints about the texture. However, taste wise, it was nothing out of the ordinary, tasting merely like Tao Huay without the sugar syrup.

Foie Gras Lettuce - Teriyaki Foie Gras Canapé - In all honesty, I've never seen Foie Gras in a Japanese menu. But that's probably because I don't go to many Japanese food places to begin with. This dish was quite well executed in the sense that the bread was extremely well toasted, the lettuce fresh and crisp and most importantly of all, the Foie Gras well seared. The resulting effect through the combination of the 3 items was a myriad of flavours that was accompanied by a crunching sound in every mouthful. Just one small fault though. The Foie Gras was a little too firm for my liking. I prefer ones that are quivery.

Tokusen 5 Sashimi Mori - Special Assorted Sashimi (5 kinds) - I veer away from raw stuff as often as possible (with the exception of a few items) and (un)fortunately this time was no exception. I didn't touch this dish one bit but it did make me wonder if the price was worth it ($55).

Tontoro Yaki - Grilled Sliced Pork Cheek with Black Pepper - Not too thickly sliced and nicely done with a homogeneous sprinkling of black pepper which sought to enhance the overall taste. The pork cheek was tender and held a little bite.

California Roll - I've honestly had better California Rolls, but Sun's offering was still a cut above the rest. Think Sakae, Genki, Sushi Tei, Kushin Bo blah blah blah. The rice was firm yet not too coagulated and everything comes across as light on the palate and easily digestible.

Avocado Soft Shell Roll - Avocado & Soft Shell Crab Sushi Roll - I've never been a fan of Avocado but I simply couldn't resist the Avocado Soft Shell Roll. As with the California Roll, the rice was well done and the roll had a slightly smoky taste due to the soft shell crab (I'm guessing). Presentation wise was also aesthetically pleasing. You definitely want to try this if you do visit.

Sazae (From Yamaguchi) - Imported Fresh Top Shell - For all its aesthetics on display, the Sazae didn't amount to much in terms of taste. Sure, it was something unique - you get a whole shell sitting atop a mound of flaming wax. Gimmicks aside, the top shell was fresh, but didn't exactly wow in taste. The tiny mushrooms that came with it actually tasted better, but that's just me.

Yasai Tofu Steak - Tofu Steak with Vegetable - Nothing fanciful and a waste of money. The tofu was rather bland and had this slight oil aftertaste which really marred the whole dish. The skin wasn't as chewy or crispy as I would have liked it to be.

US Kobe Style Beef Sirloin (Gold Grade) - Undoubtedly the star of the evening. The beef was so succulent and tender that I chewed on it ever so delicately. Every bite brings forth a burst of the wonderful juices that lie within the meat. Simply great! The accompanying side of bean sprouts were cooked in beef fat which gave it an irresistible flavour, at least for beef lovers. Pity about the small size of the beef slab though.

Sankai Tempura Mori - Assorted Tempura - Overall speaking, the tempura's batter was rather light which made eating all the more pleasurable. Nothing really stood out in this dish. Rather, all of them were slightly above average.

Goma Pudding - Black Sesame Pudding - Another dish which tasted like Tao Huay texture wise, but with a black sesame taste. Not too bad, coming across as light and quivery. But too much of it can make you sick, especially when there seems to be traces of milk in it.

Dessert Trio - Assorted Sweets (3 kinds) - The dessert trio came with 3 desserts - Mango pudding, Green Tea Ice Cream and the Goma Pudding. Right on the onset, the Mango Pudding had hints of peach in it, which made identifying it rather difficult. It was only after much deliberation that we all came to a consensus. It was jelly like and was really average. The only good thing about it was that it wasn't too sweet. The Green Tea Ice Cream was slightly different from the normal ones you get outside. First of all, it wasn't sweet at all and had this biting aftertaste, just like normal green tea. Second, red bean paste is given to sweeten up the ice cream. A rather interesting combination if you ask me. The red bean paste and the ice cream complemented each other very well. Not much can be said about the texture of the ice cream though.

Tofu Cheesecake - A staple dessert in any self respecting Japanese restaurant, Sun's rendition was nothing out of the blue, but somewhere along the lines of good. I couldn't make out any tofu taste and the texture seemed to lean more towards pudding than cake. Not that its bad though. On the contrary, it was quite good - fluffy and light. Look out for the minuscule portion though.

At long last, the bill. Standing at an exorbitant $400 for 5 pax (before discount. After discount was $350), it was a physically filling but none the satisfying dinner. Why so? Because portions were small and we had to resort to gorging on rice to fill our tummies. I recognize the quality of the food but for the price, I expect to have a hearty meal, not some dainty meal with pretty presentations to boot. In all honesty, 3 of us could have finished all the dishes without even breaking a sweat, not to mention 5. So unless you are feeling rich or are rich, you might want to think twice before eating here.

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