Miso - World Square, Sydney

I can't believe that it took me close to a year to finally have a meal at this place. It's understandable, really - during its first months of operations, it's almost impossible to get a table straight away due to the hordes of people waiting to be seated. Nowadays, it's still crowded, but if you come at a time which deviates slightly from peak dining hours, you'll get a table quite easily.

This brainchild of the Masuya Group (their fifth establishment after Masuya, Musashi, Makoto City & Chatswood) is specializing in bentou and teishoku (set-meal) type of dishes. The whole experience dining in this place can be summed up as "glorified, pricey-ish obentous with freakishly saccharine service"

However, it can't be denied that any restaurant belonging to Masuya Group has pretty high standards. The ingredients are always very fresh, the food impeccably prepared, and prices are quite tolerable. Miso has a killer take-away menu, too (I especially love the look of their "Shinkansen bentou" - packed in a container that emulates the real thing sold at Japan's train stations (ekiben), and priced about the same, too (around 1000 yen / 13 bucks). Nice!

I have yet to try their famous tonkatsu (especially the miso-katsu). The reason being that I need sufficient mental preparations to try their hyped-up tonkatsu, remembering that tonkatsu is pretty much on my top 3 favorite dishes of all time.

Kukicha

-> A pot of tea, and a copy of Newsweek magazine featuring a person I freaking like and totally voted for, Indonesian President Yudhoyono on the cover. (lanjutkan!) <- his presidential campaign catchphrase, translated as "continue! (one more term!)"



Anywhoo, kukicha is a very nice green tea made from a blend of the stalks, stems, and pale tips of green tea - creating a wonderfully subtle yet tannic flavor. It's kind of lighter than normal sencha, but with a creamy edge to it.

Rating: 7.5/10

Hokkaido bentou

-> Looks really awesome indeed. I was immediately smitten. Look at that bentou lacquerware, I want to buy one just like that!! The rice was perfect, and it's scattered with ikura (salmon roe) and salmon flakes.

Okay, let's delve into the contents:

Seafood gratin

-> I adore gratins. Especially when the Japanese made them. Perhaps some purists would argue that the French are still the experts when it comes to gratins, but Japanese gratins are very edgy and it's always a surprise what lies beneath that cheesy-licious crust. This one contains kanikama, fish, broccoli, and tomatoes in cream sauce.

Rating: 7.5/10

The middle section

-> Contains (in ascending order of yummy-ness): tofu steak, seedless grapes, stewed broccoli with mayonnaise, kamaboko (fish cake), nasu dengaku (stewed eggplant with sweet miso), teriyaki salmon, dashimaki tamago (rolled omelette), and tsukune (yakitori-style chicken meatball - YUM YUM)

Salmon sashimi

-> Really fresh - as expected from Masuya Group...

Deep-fried soft shell crab

-> The piece de resistance, and perhaps, the reason why this dish is called "Hokkaido bentou" (Tokyoites mostly go to Hokkaido to eat crabs, LOL) I don't usually go crazy about soft shell crabs, but this one is a yum-yum.

Rating: 8/10

Suminoya - Sydney

One word: FEAST!

Ready...set...stuff your face!!
Fill up 'till the food reaches your nose! Stuff 'till you sweat meat broth!!

Okay, enough with the corny hyperbole. Earlier today, my friend had this brilliant idea that we should skip breakfast, lunch, and in my case, afternoon tea... (Gotta have afternoon tea. Can't help it. Habit from upbringing. My mom is one of those interesting creatures that religiously have to have afternoon tea every day when the old Junghans longcase clock strikes three. She's practically the frickin' Duchess of Bedford for all we know. And when she's having tea, she drags us, her children, with her. Afternoon tea is compulsory in my house. That's why, I'm pretty sure that among all the households in my area, mine is the most well-stocked with Lapsang Souchong, Pickwick Blueberry tea from Holland, Earl Grey, etc along with selections of Harrods all-butter shortbreads, M&S Jam-and-cream biscuits, Dutch almond fingers, Speculaas, Fortnum & Mason's Chocolossus Biscuits, and many more artery-clogging diabetes-inducing treats. Even instant Teh Tarik mix! Funnily enough, my mom always STRICTLY forbids me to eat anything sweet because my family from my dad's side has a long history of diabetes!!)

...and go STRAIGHT to dinner at Suminoya! I was excited, I mean I actually vowed to singlehandedly bankrupt the place by inhaling as much food as possible in one night!


Suminoya is part of the I'S holdings, a group that owns several popular Japanese restaurants across the country including Menya, Rengaya, and Koh-Ya. These restaurants serve good quality, authentic Japanese food, and therefore one of my favorite Japanese restaurant group along with the likes of Masuya group (which owns Masuya, Musashi, Makoto, etc)


The good thing about Suminoya is that they use charcoal hibachi. In fact, charcoal is a very prominent theme in the restaurant (heck, the place is called "Suminoya" - lit. "house of charcoal"). There's even a very busy (and sweaty) ojisan constantly preparing charcoal in a huge brazier. Very nice - kind of puts you in a good mood.


The place is very scarcely decorated - but still tasteful. The thing is, decoration doesn't matter in Suminoya - I bet a hundred bucks people won't even bother to look around the place, they're too busy eating! Atmosphere meant almost nothing in this place - as long as it's air-conditioned, bright enough, and have nice seats, everything else is kind of moot. Food is the main focus - and what a focus it is. Hordes after hordes of mortals seem to be hypnotized by those red, juicy, bloody fresh cuts of beef, and before you know it, you've probably eaten a whole cow by yourself.

Service was excellent - prompt, friendly (thank the LORD for the Japanese - bless their hearts, they do know a thing or two about hospitality), and unlike other order-type all-you-can-eat establishments, Suminoya is quite generous and does not resort to cheap tricks and gimmicks to make customers eat as little as possible. Food comes very quickly and promptly, doesn't matter if you order 10 plates of beef and 10 plates of sashimi at a time. Iced water constantly re-filled. We were very delighted. Also, as you will see on the reviews below, they serve quality food, too. All in all, it's hard to look for faults in this restaurant.

Gyu-tan shio
Beef tongue with salt

-> Ooh, blissful. Note that there are two different all-you-can-eat packages, the cheaper one (basic items only) and the more expensive one (basic+sashimi, etc). The cheaper package only allows one order of beef tongue per person, but the more expensive package allows unlimited order. I would highly recommend the more expensive package (it's only 8 bucks difference), in order to have unlimited beef tongue!

Rating: 8/10

Ebi no ninniku yaki
Garlic prawns

-> Oh, joyful. Succulent tiger prawns marinated in butter and garlic sauce, slowly grilled on the hibachi. Very fragrant, highly addictive.

Rating: 9/10

Gyu-fire (note: pronounced 'fee-ray')
Beef fillet

-> Must-order. Juicy and plump. The good thing about this cut is that you can really really cook it to your desired level of done-ness.

Rating: 8/10

The Sashimi: Sake (salmon), maguro (tuna), hamachi (kingfish), and gyuniku (beef)

-> I had doubts at first, but their sashimi is good and fresh. Very good value for your money. Tip: to save time and energy, when ordering sashimi at Suminoya, order like, 5 plates at a time, as one plate only consists of 3 slices of sashimi.

Rating: 7/10

Ika
Squid

-> They've got a sauce to marinate the squid which is different from the rest of the menu items. It's tender and juicy - best eaten with a splash of lemon.

Rating: 7.5/10

Yukhoe
Korean-style spiced raw beef

-> The Japanese simply pronounce it as "yukke". A very popular Korean dish in Japan - this one from Suminoya is just delightful. The original Korean version is somewhat stronger in the spice department, but this one is somewhat milder and therefore you can eat LOTS of 'em. LOL

Rating: 8/10

Ebi sarada
Prawn salad

-> Actually, it's prawn plus salmon salad. It's very nice. They've got lots of different types of salad at Suminoya, but being a kiasu Asian (wikipedize the term ye who are not in the know), we tend to choose items that are worth the most money. LOL

Rating: 7.5/10

Saamon fureiku gohan
Salmon flake rice

-> Don't look at me. I didn't order this one. Rule number one in an all-you-can-eat restaurant: Avoid your carbs (rices, potatoes, pastas, breads, etc). No, no, not because everyone should be in a low-carb diet, it's because carbs are fulfilling but CHEAP - you don't want to fill up your tummy with cheap stuff!
Anyway, apparently, one of my friend is so dependent on rice, it wouldn't feel like a meal without having some rice. Oh well.

Rating: 7/10
(I tried just a teeeeeny tiiiiiny piece of rice plus a speck of the salmon. Definitely want to make the most room for the good stuff, a.k.a. beef and sashimi)

Nakaochi karubi
Beef rib finger

-> One of my favorite yakiniku cuts. Fragrant, good fat-to-meat ratio, slightly chewy in the middle. Excellent.

Rating: 8/10

Buta karubi
Pork rib

-> Surprisingly good. Also, it's definitely not as fatty as a Korean Samgyeopsal. It's lightly seasoned with salt, and combined with the dipping sauce, it's just heavenly. The pork is so tender and sweet.

Rating: 8/10

Hotate
Scallops

-> Plumpy scallops that burst in flavor and juice as you sink your teeth in them. I love to grill them until they're just half-cooked, to preserve the juice inside. Add a dash of lemon juice and you're good to go!

Rating: 7.5/10

Unagi no kabayaki
Grilled eel

-> You have to grill them yourself, of course. It's heavenly. And considering that unagi is rather expensive when you order them ala carte, it's a good chance to stuff your face with as much unagi as possible, at least until you're sick of them that you don't crave for them for at least two months! LOL

Rating: 7.5/10 + 0.5/10 = 8/10
(extra 0.5 points because it's freshly grilled above a charcoal hibachi. Heavenly!)

Tori no nankotsu
Chicken gristle

-> Apparently, lots of people like it. I, for one, thought that it's quite appalling at first. However, when I tried it, I get the idea why some people like it so much. It's not about the flavor (it's a gristle. It's like, soft bone - it's tasteless), but it's about the texture.
Still, it's somewhat a weird part of chicken for me. (but who am I to talk - I do love more disgusting parts of chicken like the feet and tail)

Rating: 5.5/10
(just because I don't particularly like gristle)

Maccha aisu
Green tea ice cream

-> Another surprising delight. At first, I didn't expect much on the dessert department, but this maccha ice is probably one of the best among all the all-you-can-eat restaurants. Nice, thick, and clearly homemade.

Rating: 7.5/10

Koohii zerii
Coffee jelly

-> The 'holy' chalice is a bit, er, dodgy (why can't they use normal glasses???) but the jelly is delightful!! Nice, strong coffee aroma.

Rating: 7/10

Lemon Sorbet

-> Only available on the more expensive dinner package. And for a reason, too. Very nice sorbet, just the way I like it (not too sour). Will make you crave for more and more (tip: order 2 per person!)

Rating: 8/10

Epilogue:
It's been a hell of a 'battle'. We ate so much, beads of beef broth practically ran down our necks. LOL. But still, my friend L.Y.C. the economist, calculated that the restaurant still makes a profit of $60 even after having a greedy, kiasu customer like ourselves. LOL

Ichiban Boshi

Lunch friday.

Tonkotsu Ramen
collagen packed ramen.. yum~ (bad thing it was super duper oily that i can feel my cholesterol level rising and thought only one piece of meat was a lil bit stingy)
still.. only 15 bowls prepared per day and we're all suckers for limited items... you have to get the chef's nod to get the ramen

Tokyo Ramen

Iced Green Tea Cappuccino

ISETAN supermarket v.02

So since five weeks ago i decided that i would go back to KINDIES again (since i've done the whole circle might as well go back to where i started)... the kindies is at shaw tower thus steps away from isetan supermarket. Everyday around one the sense will say "YASUMIMASYOOOOOOOO"... and i head for Isetan supermarket. This is my haul today... :)


left: Kirin Green Tea
while kirin makes great milk tea (voted cows favourite milk tea after MOS', that is), this green tea version taste..... er...... surprisingly GREEN.

right: GLICO Mousse Pocky Mango Milk
It says "Lighten up your day with Pocky's super smooth aero-chocolate." (Whoever has the job of coming up with all the engrish on japanese confectionary boxes has the best job.) Best tasting pocky yet!
I'll be heading for the grape pocky next week!

Boba

Japanese green milk tea with BOBA.
Just to clear cla's name... yes, that small round black thingy at the bottom of the drink is called BOBA in the US (who the hell came up with such a name anyway??).

p.s: Apparently, cla likes to make up her own words or mumbles something incoherent for the human ears, people thought 'boba' is another one of her creation.