February 20,2008(Wed): It's mid-week and chilling out at some small cozy place seems the right way to 'recharge'. I found this place along the quiet West Coast Way. It's hidden and all covered-up so that passers-by will not be able to see its interior.
I used to take evening walks near Hong Leong Shopping Centre where Japanese kids and housewives hanged out in the 1980s-90s; but then, I did not even know this eat-out existed. The equally inconspicuous sliding door of the restaurant opens up to an authentic Japanese drinking ambience. Its low ceiling, warm latterns, small wooden chairs and tables, beer ads of sunbrowned belles on the beach, comics, and ornaments are all so provocative of the izakaya ambience prevalent in the back alleys of Japan. The three gaudy fu-lu-shou (Prosperity, Wealth and Longevity dieties) standing above the shelves of Japanese comics hint at its non-Japanese ownership, however. The chefs and the waitresses are also of Southeast Asian origins - though not necessarily Singaporeans - except for a tall waitress from Mainland China. The head waitress has the sweetest smile, and she immediately imparts an ii-kanji (good feelings) of the place. She told me that the restaurant has been there since the 1980s. I wonder what the place was like in those times when Singapore's Japanese population was four times greater?
Most customers now consist of families or couples, and most were locals living around there. There was a Japanese tanshin funin (expatriate without his family) who pecked at his bowl of rice and naberyori (hot claypot) while reading his daily. I guess doing that was better than just focusing at the steaming claypot right in front of him.
I ordered a Minoru bentoo (lunch-box) and A., a sashimi set. Although lunch time has long past, the waitress informed that bentoo orders were acceptable. That was the kind of flexibility I like.
After munching the rather chewy sanzai (wild mountain vegetable) appetizer, our food arrived.
My bentoo looked ordinary enough: a grilled saba, a deep-fried kushi consisting of bacon and asparagus,sashimi slices, a miso soup and a star-shaped mold of rice. I like the shredded daikon which was thicker and juicier than the very thin popular version. A. liked his fresh sashimi - but not the ambience.
The bill added to about SGD40, including GST. It's not bad, really. The friendly staff know their regulars; the restaurant offers decent wine /sake and does not charge any corkage fee so you can bring in your favorite drinks from home.
214 West Coast Way
Hong Leong Garden Shopping Centre
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