An Omakase Initiation

for Lyrical Lemongrass.

Appetizer: Boiled ripe blossom mixed with mustard sauce, marinated firefly squid & egg curd sakura style
The mustard sauce was less pungent this time and it doesn't overwhelm my nostrils either. The interesting portion of this dish was the serving of egg curd, which is the golden sauce spread over the slices of crunchy fruits on the left. The fruit is very mild so that you taste the richness of the egg curd, with the taste of egg permeating your tongue while it slides over it down your gullet.

The best part of this dish is the marinated firefly squid, which is seeped in sake, mirin and soy sauce the moment they are caught. The squid tasted sweet and tangy with a slight hint of saltiness. Definitely a showstealer.

Soup: Clear Broth with sliced bamboo shoot & seaweed
The thin slices of bamboo shoots were crunchy and the seaweed is bitey. Yet, both their flavours did seep into the soup, balancing each other out without coming across as too complex.









Sashimi: Sakura Sea Bream wrapped sea urchin, tuna, bonito fish, sweet prawn and firefly squid
The raw taste of the firefly squid was very different from the earlier marinated one we had in the appetizer. This one had more bite in it and the saltiness is more pronounced (which makes me like the marinated one more) .

The tuna belly this time is less fatty and has a milder taste the previous ones and the bonito fish is pink and tender. The Sea Bream-sea urchin combo probably takes the compliment on this dish; with the creamy sea urchin filling in the middle of the meat like a pasrty piece, biting into it will spill the sea urchin onto your tongue, which will overwhelm your tastebuds for an instant before melting away for a salty aftertaste that lingers on and compliments the sea bream as you chew.

Simmered dish: Simmered Bamboo shoot, butterbur, Japanese Yam, bean curd skin and fish roe.
The bamboo shoot were cooked until tender, just because they still had their bite. The Japanese yam tasted quite melty in your mouth, probably from soaking up the excess sauce.

The innocent looking bean curd skin (lying atop the Japanese yam) was probably the hidden gem in this dish. One bite into it and the sauce seeps out from its many layers onto your tongue.

Sadly, I can't say the same for the fish roe or the butterburs since their flavours seem to be cooked right out of them

Grilled dish: Grilled Spring Trout with Teriayki sauce, octopus, tempura & assorted vegetables
The white and pink fishball were made made from prawn and crabmeat respectively, which was really tasty. the salty one-inch green beans and tempura were just distractions from the three gems on this plate: The grilled trout, the mini octopus, and the bowl of small bamboo shoot cubes with green sauce.

To be honest, anything with Teriayki sauce will definitely taste great but it really takes someone special in the kitchen to grill the trout nicely until it is firm but flakes easily upon pressure from your chopsticks. The meat was moist but not very juicy; very tasty because most of the fat had melt into the meat itself.

The cube bamboo shoots were paired up with other crunchy cubes, but the green sauce with its herby bitter made this bowl look fresh. The slices of octopus were perfectly chewy and it was a breeze letting my teeth slice through them. Probably the biggest puzzle about it was the slice of the octopus stomach that was wrapped around a gooey(?) substance that tasted almost like textured yam but the flavour was distinctively different. Chef ricky did point out that this species of octopus was in season this time of the year but the description for the thing inside the mystery substance was lost in translation. Thumbs up for this dish.

Vinegared dish: Sliced clam shells mixed with seaweed.
a new addition to the menu, this one is easily my favourite dish of the evening. I will not show you a photo of this dish, so you better go to Iketeru and order the menu just to try out this heavenly concoction.
Sliced clam shell meat and grated seaweed have been allowed to sit in a vinegar sauce (made from rice vinegar, sake, eggs and seasoning). The taste is complex, with the seaweed acting like noodles, slurping up the tangy vinegar sauce onto its surface as you take portions of it (but the sauce slides off the clam shell meat very easily). The effect is sort of like Jekyll & Hyde: on one hand, the clam meat needs very little vinegar to compliments it flavour; while the seaweed probably resembles shark fins, another food with great texture but needing the vinegar to give it some flavour to augment your tastebuds.

Sushi: Salmon Roe, Sea Bream wrapped in Oba leaf, and three other.
The Oba leaf this time looked a bit age, but somehow its flavour was not as overwhelming as the last one (I don't know if it is the leaf or me getting use to it) but I can definitely taste the sea bream wrapped in it.

The Salmon Row sushi was so-so (probably because the seaweed became a bit loose) but the other three sushi were very very good. The white and pink sushi were scored to add texture to the taste. And the middle one was cooked was accessorize with a tangy mix of radish and herb that lightened up the oiliness of the meat.

Accompanying soup: Soya Bean Soup with miso paste
Another soup to warm the soul while you dine on a hearty meal.

Desert: Japanese Pastry & fresh fruit
I am not such a big fan of fruit desert, so I will just skip straight to the pastry. It is a red bean pasted, double wrapped: first in a white dough and then a leaf before being cooked.

Somehow, the leaf becomes a bit more crunchy (I think this one went through the oven) the dough was springy but not very moist and the red bean paste inside very very thick.


Finally, Lyrical Lemongrass and I got our chance to grill Chef Ricky Kamiishi over a vigorous examination about his dishes. Lemongrass even took a picture or two with our esteemed chef.

Still think that I am not a gourmet? Say it so in the comment section, please.