Sushi Kaishin :: 海神寿司

[Sushi Kaishin closed in mid-October 2019.]

Suddenly three new sushi restaurants have sprouted in Robertson Quay. Ishi, and the soon-to-open Plum and Toro (under the same management as Ishi). The friends’ birthday lunch was held at the three-year-old Sushi Kaishin (海神のお寿司). I'm sooo glad they picked this new-to-me restaurant.

Sushi Kaishin is a small restaurant that seats 10 at the counter and another six in a private room. Reservations necessary. Owned by the group behind Ginza Kuroson and Ike Ike Maru Singapore, its previous Chef Ichiyama just left two months ago, and the new team has revised the menu a little.

Sushi Kaishin serves mainly sushi and sashimi, omakase. This is the first time I’ve stepped in. There have been mixed reviews, but I had a good experience. Perhaps it’s the current combination of chefs, or suppliers, or that we filled out the whole counter for lunch, but the sashimi, sushi and beef we had were really decent. It was a good luncheon with great company.

The kawahagi is at the tail-end of its season, and came as sushi, expectedly topped with its own liver. My favorite kinmedai didn’t disappoint, but I wasn’t too hot about their treatment of the kohada. Also, too much tuna. This time I didn’t want to be fussy, but the next time, I’ll request for no tuna to appear in my meal. I’m one of those who don’t particularly fancy akami, chutoro or otoro.

The friends brought a bottle of Roku gin. Those crazy people finished an entire bottle over lunch. Gin is totally my killer, and while nice, Roku's florals and botanicals aren't quite to my preferences. I like the flavor profile of a London Dry, which means gin should taste predominantly of juniper berries, and nothing too floral. I stuck to sake. There was a lovely bottle of Oyama (a Tokubetsu Junmai-shu; 大山特別純米酒 ひやおろし加藤嘉八郎酒造) from Kato Kahachiro Shuzo brewery in Oyama, Yamagata. I drank LOTS of that. Hahaha. No guilt because the others were fixated on gin, and there was also a bottle of Tomintoul 10 y.o.