Hanabi @ Bukit Timah

Hanabi Restaurant, situated at Bukit Timah Road King's Arcade. We went to this place on Sat for dinner. Read on Yebber's review that there will be a lot of people there so we decided to reserve a table for 3.


When we sat down, the waiter came over and ask us what drinks we want to order when we haven't even open our menu. Turned out its our fault as the buffet comes with complimentary hot or cold Ocha. So we ordered our drinks and sat to look through the menu.


Service was fast and polite. So fast that the moment some one saw my husband took up the menu, he came over and ask us whether we need to order. Not that this was bad. Service crew polite, food served fast and empty plates cleared fast.


Sashimi - I don't eat raw food as I find biting into raw meat very "恐怖“. But even to people like me, the sashimi looks absolutely fresh and portions given were generously large. My friends who ate this said the meat were succulent and fresh but they ought to put the pieces on cooler or ice to keep the taste there. 2nd portion of the Sashimi ordered were not as nice though. Freshness was still there just that the cuts were not that good. Fish scales can be found.


Tempura - Not that great though served piping hot. We ordered Yasai Tempura and I felt that the vegetables were cooked too throughly and lost their texture. Unagi tempura was not bad with the tempura coating crispy and the Unagi itself soft and sweet.


Grilled items - Definitely pre-cooked and re-warmed. Items came out warm and some were cold. Looks dry and uninviting. Grilled items were not too good which can be understood as grilled items take longer to cook. To serve fast, they must be pre-cooked.


Others - We definitely loved the Chiizu Chawanmushi. Though except for a piece of mushroom, there were no other ingredients inside, it was surprising that cheese and eggs blended well together. Not to mention the chewy pieces of cheese at the bottom of the cup.


We also ordered Goma ice-cream (Black Sesame) and Yuzu ice-cream (Jap Lemon?) and Chocolate ice-cream. Both Goma and Yuzu taste heavenly. Especially the Yuzu which is a sorbet ice-cream. Different from other sorbet ice-cream was that it wasn't too watery hence doesn't melt too fast. Pieces of fruits inside the ice-cream and its thick texture makes this item absolutely worthed its price of $4 (per scope)


Total bill for the buffet was $124. Definitely worthed the price but not to be eaten too often or it will burn a hole in the pocket~