It's always great meeting up with fellow foodie friends, because it's always an adventure trying out somewhere new! Met Koi for dinner the other day, and when he told me he was bringing me somewhere he was pretty sure I've never been to, I was immediately excited. All I had to do was tell him what cuisine I wanted. Hmmmm. Since I'd been feasting quite a bit since it was my birthday week then, I opted for Jap - something healthy (hopefully). True enough, I've never even heard of Hamanoya Robatayaki, let alone tried it. And I was super impressed! Everything, from the quality of their food to the exquisite presentation was impeccable, a fantastic exemplar of Japanese standards.
We started with a seaweed appetiser, compliments of the chef. This was savoury, yet light, and tantalised our tastebuds to prepare us for the meal ahead.
After this was where things started going a little crazyyy. There was a mind-boggling array of dishes on the menu and I didn't know where to start. We kind of ended up choosing an item from almost every category to get a good selection, which seemed like quite a lot for two people! Surprisingly though, while I was completely satisfied at the end of the meal, I wasn't overly full. That made me so happy! This is why I love Japanese food so much. How healthy it always feels!
The restaurant specialises in Robatayaki, which is a Japanese style of cooking where the food is grilled over charcoal. Every day, there are daily specials of the freshest catch, which are presented to customers should they be interested in having the fish prepared robatayaki/sashimi style. We opted for one of the fishes, and it was so delicious!! I'm not a huge fan of fish, especially those with bones (fillet FTW!!), but this was so incredibly fresh, the meat tasted almost sweet. It didn't require any additional seasoning, except a sprinkling of salt, and the essence of the fish shone in its simplicity.
See what I mean about the presentation though? Everything was soooo pretty! :) And I was so appreciative of the spotlight that shone right down on all the tables, which was the perfect lighting for all the photographs. No editing required! The slabs of Salmon and Tuna sashimi ($11.99 each) were generously thick, and of course, super fresh.
This is the Grilled Chicken Ball with poached egg ($4.99) if I'm not wrong. It was a really interesting dish, which I had no clue how to consume at first. It was actually a humongous ball of meat that was marinated in a sweet-savoury sauce, and you actually dip the meat into the poached egg and stir it around before popping it into your mouth. The combination was sublime!
Though I felt that we'd ordered quite a lot by now, I couldn't resist getting some sushi because they all looked so pretty. The Salmon and Mango Maki ($9.99) was a harmonious blend of flavours and textures that created a delicious taste explosion at every bite.
Finally, the Tonkotsu Hot Pot ($17.99) was a comforting, belly-warming dish that was full of ingredients including carrots, pork ribs, tofu and mushrooms. The meat of the pork ribs were so tender that they could be prised off the bone easily, and I slurped up every last drop of the soup.
My experience at Hamanoya was exceedingly flawless and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Definitely one of the highlights in The Dining Edition at Marina Square, and I can't wait to be back to be impressed once more.
Hamanoya Robatayaki
Marina Square #02-106
Tel.: +65 6337 4245
Mon-Fri 11.30am-3pm, 5pm-10.30pm
Sat-Sun 11.30am-10.30pm
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