Japan Trip: Day 1

It's gonna be almost one month since I went to Japan to eat, shop, see sakura and enjoy the season of Spring~..
I shall slowwwwwwly blog abt my trip :)

(Fly away~ on 6 April)
At 1 am, I am already in my sleep mode. As excited as I could be, I was still dragging my tired feet to the departure gate at Singapore Changi Airport. Guess who was or were there to send me off???? *drum roll~*

It was Kai Kai and Jia Jia with their bamboo.. wahahahaa!



(Arrive at Tokyo Narita Airport...)
Fast forward to Japan time to 9.30am! Oha! Oha! Ohaiyo~ Arriving with a grumbling stomach.. Every inch of my skin and every taste bud of my tongue were craving for Japanese food.. But there was no bento! saddenz.. I had to settle for the F&B offered at the kiosk.. I picked up some drinks and snacks to tame my empty stomach while travelling on a 5-hour journey to Osaka..



Before I forget, let me remind all curious hungry hoppers like me, not every sakura-related product taste good.. The Sakura Peach Tea quenched my thirst.. but it was rather bland.. I would like it more if the peach taste was stronger.. The Strawberry Pocky is heart-shaped de!! It's super duper kawaii (cute)... There were bits of strawberry and the taste is so much more 'strawberry' and creamier.. Love it~~ Nabisco Chip Star (Caesar Salad) was super oishii (delicious).. Right after I landed, just tidbits were enough to make my jaw drop and they were good enough for me to comment that they are NOT junk food!!

(Arrive at Hotel Monterey Grasmere Osaka)





What to do at Osaka? OMG what else? EAT SHOP EAT EAT SHOP EAT EAT! I first headed to Dotonbori.



The number one must-eat (if not you did not come to Osaka) is Takoyaki!






It would be impossible for you to miss this store.. besides that GIGANTIC Octopus shown in the picture above, there is always a long queue at the shop front.. besides the original Takoyaki (octopus), they also have Bacon and Cheese and Seafood (prawn) options.. I tried their Takoyaki.. it was a big WOW moment for me.. It was so good to the extent that I realised this is the REAL Takoyaki.. even the ones in Tokyo are not even half as nice as this store's Takoyaki! Yes! its that good.. The outer is soft and it was as thin as a membrane.. once you cut it into half.. the soft, moist and creamy inner just ooze out with the chunk of tako (octopus).. it was to die for.. really..




Osaka Dotonbori's famous crab.. yes it was very delicious but it was very expensive as well.. I managed to find/eat crab that was as good yet bigger in portion and cheaper in price when I went Tokyo later of my trip.. The second photo was my dinner.. the crab from this famous store is on the top right corner with the two ice packs on top of it.. three words would nail the second picture - everything was oishii!





Haha.. This cream puff shop opens late late along Shinsaibashi.. you can buy a few and eat while doing your shopping.. be sure to grab the favorites before they run out!

Finally words for the post on my Day 1 in Japan: Females are priviledged~ when travelling on trains during peak hours. They have special cabins in the middle of the train for Women Only. (^O^)

Bay Sushi (Marina Bay Sands)

Bay Sushi has, thus far, very positive reviews.. I had high hopes and expectations since Bay Sushi is under Todai.. Let me review my food experience at this cosmopolitan sushi outlet that claims to satisfy cravings for adventurous treats in style..

All set lunches include Miso Soup, Avocado Salad, Agedashi Tofu, Chawanmushi, and Cheese Cake.



Miso soup was pretty average. It was served in a very small cup.. with a tea spoon at the side.. at the first glance across your neighbour's table, you might mistaken it as a cup of tea.. hahahahaa..



The Avocado Salad was above average.. the dressing has a tinge of citrus taste to it.. coupled with the creamy avocado and fresh crunchy vegetables made it as good as it can be.. unlike some salad in certain restaurants where u hoped that the chef could be more generous with the dressing.. rest assured that at Bay Sushi, the dressing is more than enough for u to savour and enjoy ur salad..



This Agedashi Tofu is not quite the Agedashi Tofu i had been eating.. u may call me conservative, typical, unconventional.. but this is NOT Agedashi Tofu... nothing was right about this dish.. hahahahaaa.. but still can eat lah.. it's not awful but not fantastic either..



The Chawanmushi was a big disappointment.. Judging from the branding (under Todai), location (MBS), price (each set lunch priced $50++), guess what is in this cup of Chawanmushi.. there's of course egg, fish cake (as u can see), a shrimp (as u can see) and. . . . . no more.. that's it.. srsly! my disappointment increases as i keep eating to the last scoop of steam egg with that tea spoon which was served with the Miso Soup.. pathetic to the max! i taste no chicken broth in that chawanmushi.. maybe there is but it was just too bland.. where's my crabstick? maybe a cube of chicken was lost somewhere? the fact that the restaurant is non-typical, i'll agree in this case..



putting the disappointment and grievances i have for the appetizers and soup aside, the main dish - Sashimi & Sushi was the highlight! the assorted sushi u see lined up on the front were ALL very yummilicious! (except the prawn sushi that was quite normal) no complaints.. none at all.. initially i thought it wouldn't be filling coz as you can see.. it's just a few slices of fish and mouthfuls of rice.. but i take back my words.. because the sashimi was cut super thick!!! each slice is about 0.7cm.. see pic below!



it was more than satisfying.. salmon, swordfish and tuna.. there were two slices for each of these sashimi.. one slice is equivalent to about two slices of what most other restaurants serve. can u imagine how ONE THICK slice of salmon sashimi melts in your mouth.. *drools*



Orange Chicken is such a pleasant surprise!!!! the thick tangy sauce was very rich and flavourful.. although the chicken cubes were heavily covered with the sauce, the skin was still crispy and the chicken were still juicy and tender! the cubes were cut big to satisfy each mouthful i take.. the portion was very big.. recommend for big-eaters.. :)



The Cheese cake was average.. it gave me the feeling of "nothing more, nothing less".. but i was really surprised that the cake was small.. normally i can finish in three mouthfuls.. but being polite, i finished in 5 mouthfuls.. kekeke..

Ambience: not bad wor.. it's not people-staring kind of envrt and seats were quite spaced out.. they even have private rooms.. but their seating is quite limited..

Service: most staff are very pleasant.. but not very attentive.. generally normal singapore service lor.. dun expect the kind of service u get in Japan lah..

but there's one particular MALE floor manager who pissed me off.. he's tall, bespectacled, not bad looking guy.. he got the "look people down" kinda attitude.. omg.. i was surprised to see him with that aura walking ard the restaurant..

Verdict: hmmmm.. I'd recommend all Japanese food-lovers to try!! but i wouldn't go for a second visit.. unless there's promo.. (^0^)

there's certainly room for improvement..

1) the menu looked really worn off, pages were crumpled, stains on the sides.. most imptly, the menu looked like a secondary home econs work..

2) staff training - after being ushered to the table, handed a menu, the staff just walked away without a word! never ask what drink i want, never explain anything, such as "we are having this set lunches.. pls feel free to ask for assistance..".. we didn't feel welcomed at all..

3) staff - are they not happy working there? why aren’t they smiling? staff's smile would make customers feel happy.. and psychologically enjoy the food more.. -.- 笑ってください～
Bay Sushi (Marina Bay Sands)
Address: 10 Bayfront Avenue, #B2 - 01B The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
Tel: 668877070
Website: http://www.baysushi.com.sg/