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| Sashimi Moriawase @ BOTAN |
BOTAN
Japanese Restaurant is a traditional Japanese restaurant that prides itself
using premium ingredients air-flown from Japan. Helmed by Executive Chef,
Thomas Kok, a pioneer of the Japanese culinary scene in Singapore with over
four decades of experience in Singapore and Japan.
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| BOTAN Japanese Restaurant |
Our meal at BOTAN started
with Ikura Onsen ($15). A perfectly cooked Japanese egg with super creamy yolk.
The portion of ikura are generous, not fishy yet bursting with flavour. A good
way to start the meal.
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| Ikura Onsen |
Kawahagi (Grilled Leather
Jacket Fish Skin, $10). It has a gentle chewy texture, with a sweet seasoning.
I personally like the seasoning to be salty instead of sweet.
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| Kawahagi |
Pitan Tofu ($6). Homemade
Tofu drizzled with Century Egg Sauce and topped with Tobiko, Century Egg &
Spring Onion. It is chilled, smooth and creamy. The century egg flavour subtle,
not overpowering the delicate tofu.
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| Pitan Tofu |
Assorted Sashimi: Hotate
(scallop), Tai (Red Snapper), Kinmedai (Splendid Alfonsino), Otoro (Tuna Belly)
and Kanpachi (Amberjack). The assorted sashimi is priced at $48 for 3 kinds and
S$88 for 5 kinds. For just the Kinmedai alone, it will cost S$80 to S$100,
showcasing premium ingredients available at BOTAN.
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| Anti-clockwise :Hotate (scallop), Tai (Red Snapper), Kinmedai (Splendid Alfonsino), Otoro (Tuna Belly) and Kanpachi (Amberjack). |
The sequences to eat this
platter is Hotate, Tai, Kinmedai, Kanpachi and Otoro. The scallop is sweet with
a slight bounciness to it. Tai has a flaky and a grit texture in it. Kinmedai
is smooth, fatty with delicate flesh. Kanpachi is smooth, silky and crunchy,
while the otoro just melts in your mouth.
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| From Left to Right: Otoro, Kanpachi, Kinmedai, Tai and Hotate |
As the Kinmedai served from
the whole fish, Chef Thomas team boiled the leftover head and bones to create a
clear soup. It has a clean tasting flavour, with a subtle sweetness. Perfect to
calm your stomach after a heavy meal. The soup is served after the beef curry
later.
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| Soup from Kinmedai Bones |
Hamachi Kama Shioyaki - Yellowtail
Collar Grilled with Salt ($25 to $45). Due to the huge size of the hamachi,
this yellowtail can be classified as buri kama. There are two part of this
collar, the meaty part and the fatty part. The meaty part is more dry and flaky
texture, while the fatty part easily melts in your mouth. Some consider this
fatty part as foie gras of the sea. Yummy.
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| Hamachi Kama Shioyaki |
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| Hamachi Kama Shioyaki |
Hokkaido Tonkatsu ($18). BOTAN
use the pork from Hokkaido. The nice marble pork is fried till golden brown and
served with tonkatsu sauce. The exterior is crispy, while the meat is juicy,
succulent with good fattiness on one side of the meat that gives it an extra
flavour.
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| Hokkaido Tonkatsu |
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| Hokkaido Tonkatsu |
Tempura Moriawase ($25).
A combination of deep-fried king prawns and vegetables. The prawns are huge,
fresh and crunchy. The homemade batter is crispy, and it retains its
crunchiness after I dip it into the tempura sauce.
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| Tempura Moriawase |
A5 Miyazaki Wagyu Beef ($80
for 100g). Cooked to medium, the beef cubes retain its delicate wagyu
characteristic. Juicy, succulent with a good bite to it. The MooMoo flavour is
present in each bite.
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| A5 Miyazaki Wagyu Beef |
Hokkaido Snow Beef Don ($20).
Stir-fried Hokkaido Snow Beef over Rice topped with Onsen Egg, Garlic Chips
& Spring Onion. The meat of Hokkaido Snow is tender and crunchy. The
Hokkaido Snow Beef has strong beefy taste; however, it is well subdued by the
mixture of fried garlic, spring onion and onsen egg. A good beef don.
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| Hokkaido Snow Beef Don |
We thought the beef don was
the last of our main meal. Instead, Chef Thomas whips out Hokkaido Wagyu Burger
Kare Don ($18). Hokkaido Beef Burger with Japanese Curry Sauce Served with Salad. The curry
is mild and creamy, while the beef burger has a crisp exterior with a tender
interior. The curry balanced the beefy nicely. Even though we are stuffed, we
can’t stop scooping the rice, curry and beef.
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| Hokkaido Wagyu Burger Kare Don |
Desserts are a simple affair
of Yuzu Sorbet ($7) and Black Sesame ($9). LD and I prefer the Yuzu sorbet
better as it gives a mildy tangy and refreshing feel. For the black sesame, it
is more earthy and creamy.
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| Yuzu Sorbet and Black Sesame |
The restaurant is very
spacious. It consists of 2 shop unit in Pekin street, with indoor and outdoor seating.
The décor is simple and zen, like any regular Japanese restaurant. The only
drawback that I find is the restaurant can get very loud when the place is more
than half full. Thus, you might need to speak louder at times.
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| Sushi Bar |
Overall, we find the food
here is very good. The ingredients used in sashimi and tempura are fresh. The
use of seasonal and unique ingredients such as Kinmedai and Hokkaido Snow Beef
are a crowd puller on its own. The decades of Japanese cooking experience of
Chef Thomas clearly shine in creating the current menu. Do consider visiting
BOTAN for your next Japanese food adventure. Kanpai!! Cheers!!
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| Part of Dining Area |
Additional
Note: BOTAN Japanese Restaurant also specialises in exquisite Omakase
curated by Chef Thomas using seasonal ingredients. Prices start from S$10++ for
starter, S$35++ for main course and S$7++for dessert. Omakase starts from
S$68++ per person.
Food & Drinks: 8/10
Value: 7.75/10
Service: N/A
Ambiance: 7.25/10
Budget per Person: $51 - $80, $81 & Above
BOTAN
36 -
37 Pekin Street
#01-01
Far East Square
Singapore
048767
T:
+65 6536 4404 / 9271 5004
IG: @Botanjapanese
OH:
Mon
– Sat: 11.30 – 14.15; 17.45 – 22.00
Closed
on Sunday
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