Kanpai!

As I am writing this, I am thinking fondly of this meal we just had at Nanbantei. The yakitori (grilled food) joint at Far East Plaza is well-known for being on the expensive side. We had heard of people running up bills of $50 per head and KKN, being a kiam ka na (stingy poker), was initially a tad concerned. So were the prices charged worth it? Let's just say that once the food started flowing, we stopped thinking about it...

maguro (tuna), sake (salmon) and ika (squid) sashimi

lady's fingers, chicken balls, chicken, pork with asparagus

pork with asparagus

squid

foie gras (duck liver)

pork and tomato

beef, pork with leek, chicken balls, chicken

prawn, gingko nuts and mushrooms

shishamo ("Big Mouth" or Japanese smelt)

beef, chicken liver, chicken balls, pork with leek, quail's eggs

oysters with pork

aji (horse mackeral) sashimi

kawa (chicken skin)

amaebi (sweet prawn) sashimi

dessert #1: red bean with glutinous rice

dessert #2 - matcha (green tea) ice cream

Everything was good, but the real standouts were:

• pork with everything (asparagus, tomato, oyster) - it was all good.
• grilled squid - grilled squid is a classic in any cuisine.
• chicken liver - ok an acquired taste I know...
• chicken skin - sinful, sinful, sinful but so good...
• gingko nuts - who would have guessed that these nuts would grill so well?
• shishamo - love the texture and fragrance of the delicate flesh contrasted against the roe
• and the aji sashimi - KKN discovered, to her surprise, that salmon and tuna are not the only fish in the sea

In the end, the bill came up to, yes, $50 per head, inclusive of one can of Asahi beer and tea all round. It was well worth the price, in my opinion. Now the problem is, do we go back to Nanbantei or check out its competitor, Kazu, in Cuppage Plaza?