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(With Agie Manego on lens.)Â
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When In Manila and a fan of the Japanese fusion movement, the creative minds behind SumoSam and John and Yoko are back with new offerings for their Euro-Japanese restaurant Mr. Kurosawa.
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Chef Christine Nicole Nicolas, corporate chef of SumoSam Group of Restaurants.
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It was food bloggers’ night at Mr. Kurosawa, and we got first dibs on the new items set for release this first quarter of the year.
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Food, drinks, chopsticks, cameras, and a hell lot of food bloggers!
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I love that fusion is splattered all over the restaurant. The European influence found in the bar, the red brick walls, and the artsy-fartsy ceiling is tempered by the Japanese tone of the honeycomb windows, the bamboo lamps, and Japanese photos and paintings.
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Now let’s dig straight into the dine, shall we?
For our drinks, we were served Winter Melon Milk Tea, Strawberry Yakult Milk Tea, and Matcha Milk Tea.
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The Strawberry Yakult Milk Tea (AKA “Red Angel”) had the thickest consistency among the three – more like a smoothie than a milk tea. It is also on the sour side because of the Yakult. The Matcha Milk Tea was the most enjoyable for me. As a fan of the Green Tea Frappe in Starbucks, it’s safe to call this the milk tea version of that drink.
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Seriously, this version looks WAAAY better!Â
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We were served four kinds of katsu. Among the four, I liked the Shrimp Katsu, with the minced shrimp mixed with shitake mushrooms and batter to form thick patties.
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The Ebi Katsu had a very nice presentation. It has a wasabi mango mayo dip that presents the twist with this dish.
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According to my culinary arts students (who were my companions for the evening), the Fish Katsu is most probably made with flatfish which is a good, more expensive ingredient compared to restaurant staple cream dory. Along with the Tonkatsu, these two dishes are really more on the safe side.
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In addition to the katsu, they also have Last Samurai Chicken Wings in the menu. They do look and somewhat taste like Chicken Bon Chon – the wings are definitely bigger, but the sweet with a hint of spicy sauce didn’t quite sink in to give the wings a full-bodied taste.
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I don’t know if it was because we were served with katsu after katsu after katsu that everything started to taste the same. I would appreciate a sushi and sashimi smorgasbord, but the breading in katsu dishes is just too filling. Normally I would love to try just one form of katsu along with orders of sushi, sashimi, teriyaki, and even kobe. So here’s to a revisit to Mr. Kurosawa! And I’d be looking forward to the fusion in this next visit.
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Mr. Kurosawa
G/F Eastwood Mall, Libis
(+632) 901 0825
2/F Newport Mall, Resorts World Manila
(+632) 973 6213
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Mr. Kurosawa is Back with Fried Vengeance! (I Told You: This is a Katsu Overload)Â
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