Watami Salad

Watami is now in the Philippines and I missed their opening day blow out at SM Mall of Asia (MOA)  last November 16, 2012 where customers enjoyed half-off their total bill (50% off)! So I did not let this chance pass when blogger-friend Spanky invited us over for lunch.

New Watami Teas

Watami is a famous Japanese casual restaurant in Japan with 700 branches in their country alone. They are also in Hongkong, China, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia, among others.

It was a good and filling Japanese lunch and here are the 4 Top Watami dishes NomNom Club highly recommends among those we have tried:

1. Beef and Kimchi Rice in Stone Pot  
   

   Beef and Kimchi Rice in Stone Pot (P245)

2. Sapporo Seafood Ramen Salad (Top Photo – P375)
3. Salmon & Vegetable in Rice Paper 
   

   Salmon & Vegetable in Rice Paper (P185)

4. Beef Rice Bowl with Hot Spring Egg in Tokyo Style 
   

   Beef Rice Bowl with Hot Spring Egg in Tokyo Style (P195)

All four were great-tasting and not too heavy on the budget. I must admit there are some items on the Watami menu which is priced above-average for a ‘casual’ restaurant. On the other hand, the premium pricing is reflected in the quality of service the customer can get. The taste is also authentic Japanese.

We also had the Self-Grilled Short Ribs (P295) and Assorted Sashimi (5 kinds). For beverage, I tried Kiwi Tea with Agar.

Self-Grilled Short Ribs (P295)

Assorted Sashimi (5 kinds) P425

Kiwi Tea with Agar (P145)

I also look forward to ordering the Clams cooked in stone pot with Japanese style sauce (P285) and the Watami Salad is my next visit.

Aside from SM Mall of Asia, Watami is also opening soon at the new Glorietta – also known as the new Glorietta Vibe.

Located in one of the newest foodie circles of Fort Bonifacio in Taguig, I anticipated with excitement a good Japanese dinner that night. It is my first time in Jozu Kin having opened only early September 2009.

Jozu Kin, Burgis Circle in Fort Bonifacio

With a tagline “The Japanese Gold,” i was surprised that most of the prices were actually manageable given the upscale atmosphere of the restaurant. The ‘gold‘ is actually the literal translation of ‘Kin‘; and ‘Jozu‘ means ‘skillful‘ (not ‘Japanese‘, boink!).

Mari Moriawase

Their menu offers a wide range of variety from sushi to sashimi, and maki to teppan-grilled dishes.

Accompanied by 5 other friends, let’s now take a closer look at the food.

For the first order, we had Maki Moriawase for appetizer. It was a maki sampler platter of California Maki, Tempura Crunchy, Dynamite Roll, Philadelphia Roll, and Futo Maki (P357).

Maguro Togarashi

For the main dishes, we had spicy tuna with onions & wasabi mayo – Maguro Togarashi. At P125, the serving is good for two. It was not too spicy either.

Kuro Kusho Pasta

It was also an uncommon sight to see western-style pasta in a Japanese menu; well at least for me. We had Kurokusho Pasta with freshly crushed black pepper, olive oil, Parmesan cheese and black tobiko.

Upscale Entrees

Tartufo Hotate

Matsusaka Gyu

For the upscale-priced ones, 4 entrees caught my attention namely Tartufo Hotate, Matsusaka Gyu, and two Foie gras variants: Pan Seared Foie gras and Tenderloin Foie gras.

Tartufo Hotate are scallops, pan seared, with asparagus shitake mushroom and truffled brown butter.

Matsusaka Gyu is matsusaka beef seared on teppan. Matsusaka beef are among the highest-grade beef in the food industry. The price will send one of  your eyeballs bulging in a while. 🙂

Another first for me is the foie gras. Foie gras is basically fattened duck or goose liver . Tenderloin Foiegras is tenderloin beef and foiegras seared on teppan.

Pan Seared Foie Gras

The serving of Pan Seared Foie Gras looked conservatively sophisticated with a mango slice on top followed by the foie gras on rice and mango puree and finally glazed with honey. It was just a handful, but the experience is quite unique and unforgettable.

Tenderloin Foie Gras

Only one phrase can describe it: “melt in your mouth goodness.” Some of you may know the meticulous process of producing a foie gras, which explains the price.

Ushi Ebi Sunburst

The last four mentioned entrees are priced at P590, P1850, P700, and P700, respectively. Yes, Matsusaka Gyu did not send my taste buds to the heavens, but the price did. 🙂

And to end this Jozu Kin experience is the best among them all – the main photo of this article: Ushi Ebi Sunburst.

It’s a mix of giant marinated and grilled prawns with lettuce, fresh strawberry, grape, apples, orange and blue berry in balsamic vinaigrette.

Although I believe my description was exact having mentioned strawberry, grape, and blue berry in singular forms, the grilled prawns was outstanding in size and taste, and not in singular form.

Jozu Kin's Ushi Ebi Sunburst

We wish to thank Chef Jayme Natividad who was gracious enough to introduce and explain some of the dishes to us.

More photos, Click Here.

Give Jozu Kin a visit at Unit ES-2 Forbes Town Center, Burgos Circle, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig. You may reach them at 403-1875.