I was still satisfied with the compromise because I love Hokkaido scallops - I frequently buy them from supermarkets to pan sear them myself with butter and salt, or to air fry them after wrapping with bacon.
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Most of the scallops here are well-seared, some less, and wasn’t too salty (I tend to pan-sear mine with too much salt). There is still some scallop sweetness within, unlike many restaurants that serve scallops that are almost totally deprived of any natural sweetness within them. Granted, there are many high end meals with really fresh scallops that are full of sweet scallop juices, but that would require fresh live scallops and not something you would expect out of this bowl that only cost $18 nett. I like the cream base, that has a touch of onion for a spicy accent. I like the maple that’s coated on the toast, but the toast was really tough so I would prefer them to be served slightly warmed to make it easier on my jaws.
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This place is new so they are still improving operationally to handle the lunch crowd. I was however impressed by the sincerity of the service though. Although they were a little overwhelmed today, boss @hungrydarren was there to ensure everyone was well taken care of. I was standing at another table and chatting with them about their dishes (I happened to know them), and a server walked up and answered all my questions – good initiative :)