Mita Sushi (Bukit Timah)

One of those establishments that we have been wanting to visit for a while was Mita Sushi; that being said, we had been sitting on the plan for a while since Mita Sushi is located far in the East — a location which we do not really seem to be hitting up all that regularly these days. Was scrolling around social media and got to know about the opening of Mita Sushi’s second outlet at Bukit Timah Plaza — situated at Basement 1 of the mall, Mita Sushi can be found around the vicinity where the outlet of Ya Kun Kaya Toast there; other notable establishments located at the same level as Mita Sushi’s outlet at Bukit Timah Plaza includes the outlet of Chirashizushi Shou, MyungGa I (명가 I) and Myung Ga (명가) II, Nonya Delicatessen and Tok Panjang. The space of which that Mita Sushi occupies at Bukit Timah Plaza is smaller than that of their original location at Roxy Square 1; the entire space sees a dine-in area that comprises of five (5) tables good for groups of four (4) each — the interior decked in a way that is rather basic with the use of faux white bricks whilst also featuring wooden furniture and fittings for its dine-in furniture. Mita Sushi does split its operations into lunch service and dinner service; they also do have a siesta in between the hours of which they are open for lunch service and dinner service. The dinner service sees Mita Sushi offering an ala-carte menu, with the menu being segregated into categories consisting of Sashimi Platter, Sashimi, Bluefin Tuna, Kaki (Oyster), Appetiser, Kaisen Don, Maki Sushi, Bakumori Don, Nigri, Otsumami, Fried Items, Ala-Carte, Rice & Noodles, and Others; their lunch menu sees an extension of Teishoku (Set Lunch) that one can go for as well on top of the same ala-carte menu that is available for dinner. Beverages available at Mita Sushi includes homemade Ume Shu, Chuhai, beer, wines, whisky, highball, Shochu, cold Sake, Japanese tea, soft drinks, Yuzu and soda and floats.

Having made our visit to Mita Sushi’s Bukit Timah Plaza outlet during lunch service on a weekend, we had quick look at their lunch offerings and found ourselves settling for their Otsumami Set. Exclusively available during lunch as part of their offerings under the Teishoku
(Set Lunch) menu, the Otsumami Set does seem quite like a value-for-money offering considering how it comprises of two (2) of the dishes from thejr Otsumami category of their ala-carte menu; namely the Nikujaga and the Buta Kakuni, whilst also coming with Japanese steam rice, Miso soup, green salad (small) and a daily small dish that turns out to be a potato salad during the day of our visit. Considering the sheer amount of dishes served up with the set, our order came to table with the Japanese steam rice, Miso soup, green salad (small) and potato salad coming first, before the Nikujaga and the Buta Kakuni arrives the table. It was a tough pick to say which one of the two that we preferred more, but we did feel that the Buta Kakuni was the one that left a slightly more lasting impression with us. Coming with what is being described in the ala-carte menu as homemade simmered and braised pork belly, the pork belly does come tender and juicy with its slightly more gelatinous texture — there is a savoury note considering how the pork belly has absorbed all of the flavours of the braising liquid, though it also comes with a slight smokiness that we found to be rather intriguing that sets it apart from most other Buta Kakuni dishes that we had tried elsewhere thus far. We also noted that the pork belly was also free from any undesirable porky stench; the Buta Kakuni also comes accompanied with an Ajitama (i.e. soy-marinated ramen eggs) that came with a creamy, molten egg yolk with soft whites that carried a deep, earthy and savoury note from the soy marination.

The Nikujaga on the other hand came is described to come with homemade beef that is simmered in a sweet dashi broth; itself tasting like a comforting homemade dish, the Nikujaga’s sweet dashi broth does seem to incorporate the natural sweetness of root vegetables such as the potatoes and carrots that can be found in the dish into the dashi broth — the dashi broth being a great accompaniment to the bowl of white rice that comes on the side for flavour. The root vegetables are cooked to a soft texture that does not require much bite — all whilst the beef comes soft and tender as well. The beef comes with a slight gamey note; nothing too bothersome and also likely intended to be so for the dish to carry a good flavour. Other elements that came with the set were good to have; the Potato Salad coming huge chunks of cucumbers and carrots, while the Green Salad came with julienned carrots, purple cabbage and other leafy greens drizzled with a Goma dressing. Meanwhile, the bowl of Miso Soup also came with kelp and beancurd skin as well.

We also managed to go for the Chirashi Bakumori during the same visit to Mita Sushi — they describe the Bakumori to be a “rice bowl stacked high with fresh sashimi in a hill-like shape”. The portion of fresh sashimi is significantly more than the usual Kaisen Don; the Chirashi Bakumori coming with assorted fresh sashimi that seems to involve the use of swordfish, Maguro and salmon — one can also find Ikura, as well as diced cucumber and diced Tamagoyaki that provided both a visual pop and a textural contrast to the dish. The sashimi here comes considerably fresh; the addition of diced cucumber and diced Tamagoyaki adding a refreshing crunch and a soft bite with a hint of eggy sweetness; the Ikura providing a umami, popping sensation to the Chirashi Bakumori. The only qualm here would be how the rice comes a little bit on the warmer side and slightly on the blander side; have always preferred the sushi rice for our Chirashi Dons to come at a slightly chilled temperature in order to maintain the freshness of the sashimi coming atop the rice. Mita Sushi is a particularly attractive spot to hit up during lunch hours — the availability of their Bakumori Sets and Teishoku (Set Lunch) does make a bit of a difference with the prices being a little more approachable to those whom are more price-sensitive. The price range of the Teishoku (Set Lunch) options range from $15.60 to $30.40 — the lowest priced item being the Buta Yakiniku Don Teishoku, while the priciest item is the Toyomi Don Teishoku; most other dishes are priced around the $20+ range. Overall, whilst we would not be able tomake comparisons of Mita Sushi between the outlet at Bukit Timah Plaza and the outlet at Roxy Square 1 on how consistent the quality of the food is, we do feel that it is an interesting addition to Bukit Timah Plaza; also probably one establishment that serves up cooked Japanese fare of a respectable quality that will see us returning for more!