I’m from San Francisco and have had A LOT of sushi in my time. But let me tell you- this was the best sushi I’ve ever had. Meal started with char grilled edamame and wagyu beef dumplings- if that doesn’t already get your mouth watering.....The rest of the meal was superb. Thank you to Jake for the amazing hospitality. If you are in Manila, make it a point to come here!!!!!
Frances Pauline Caluya
+5
Great ambiance, creative and well-executed dishes, accommodating staff.
This restaurant has been on my list for the longest time, so I was happy to find out they finally opened in Ortigas. I celebrated my birthday here a few days ago with my family and boyfriend. I was so happy with the experience, so this is going to be quite long :)
We ordered a few dishes from each section of the menu, especially since I was curious as to how they would pull off the Japanese x Peruvian combination. I quickly found out that each dish felt properly thought-through and executed, presentation was gorgeous, texture and taste were on point.
I was happy with each dish, and every single one actually left an impression on me - everything we ordered felt an experience! First time detailing each dish in a review so...
We ordered:
Parmesan Scallops - great starter, although a bit pricey and felt slightly off the Jap-Peruvian concept(?)
Tuna Mango Roll - a simple dish with familiar flavors, although the big chunk of tuna made all the difference! great value for the serving size
Panko (roll) - I love salmon, so slight bias here, but I thoroughly enjoyed this dish. I think the roll was fried with panko breadcrumbs on the outside, but the creamy-savory balance of the other ingredients made the dish one of my favorites from our meal
Nikkei Tiraditos (salmon) - was just curious about the "Peruvian" way of slicing sashimi. Dish was good, though nothing spectacular. I prefer my salmon sliced thicker.
Green Ceviche - interesting ceviche as it is similar to our kinilaw, but less tangy (likely due to the "leche de tigre" which is apparently citrus-based, vs. our vinegar based local ceviche). Although I did find the dish to be slightly overpowered by the cilantro.
Seared Tuna with Sea urchin Risotto - Speechless. This dish was another easy favorite - the perfectly seared tuna contrasted well with the rich, creamy uni risotto (with Uni chunks still in it!!!). The risotto was so good, we asked if we can order another one without the tuna (tip: turns out you can order just the risotto - for less than half the price of the original dish! dig in :) )
Chicken Teriyaki - while they didn't deviate from the traditional with this one, it was still a great well-executed dish. The teriyaki sauce was the star of the dish.
Buta No Kakuni - I'm on the fence with this one -- while I felt like this was a dish that I could get elsewhere, I would still recommend that you order it just because of how well they prepared it. Rich and juicy pork, with just the right amount of salty-sweet in its sauce. Simple dish, but well worth the tummy space :)
Miso soup was good too, nothing too fancy.
Will come back for dessert!
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Non-Food plus points
- Service was good: We made a reservation, but still we were promptly seated in a table cozy enough for 6. We were always attended to properly throughout our meal, and while we ordered quite a lot of different dishes, nothing got mixed up. Staff accommodated our request to order just the sea urchin risotto. I wish they could've introduced or explained the Japanese-Peruvian concept to us, or how to navigate the menu (my friends have dined here before so they already recommended dishes for us to try).
-Price point: I felt like some dishes were on the expensive side (plus their gohan is P60?! a cup. sad face), but overall good value-for-money.
- Ambiance was great: cozy and sophisticated without trying too hard. The place was dim enough to be intimate, but still well-light enough for us to enjoy the food. Surprisingly, the area wasn't noisy despite being open to the rest of the mall.
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Overall: If you like Japanese food, or enjoy thoughtfully-prepared dishes, Nikkei should DEFINITELY be on your list (I got hungry writing this! Whew. Probably my most detailed review to date)
Big fan of Japanese but this modern twist is really worth trying!!!
Although I ordered this as delivery, this has easily become one of my new favorite Japanese restaurants nearby.
Ordered:
- Bento D (great for salmon lovers: comes with a roll, sashimi, nigiri, teriyaki - all salmon. & salad & miso soup with a nice cilantro twist.)
- Smoked salmon roll (I enjoyed the cream cheese with it.)
- Unagi asparagus roll (the teriyaki mayo flavor was nice)
- Chifa Bao (this pork charisu bun with cilantro aioli was so good. I can’t tell you how pleasantly surprised I was with this dish. You just have to try it, because I sure will again.)
I can’t wait to order from here again & hopefully dine-in as well soon.
More on the exploratory side of Japanese food than the hearty and familiar ones. Maybe because it’s also a fusion with Peruvian cuisine. They signature ice cream was truly a surprise because of its weird flavors but they do get the rest of the food nice and tasty. We probably ordered eight servings of their gyoza.
A little pricey but considering if you go to NOBU , this place is cheap! So to have quality Japanese Peruvian fare, this is good without breaking the bank. Ceviches n Tirados with Cervezas , Ole!
I am no Peruvian food expert, but it is evident from the Japanese cuisines, that there are slight twists to each item. Playfully colourful, each dish had its own unique texture, whilst staying consistent to the combined culture-fusion theme. The highlights would have to be the flamed edamame (surprisingly addictive), house-made ice cream scoop, kurobutoa gyoza and the miso soup!
Full review: purplecuriosity.wordpress.com/2020/02/23/nikkei/
Out of the 3 things we ordered, my boyfriend and I only truly enjoyed the spicy tuna roll. The smoked salmon roll was okay, but it's not good enough to have again. My boyfriend got the passion fruit tisane (it's a specialty drink) and it tasted like if one were to melt a lot of red gummy bears and add a bit of water and ice. Definitely not doing that again. The ambience is super good. My boyfriend said it was dark, but not stuffy, unlike other dim or dark-themed restaurants. I didn't like how some of the staff kept staring at us like we needed to finish our food ASAP (given that it wasn't even near the closing time), but I'll commend our waiter (whose name I didn't get, sorry) who was very attentive to us. Other than that, we will definitely come back for those spicy tuna rolls! :)
Ben who assisted us with our orders is very courteous, accommodating and friendly. Very knowledgeable too when you ask questions. Food is delicious and the serving is satisfying. Highly recommended. Great dining experience. 😍
Very good food and I really liked the ambiance. The service was really fast as well and it’s not so expensive. I will definitely come back again.
Very helpful server, Kuya Christian. Food is great also. I would recommend visiting the rada branch because of the intimate feel of the branch.
Love the food here. Great service too - thanks, Christian!
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