FPIP Sto. Tomas, Batangas
+63 (043)405-5791 / +63 (043)405-5001
...continuation of the very sumptuous lunch I had at Minori-Tei Japanese Restaraunt.
Shabu-Shabu. It was comforting, the noodles had a very great texture... but I didn't know what was those jelly like ingredients near the beef slices... beef skin, perhaps?
Sukiyaki. Compared to the Shabu-Shabu, this one's a little sweeter. I liked this more compared to the other one because of the different mushrooms and the tofu.
Chicken Skin Skewers. Something we all wanted to pass up, but we did taste it - just a pinch of skin from one skewer just to know how it tasted. It's like Chicken Teriyaki, honestly.
Ebi Tempura. It was just soooo good! Even without the Tempura Sauce, it was good.. but of course it tasted better when dipped with the sauce.
Tori Karaage. The chicken are moist and tender, the breading wasn't overpowering, and it did have a light crunch.
Tonkatsu. My 2nd favorite dish of the day. It was crunchy, but it still had the right tenderness of the meat. We were told this is one of the restaurant's bestsellers, and eating it, I already know why. Oishi!
Chicken Teriyaki. I am not a big fan of Teriyaki, so I am not in the position to comment about the dish. :)
Gindara-yaki. Basically, teriyaki flavored gindara. I don't know if the fish was poached or steamed, but I liked it, especially the skin side of the fish. :)
Mix Aburi Sushi. Another round of sushi, but I only tasted the one with salmon (because I love salmon). I sure wanted to taste the other, but I was already feeling full.
Sake. For drinks, we were all served a glass of iced tea (which isn't the typical store-bought iced tea), and they also placed this container of chilled sake. I tasted a shot of sake, and I found it so good! It's not so strong, but it did have a kick...and it makes the throat and tummy a little warm.
Mix Fruits with Ice Cream and Mochi. For desserts, we had this. Slices of Melon, Kiwi, Watermelon, Banana, and Pineapple. At first, we thought those were pieces of lychee in the ice cream bowl, but when we fished it out and ate it, it was mochi. Oh gosh, mochi + ice cream + fruit = heavenly dessert! :)
It was indeed a great lunch. It was a great thing that I got to taste certain Japanese dishes that I haven't tried yet. I still have to really teach myself to eat sashimi, but in time I will get there.
Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant serves authentic Japanese dishes, but their prices are nearly similar in most Japanese Restaurants around. They do cater for big groups, and as Chef Honda told us, if a group is on a strict budget, they can work around that budget and serve the group awesome Japanese food. I do want to take my family there if only it's not way too far (my mom isn't really into long trips), but I am now planning of a way to make that happen.
I come from a family who loves cooking and eating. I never had any formal training in cooking and that I taught myself how to cook based on the handed down recipes, but I could say that I can cook good food. In 2008, I started documenting my food trips for my