Sakura by Edo-San

A few months ago, Hubby mentioned something about a Japanese restaurant in Alphaland Southgate Tower.  He was in the area, and the interiors of the restaurant caught his attention.  Thus, he wanted to try it.  Months passed we both forgot about it.  That is, until I saw the post of Jin Perez, one of my ever favorite food bloggers.  And if she says it's good, then it's good.  Of course, I had to try it!  

One Saturday night, I dragged Hubby out for a mandatory date.  LOL!  Contrary to other popular Japanese restaurants, Sakura Edo-San is not one of those hyped up restaurants with about a thousand other noisy people in it.  It's a perfect date place; cozy and quiet.  But the more important question is, what about the food?  Let's take a look, shall we?

Appetizer

Uni Sashimi

Shake Sashimi (Fresh Salmon)

Shime Saba (Marinated Mackerel)

...and because I don't eat anything raw (I know, BO-RING!), I'll skip the raw stuff and go straight to the others.

Aburi Uni (Lightly grilled sea urchin)

I've never been a fan of uni, but I got a bit anyway.  Well, it didn't appeal to me in any way, but in Hubby's books, this was really good.  

Gyoza (Pan fried Japanese dumpling)

Nah, this was the major fail of the night.  See the dumpling wrapper?  It was torn even before we got to it.  Tastewise, it didn't do anything for me either.

Kaki To Papaya Yaki (Grilled oyster in papaya with special sauce)

 And now we get to the three best dishes for the night.  First one is the Kaki To Papaya Yaki.  OH MY GOODNESS.  I rarely eat semi-raw oysters, but this one was simply mind blowingly amazing.  The mixture of the big, fat, juicy oysters with the sweet papaya was simply an explosion of orgasmic proportions in my mouth.  I had to close my eyes and moan in pleasure with every bite.

Edo-San Maki (Cream cheese, kani, avocado, tobiko, anago with sauteed shrimp on top)

As for the Edo-San Maki?  This reminded me of the Tempura Maki I had at Yanagi in Midas Hotel.  Just when I thought nothing could compare to it, here comes a contender.   

Unagi to Mango Tempura (Eel, mango with special sauce)

And finally, the Unagi to Mango Tempura.  When I saw this on the menu, I just couldn't pass up the chance to try out a dish which was made from two of my favorite things.  Good thing too!  Because it was sooo good!  The strips of unagi was creamy and crunchy at the same time, and the mango was oh so sweet.

Overall, Sakura by Edo-San has now edged out other Japanese restaurants in my book and has claimed the top spot.  Though the prices may not be for the faint of heart, I can assure you that the quality and taste of the food is top notch.  4.5 out of 5 stars!

Sakura by Edo-San is at 6/F, Alphaland Southgate Tower, EDSA cor.  Pasong Tamo, Makati