We love our Japanese food and have sampled the fare from all of the restaurants in Bangalore currently offering the cuisine. Highlights for us have naturally been Edo, which is all the way up there, Harima which has remained an affordable great option, and Oko whose offerings I would give a miss any day. When Teppan came on to the Japanese scene, it brought about a massive discussion of for and against, authenticity and of course comparison to the others in its league. But since its only best to form our own opinions, we decided to head there ourselves, twice in a short span of time - once for their sushi festival by Chef Joseph Ruiz and the second for Sudhakar's birthday. We ended up with a unique experience the first time since it was a festival and the second time round managed to experience the restaurant as they normally are.
The table setting at the Teppanyaki counter
Teppan is based on reservation alone since there are a limited number of people that can be seated around the Teppanyaki counter - 8 in all. You can of course opt to sit at regular tables, but there is a unique kind of fun being seated around the Teppanyaki with a group of people you don't know. The first time round we were not too particular about the Teppanyaki since we were after the sushi. Anoushka chose to sit at there however, was regaled by the Chef, given her meal and she even managed to make friends with those around the table and had her meal on her own. The ladies on the staff kept checking in on her and if she needed anything and told us to sit back and enjoy our sushi on the side. Two thumbs up for allowing us parents the rare privilege of having an uninterrupted meal (not that we are complaining otherwise)
I wasn't sure what to have from the beverage section, since the first time round we went there with really bad throats. Went ahead and decided to indulge nevertheless. We left it to the bartender and I told him anything except lychee as an ingredient would do. What I got was a fresh orange, pineapple and something else mocktail which was really nice.
Chef Joseph had some unique sushi creations of his own for this festival and we were keen on tasting just those. So we started with the Mojacko Maki - salmon, tuna, cream cheese, spiced with Togarashi, a Japanese chilli mix, and rolled in tomago sheets (sweet omelet sheets). Chef Joseph works fast and allowed us to see him put the sushi together. While the sushi was rolled quick enough, I just loved the way he did up the plate. This sushi platter was very soft and to use a cliche - melt in the mouth. Since it was wrapped in Tomago and not nori, it was not chewy at all. The wasabi did not match the texture of the freshly ground one we had at Edo, but it did pack the punch and did its job well. A bite of the gari to cleanse our mouths and we were ready to order the next platter.
Mojacko Maki, just after it was rolled and cut
And how it was finally presented to us
With Chef Joseph Ruiz
We decided to go with the Dragon Maki roll next. Basically a prawn roll, it was available in three options of Red (Tuna), White (Sea bass) and Pink (Salmon). We opted for the Salmon. While that was being made, we headed to where Anoushka was at the Teppanyaki counter. What you order from here is made right in front of you, with a few acrobatics thrown in for good measure. Eggs are flipped and caught in toques, they are thrown in the air and strategically cracked in mid-air on the way down, seasonings from steel containers are rhythmically clanked together and then thrown up to be caught. And if the chef misses catching something, he puts it down to a "Japanese mistake". It made my little one sit up in awe and that was good enough for me. The Chef draws hearts with the eggs, wrote out her name on following it and constantly engages the guests with conversation.
An egg cracked on its way down
He ran out of yolk to write Anoushka's full name
Chicken and egg fried rice in the making
The chicken and egg fried rice
The steaming bowl is placed in front of you as soon as it is done. Its topped off with some great roasted garlic which gives it a great crunch. We helped Anoushka finish this and with good reason too. It was delicious.
The Pink Dragon Maki Roll
By then our Pink Dragon Maki roll around. It was arranged to look like the body of a dragon. Again, the wrap was of the salmon and prawn, topped up with tempura crisps and roe on top. The sweet soy around it added a nice touch and each bite, though a mouthful was a mixed of different flavors and textures. I found it fresh and really nice.
Another look at the Dragon Maki
It only whetted our appetite for more and we decided to go for the surf and turf maki. The filling was a salmon, avocado and crab stick. The finishing is done with thin slices of beef that cover the rice. This was topped off with a Japanese mayo, tempura batter crisps and julienned crab sticks. The beef stole the show in this one, coming off as soft as can be. We were stuffed at this point and had to wrap up for the evening.
Surf and Turf Maki
A closer look
The second time round was for Sudhakar's birthday and we decided to seat ourselves at the Teppanyaki counter, more for Anoushka's benefit. Eight can be seated at one time, but I personally felt a little more elbow room would be in order. The space felt a little cramped. We went in the for a sashimi Edo platter and a Sushi Edo platter. Nicely presented plates, evenly sliced sashimi which was fresh tasting. We had salmon, mackeral, tuna and bassa. First time am having a mackerel sashimi - interesting. But would have preferred it sliced all the way through than half way down two slices.
The sushi platter came in tuna, salmon, bassa and prawn - all of which were nice. Not much done by way of presentation here, compared to the sashimi platter, nevertheless, it did taste good.
The sushi platter
From the Teppanyaki, Anoushka wanted another round of chicken and egg rice which she got. We also ordered a Yaki Soba noodles with meat. A great dish to have on a cold winter day - hot, gooey, tasty
Yaki Soba noodles with meat
Both times, Anoushka was well entertained. Once she finished her meal, she spent time with the staff who took her around the place and basically kept her well occupied. She had a blast, so did we and both sides now have good reason to go back. Teppan is by no means a budget eating Japanese place. Each of our visits saw a bill of approximately Rs 3500. The sashimi platter was around Rs 850 for 12 pieces and sushi Rs 1000 odd for 12 pieces. The place is not overtly Japanese in terms of decor or even fancy cutlery, but it hits the spot really well. The loo is clean.
Address: 2nd floor, 1/3 Ulsoor Road, Bangalore.
Phone: 30412940
Cuisine: Japanese
Wallet factor: Rs 2800 for two
Wallet factor: Rs 2800 for two
Parking: Valet
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