Kinsa Sushi is one of the 5 participating restaurants in Singapore that will be incorporating numerous Okinawan produce in a 3-course menu available only during the Okinawa Menu Fair from 8th to 28th March 2018.
Did you know that Okinawans are famously long lived? The population on the Okinawa islands include the largest proportion of centenarians in Japan and the world ā the men can expect to live to about 84 years and the women 90 years of age. This secret to longevity is due in large part to the Okinawan diet. With the longest daylight hours in Japan, produce grown among the beautiful sun and sea are fresh, nutritious, and rich in flavor.
Hence, the Okinawa Prefecture of Japan and Gurunavi are co-organizing the šøOkinawa Menu Fairšø in Singapore to promote their traditional indigenous cuisine and reveal the Okinawan secret of longevity in Singapore!
As I will be heading to Tokyo in April, all the research is making me crave Japanese food like madĀ š¢ So, I was super excited to try out the Okinawa Menu Fair! This menu was created exclusively by Kinsa Sushi for the Okinawa Menu Fair!
Accompanied by my friends Wei Kai @sgcafehopping and Yong Kai @yongkaiiii, we headed down to Kinsa Sushi. It is a real hidden gem, tucked away in HillV2, just a stoneās throw from Hillview MRT on the Downtown line. I love how friendly the staff were, even though we were clearly intruding during their rest period. Service is always a major factor for me when it comes to choosing what to eat. It really doesnāt take much effort to be pleasant and brighten up peopleās meals!
But beyond that, the food at Kinsa Sushi was fantastic! I would totally travel back to Hillview just to eat at Kinsa again. Thatās saying a lot, considering I live across the country and always force my west side friends to drive over to visit meĀ š
From their Taste of Okinawa menu, we tried:
š„Main Dish: BBQ Motobu Gyudon
Kinsa Sushi is actually famous for their wagyu beef don, amongst other dishes (like their super photogenic purple rice sushi rolls). Hence, they wanted to incorporate Okinawaās motobu wagyu beef into their signature dish and put a local spin on it ā skewer-style! Eating it was entirely fuss-free, because the tender, soft beef just slides right off the stick.
These motobu-raised cows are fed with Orion beer-infused feed, which helps to tenderise meat. Additionally, the low stress warm climate helps cultivate the best quality of beef. The motobu wagyu beef skewers are served medium well, a notch higher than normal medium rare for the wagyu steaks served by Kinsa Sushi. This is to ensure the seared, bouncy texture of the beef. Give me a moment to wipe my drool.
š¹Beverage: Refreshing Shikuwasa Cooler
We balanced off our motobu gyudon with a jug of shikuwasa cooler. Shikuwawa is a citrus fruit native to Okinawa. In the Okinawan language, shikuwasa means “eat the sourness”. Tradtionally, the Okinawan people enjoy shikuwasa with just a small portion of lime and water. Thankfully, Kinsa Sushi has sweetened the shikuwasa naturally to localize and cater to Singaporeansā taste buds.
The drink tasted a lot like yuzu, very pleasant to the palate. Furthermore, Shikuwasa contains plenty of Vitamin C, an excellent antioxidant and citric acid for recovery from exhaustion. (Though the only exhaustion I could possibly be suffering from would be from eating too much good food.)
Dessert: Okinawa Brown Sugar Aburi Frozen Sāmores Cake
Finally, the chef whipped out his blowtorch to finish off our quaint little dessert right in front of us. To finish off our meal, we had a frozen sāmores cake, made with Okinawan brown sugar, which is made from 100% pure sugarcane. Boiled 4 times and further 2 more times to crystallize the sugar, this Okinawan sugar hasĀ a unique brown, sticky consistency. I felt tired just listening to the process, canāt imagine the effort that goes into ensuring the quality of the sugar!
The process of caramelizing is pretty Instagrammable too (for those who care, like me). I loved that the cake is soft on the outside but firm in the middle. Iām not a fan of the wobbly texture but the low key sweet taste made up for it. Kinsa Sushi chose to incorporate sāmores was in part due to influences from American food culture on Okinawan cuisine.
To conclude, I would definitely recommend trying Kinsa Sushiās Taste of Okinawa menu. At just S$39.90++, it is really value for money! In fact, I will willingly journey to the west to savour their motobu wagyu beef again and also, to try their new menu in April.
Kinsa Sushi was originally supposed to launch their new revamped menu on 1st March. However, they pushed the launch back to 1st April to cater for this exclusive Okinawa Menu Fair. Hence, the Okinawa menu items are actually a sneak preview of the items that would be available on the new menu such as wagyu skewers and coolers but using Okinawan produce instead.
Donāt forget to head down to Kinsa Sushi from now till 28th March 2018 to sample their exclusive Taste of Okinawa menu, created in conjunction with the Okinawa Menu Fair! You might just bump into me there, chomping down my beloved motobu beef skewers.
šøAbout Okinawa Prefecturešø
Surrounded by some of the worldās most beautiful coral reefs, Okinawa is caressed by gentle breezes and blessed with fertile soil. Hence, this island paradise is a treasure chest of minerals. Abundant rain, subtropical sun and even devastating typhoons help nurture the vitality of Okinawan products. Consequently, the people of Okinawa have always lived close to nature and enjoyed its bounty. As a result, they are among the longest-lived people in the world. Additionally, Okinawan products are filled with the islandersā gratitude to nature and the wisdom of their ancestors. They believed food is the greatest contributor to health. Now, these products, the secret of the Okinawan peopleās longevity, are now making their way across the globe ā from the heart of Okinawa to the world.
šøAbout Kinsa Sushišø
Address: #02-02 HillV2, 4 Hillview Rise, 667979
Nearest MRT: Hillview
Opening Hours:
Mon – Thu: 17:30 – 22:00
Mon – Thu: 11:30 – 15:00
Fri – Sat & Sun: 11:30 – 22:00
Website: https://www.kinsasushi.com/
Contact: +65 68846884