Fab Jap Food

We found this Japanese joint in the city on our last night in Christchurch. It was some Japanese name trailed by a 'bar and cafe' so it seemed like an average eating place on the surface. It was small, and decently furnished in the inside but nothing to shout about. There weren't many gwai lo's in it so we know it's not a posh place. So why did we pick a place that didn't seem like fab food to us? Well, simple... because we'd ran out of money and just had about enough to get us a meal and pay for departure taxes at the airport the next day.

So, in we went and were showed to a table for two. It turns out that the waitresses were gosh... real Japanese, and the cook was too, and the menu had Japanese characters, so it was all authentic stuff. The prices were reasonable though, which is equivalent to a Jap fast food joint in Melbourne. You know, the Japanese named Chinese stuff e.g. ramen, bento boxes etc. But the food which was delivered out from that hole in the wall that separates the kitchen and the restaurant was nothing like it. They were delicious! This is what we ordered:

Two serves of tempura battered fresh oysters as entree. The oysters were sweet and fresh, the batter was crisp and light and to top it off, my fave item - Tobiko!

Can anyone guess what this is? You can spot the bits and pieces of chopped up octopus in it... It's baby octopus in wasabe sauce. The sauce was very tasty as I don't mind the sharp taste of wasabe at all. But I did mind eating raw octopus so Gary finished it all. It was very chewy.

My fave eel atop a bed of creamy eggs and rice. It was deeleeciouss! The eel was sweet and tender, and though the eggs could be a little creamier, it didn't disappoint.

This dish is new to us - rice in green tea. We couldn't taste any green tea, and the waitress told us the soup stock was made out of bonito flakes. The roe was a little too salty for me but when mixed it added taste to the dish. Very heartwarming for a cold night.

This is crumbed chicken fillet in ginger flavoured soy sauce. Gaz loved the sauce so much he insisted I learn how to make it upon my return to Melbourne. I think he's forgotten about it now, which means I don't have to bust my chops looking for the recipe!

Overall, we paid $48 for these dishes, and a bottle of Jap beer, which I did not take a photo of since I did not know how to appreciate the juice. For that price, I probably would have gotten only an entree, a main and a drink in a good Jap r'ant in Melbourne! I wish we had more time (and money) for another meal there, but we didn't so we shall have good memories of it.