Hei Sushi Part II

So we headed back to Hei Sushi but to the Downtown East branch since we were in the area. Nothing like some sushi when you’re in the mood for Japanese food right? Well, errrrr, we ended up not having sushi for once! LOL

I decided to be adventurous and try something I’d never had before and since I was pretty hungry, I figured that rice would be a good idea. Hence, the Katsu Curry Ju!!

Here’s a little trivia for you alls. What exactly is a ‘katsu’? Well, ‘katsu’ (short for katsuretsu) actually means cutlet so you might have seen different meats being referred to as katsu. And the ‘katsu’ or cutlet is breaded and deep fried before being served with rice or noodles!

So in this case, the Katsu Curry Ju is essentially some Japanese rice topped off with a crispy Chicken Katsu and Japanese-style curry.

The chicken cutlet was very well done! Breaded and crispy on the outside (even with the curry sauce) but still tender on the inside which makes it a very delightful bite. Put a piece together with some rice, veggies and the curry sauce to make it a tasty mouthful.

If you notice, I keep referring to the curry as a ‘sauce’… That’s because that’s literally what it is to me.
I know pretty much everyone reading this has had curry before. I’m talking about the curry we are used to getting like Indian curry which is more like a gravy. But for those of you who may not have had the chance to try the Japanese version of curry (or karē as they call it), you might be a little surprised.

This was the very first time that I (the jakun) was having Japanese curry and I found it strange because I’m so used to the idea of what curry is but this was totally different from what they serve with my prata at my fave mamak shop.
Japanese curry is thicker and creamier (as you can see from the picture) which is why I call it a ‘sauce’. Now that I think about it, the consistency is kinda like the Curry Sauce from McDonalds! But this one still has quite a spicy flavour to it make no mistake. Guess it just takes a little getting used to that’s all.

My Darling Wife felt like something a little more hearty so she opted for the Wagyu Ramen.
If you can recall, the first time we tried the Wagyu Ramen was during our visit to the Hei Sushi outlet at Bedok Point when it first opened.

You have the option of choosing your soup base so it’s either Chicken, Curry or Kimchi.
To be on the safe side, she went with the Curry soup base but it turned out to be quite a mistake in the end.

The ramen noodles turned out to be really tough so it wasn’t really enjoyable. I’m not sure how ramen should be because we seldom it but I’m pretty sure it’s probably not supposed to be so difficult to chew. And the curry soup base was tasty but when you have a giant bowl of it in front of you, it can be pretty overwhelming after awhile. So after about half the bowl, you pretty have the ‘muak’ feeling already.

The Wagyu Beef was also tough unfortunately. Probably because beef slices were cooked with the soup broth and overcooking made it really tough (and I mean really tough!!). Oh well.

The one dish that was unanimously enjoyed that day (thank goodness there was at least one) was the Agedashi Tofu. We were actually going for the Fried Tofu but again wanted to try something different from our norm.

So we have these really delicicous soft tofu cubes which have been coated in some flour (plus other seasoning I guess) and deep fried so the outer layer is nice and crispy. Not TOO crispy but just nice to give it some texture.
So these cubes of tofu are just sitting in a bowl of broth that’s made up of Dashi broth (made up of Kombu aka kelp and also Katsuobushi aka tuna flakes aka the stuff they put on top of your Takopachi balls at the pasar malam) and finishes off with some simple garnishes.

As usual, the simplest dish ends up being the best and this was no exception.
The tofu was soft and still piping hot and the broth was simple yet so delicious. And at that price, it’s a steal.

Adam’s Verdict:
Katsu Curry Ju 1.5/5 — Wagyu Ramen 2/5 — Agedashi Tofu 4.5/5

Maryah’s Verdict:
Wagyu Ramen 1/5

Is it just me or have the standards at Hei Sushi been dropping in recent times? I surely hope not because there are plenty of Japanese makan places but unfortunately not many Halal ones so Hei Sushi remains the #1 choice for most. It would be a pity if we can’t enjoy our food at a place which has a reputation as being one of the best.

Hei Sushi