Alternative sushi (a.k.a. anything BUT Sushi Tei)

I love Sushi Tei as much as the other guy, but lately I've beginning to notice that the quality is declining. The sushi rolls are starting to get smaller, and... well basically to me quantity directly reflects quality. Hahaha. I don't have to mention having to endure the crazy queue. Plus lately I've been such a loner with my books and modules and I need a place to eat sushi alone without the hogging crowd. Thankfully, I found two "alternative" sushi joint in Kelapa Gading.

Daisho Sushi
Mall Artha Gading, 2nd Floor
(errr... didn't take notes of exact location, it's behind Solaria and in front of A&W)

When I stepped in, the place was empty. While I usually take this as a suspicious sign, I was thankful because I could have my dinner in peace with my books, test module, and my first crappy test result :( . Hahaha. I ordered half portion of Manhattan Roll and a hand-rolled unagi sushi, and a cup of hot green tea (refillable - IDR 6000).


Manhattan Roll (1/2 portion IDR 37,500) - sushi with fillings of shrimp tempura, kyuri, kani, topped with blowtorched salmon, mayo, and tobiko.



Unagi temaki (IDR 18,500)

The temaki was nice, but the Manhattan Roll was AWESOME! A bit pricey, but I think it's a little cheaper than Sushi Tei (without the queue!). I must try their other rolls before they close down for business. It's very dreary in there, I guess Gading-ers but me are not THAT fond of sushi.

Ichiban Sushi
Food Court Mall Kelapa Gading 3

Opening sushi booth in a tween-packed food court is a gamble, and I hope it's paying well for Ichiban. I rarely see their booth marauded by people (compared to the KFC next to them), maybe (again) Gading-ers are not that into sushi (other than the very hyped Sushi Tei). I like to sit alone listening to music in my iPod, observing the surroundings after gym, and eating their sushi is like my portion control system. I once tried their California Roll (standard, forgot the price) and wanted to have them again last Sunday, but to my surprise, they're hawking their freshly made Dragon Ball Roll.


Dragon Ball Roll (IDR 25,000) - sushi roll with fried salmon skin and kyuri filling, with unagi on top.

The rolls were warm, which was great since sometimes they only sell the pre-packaged sushis that have been sitting in their display fridge for God knows how long. To my surprise, the soy sauce drizzled on top is that sweet-savory soy sauce I thought is only available in Sushi Tei. I must ask what brand it is the next time I eat there! PS: Their freshly-grated wasabi is a KILLER!

Y&Y - Pacific Place

Another team dinner time, another mayhem in deciding restaurant.

At first, we wanted to go to FX and try one of the newly opened eateries (anything but that godsmackingly expensive La Tour D'Ebeya), but J and B objected because they would be coming from HQ and wouldn't be able to pass 3-in-1 zone. So, Pacific Place it was. And I developed a headache.

We had been to almost every nice restaurant in PP with food price 100,000 IDR/person for our team dinners. I offered Pancious at first, that got swiftly rejected. Pancake for dinner? PLEASE. *sigh*

So, off we went to Y&Y. We hesitated dining in because we thought it's gonna be freakingly EXPENSIVO since it was the spawn of Y Steak & Grill (which reportedly costs you 1,000,000 IDR/person/dinner. Yes, your eyes weren't deceiving you. You saw the right amount of zeros).


They offered a wide range of menu, from steak, sushi, rice, pasta, etc etc. Most of us were angling for their specialty: WAGYU.

Here's what we had:

Uni's dish came out first, Wagyu Burger Steak (around 90K if not mistaken).

It was just so-so. J commented that he preferred the burger steak from Goemon. It was tender and moist, but where's the wagyu "oomph" in minced meat? Overall, ok lah. It was served with french fries (could have been more crispy), and sauteed vegetable (carrot, green beans, and gobo root a.k.a lotus root).

Y's udon (around 80K) came out smokin' hot and smelled fantastic.

I took a sip and it was the right shoyu taste. Y thought it was just "okay" and nothing special.

Ibu Bos's temaki sushi: soft-shell crab and kani. Didn't know the price though.

I thought she liked it very much because she ordered another two (didn't get picture because she ate it pretty fast after it came), the spicy mayo tuna and roe.

My dish came out next: The Rice Bowl of Yakiniku Wagyu Beef and vegetable (around 88 K if not mistaken).

It was just OK. The beef was tender, but I was rather disappointed because I thought the beef would be cut into cubes instead of sukiyaki style. I wanted to feel the juiciness of wagyu beef cubes. It came out in a hot stone bowl, along with sauteed vegs (the same combination of carrots, green beans, and gobo root). It was just bland so I had to pour some shoyu and some pepper flakes.

At this point, B, J, and Ulu who ordered wagyu steak were getting anxious because their food had not come up yet. Thankfully, Ibu Boss anticipated this and ordered this:

I have no idea what this is and I have no idea how much it costs. I'm guessing a lot because from the two piece I managed to steal, they were GOOD! Sushi Tei was put to shame. The rice was in the right consistency (unlike "lontong"-like Sushi Tei nowadays), the filling was good, fresh, and yummy!!!! I got the crispy soft-shell crab roll and the seemingly-salmon with cream cheese. Definitely better than Sushi Tei. Since ignorance is bliss, so I might change my mind if I knew how much this costs :)

FINALLY after a long wait, the boys' wagyu steak amiyaki style came out.

The whole table grew silent at the sight. What? This was ALL? Just a thin slab of meat (menu says it was grade 5 wagyu though), some weeds, and a measly piece of baguette???? Are you freakin' kidding? For 138K IDR???? The boys laugh uncomfortably, knowing that their tank would still be half-full after this. It was just so-so, said J. "It's just grilled meat. Soft and tender, but I prefer the steak from their next door tenant. Cheaper there too."

Ibu Bos ever the most anticipative, finally ordered pizza (230 K IDR) to share. And my GAWD it was HUUUUUGE.

Picture could do no justice. Plus the battery of my camera was about to go kaput so this pic was rather blur. And I was shaking from the sight of the hugeness. Compare the pizza with the table. And with the people around the table. HUUUUUGE. Toppings from left to right: minced wagyu meat (didn't get a piece of this. pissed off!!!); tomato and basil pesto (yummy and cheesy and basil-y); and mixed mushroom (shiitake, enoki, and some other mush-mush). We all agree that after the sushi, the pizza rocks big time!

Me and J were conspiring to order chocolate valrhona cake for dessert, but Ibu Bos beat us to it by ordering waffle!

It was just OK, the ice cream was yummy and buttery (definitely not Campina), but I prefer the waffle at Pancious.

All in all, it was an OK place to splurge. There's no food I'll miss except maybe sushi and that HUUUGE pizza. And btw, wagyu is so freakin overrated!

Y&Y Grill, Steak, Pasta and Sushi
Pacific Place, 4th floor
Jl. Jend. Sudirman kav. 52-53
South Jakarta
021-57973137