I've been living in Makati for a little more than three years now, and I find that there's still so much that I haven't explored in this place. I would drive or walk by so many interesting-looking places and make a mental note of checking the place out, but the temptation of going tita/tipid mode and staying in, or sticking to my go-to comfort food places gets the better of me often.
One of the places I always drive by is Kenshin Japanese Izakaya Restaurant. It's new, and just a few blocks away from me, but it's been I think almost a year since it opened and I still haven't tried it.
It took my birthday and this random FB ad and my favorite tita person (hi, Ley!) to get me to get off my butt and check the place out. :))
The place is beautifully decorated, and will make you feel like you're in a tiny shop in a tiny Japanese town.
I especially liked the wall paintings and the paper lanterns.
There is also a TV showing what I presumed to be Japanese music.
Their menu offers a wide variety of items, from noodles, to rice bowls, to sushi, to dessert, and yes, they have drinks. Prices are not cheap but also not expensive.
The star of their menu is their Make Your Own Takoyaki (Php288), so we had to try it. Also, sushi is life so we ordered their Sushi Combo Platter (Php298). Ley also ordered Cold Sake (Php98).
The sushi was okay. Tasty enough, but could have used more filling. Ley didn't like that they fell apart easily; but still, 12 pieces, 3 kinds, and under 300. Pwede na.
I wasn't in the mood to drink, but I tried the sake and liked it. It was sweet and mild. It may be too mild for alcohol fans, though.
Anyway, how do you make Takoyaki you ask??
You start with a stove, a grill, and the ingredients: batter, butter, squid, veggies, and toppings..
Put butter on the grill so the batter wont stick..
Pour in the batter and let it cook a bit..
Sprinkle in the ingredients, and let it cook some more..
And then turn and turn and turn, like your life depended on it, to make it round!
When the half of the ball is hard enough, pour in more batter and turn some more..
Until you end up with little spheres of happiness. ^_^
Drizzle with mayo and soy sauce and put on fish flakes.
It's tiring but a lot of fun! And the Takoyaki is actually yummy! The batter is light enough to let the flavor of the squid and veggies come through. The way we cooked it, it was hot and a bit liquidy in the inside, and chewy in the outside, which is how I like it. :)
This is definitely a fun place, and I'm looking forward to trying out their other items. However, the place seems a bit under-manned. They only had three servers attending to more than ten tables, and a booth. We weren't surprised that the servers weren't too friendly. They must have been tired.
We didn't want to bother them so we took these pictures on our own. :))
Kenshin Japanese Izakaya Restaurant is located at GF, The Linear Makati, Yakal cor. Mayapis St., Makati. You can find out more about them at their FB Page: https://mobile.facebook.com/kenshin.ph/
Be happy!
<3 Missy
