The milk tea was pleasantly rich in green tea flavour without being heavily sweetened. Whereas the honey lemon drink reminded me of a less carbonated version of Sprite with a subtle honey flavour and was quite refreshing with my meal. 

I can't recall the last time I had hashed beef rice (Hayashi rice) so it was the perfect opportunity to re-visit this classic dish which is a popular Western-style dish in Japan. The rich and thick brown sauce, otherwise known as demi-glace sauce was made even more delicious with the mozzarella cheese as it quickly melted away into creamy and cheesy goodness. The sauce was extremely flavoursome with the taste of tomato and cheese laced throughout and the heaping of white rice paired well to absorb the richness.

If I were to choose between hashed beef rice or kare rice there would be no clear winner as they are both wonderful comfort foods. It would largely depend on if I wanted something on the sweeter spectrum in which hashed beef rice would be the optimal choice or something more savoury with a spicy kick which would be kare rice.

One would think that the thinly sliced beef which had a prominent smokey aroma from being freshly grilled and the slightly sweet and sour fermented cabbage would be polar opposites of one another but they worked surprisingly well to create a really satisfying comfort food. The kimchi was milder in flavour than what I am used to but was suitable as otherwise it would have overpowered the beef. 

I dare say that the teriyaki chicken salad was one of the tastiest and most enjoyable salads I've ever had the pleasure to eat. I generally steer clear of salads as from experience the majority of them have turned out to be too tangy or bland for my taste but this was an exception. I would happily order it not just for the sake of devouring something with nutritional value but also because it was actually really delicious. The teriyaki chicken was so moist and juicy to the point I couldn't comprehend how such a feat was achieved and the teriyaki sauce itself was perfectly sweet and savoury. Toss some Japanese onion and garlic dressing over finely shredded cabbage and fresh leafy greens and we had a winning salad combination where no bit of it was left behind. 

The deep fried tofu cube pictured at the top had the crunchiest crumbed batter which I was surprised to encounter since their sides weren't made to order. Being tofu, it was on the plainer end of things but enjoyable nonetheless with my hashed beef rice which was flavour rich. Pictured on the right was the pork loin katsu that was crunchy albeit a little dry inside. The one side you must add to your meal would be the beef croquette which was Yuri's recommendation and it was absolutely delicious. I love the concept of croquettes as one can mix in mashed potato with any sort of minced meat, in this case it was sukiyaki beef and it would possess the softest of textures while being encased in a crispy golden crumbed exterior.

The daifuku had the prettiest pink mochi skin and a light fragrance of sakura (cherry blossom). Eating it was a messy affair as the skin was really stretchy and also sticky which made it difficult to peel off the white cardboard adhered to the bottom. Once that dilemma was out of the way, I was finally able to take a bite out of it. The inside was stuffed with yummy red bean paste and the preserved shiso leaf offset the sweetness with its saltiness although it was a little strange at first. I never used to be a fan of red bean desserts but since being consistently exposed to them, I'm really starting to acquire a taste for it. Too much red bean can become sickening though so I can't eat too much of it.