Mikawa

I have been staying in Bandung, a city I call home, for a while and I really missed my favourite Japanese eateries in Sydney. There are plenty of Japanese fusion restaurants sprouting in  the city but it’s really hard to find the authentic ones since there are not many Japanese communities  like in Sydney, but finally I found one!

Mikawa, an authentic Japanese restaurant tucked away in a corner of Jl Sukaraja 2, a few minutes away from Pasteur Toll-gate towards Gunung Batu area, but don’t expect an easy route as you will struggle with the traffic especially in the afternoon when people going off  work.

This restaurant is managed by a Japanese owner chef, and as I walked in through the noren I saw  one middle-aged man behind the counter, I assumed he is the one. The clientele is mostly Japanese people, they are murmuring softly in Japanese, so you can tell.

(Edamame)

We started with edamame and horenshouhitashi or spinach with soy sauce and katsuoboshi.

(Hourenshohitashi)

We ordered some ‘healthy choices’ like Kantekiyaki, Sake shioyaki (grilled salmon) and Saba shioyaki (lightly salted mackerel), yasai itame or stir fried mixed vegetables and agedashi tofu.

(Kanteki-yaki)

(kanteki)

The beef and the kanteki served separately, it’s a do-it-yourself kinda thing, thin strips of raw beef (tenderloin I guess?) on a big plate and then we cooked on the charcoal grill, we barely need to chew the meat. A little story about Kanteki, in Kansai region, kanteki means a ceramic cooking stove using charcoal, a kind of compact stove you would find in old houses.

(Yasai itame)

(Saba shioyaki)

(Sake shioyaki)

(Tori karaage)

Our main dishes received thumbs up from all of us especially the tori karaage, the crisp shell of batter and luscious juicy chicken within. Also ordered a Seiro meishi, steamed rice garnished with shredded salmon and served in a small wooden box

(Seiro meshi)

(Agedashi tofu)

(Cold ocha)

The price is above average but it's worth a shot for a Japanese food lover like myself...