Ginza Sushimasa at Le Meridien: Restaurant Review

KL’s Japanese dining scene is seeing the emergence of diverse new restaurants that are housed in hotels but are independently owned, separately operated & often discreetly hidden – we’ve found Makishima at Sheraton Imperial, then Kurata at Parkroyal, & now, Ginza Sushimasa, tucked on Le Meridien’s seventh floor.

Impressive Omakase Experience

Ginza Sushimasa’s forte might be its omakase experience, one of the city’s most impressive, with course after course of sushi & other mainly seafood delicacies tackled with the ultimate expertise by chefs Murakami & Tanaka. It’s a major splurge though – each omakase dinner costs about RM800 per person. For cost-saving, two customers could share one dinner & split the bill.

Selection Constantly Evolves

Sit at the counter, watch the chefs at work & enjoy a ninety-minute exploration of what’s best in season – the selection constantly evolves, so there’ll consistently be surprises in store.

Our favourites from this session included seared Kobe beef adorned with sea urchin, cod milt tempura (an awesome preparation that adds a lightly crisp dimension to the shirako), fugu fish terrine & gorgeously juicy-briny Japanese abalone.

Top-Flight Ingredients

The sushi is excellent too; prime stuff – these can be ordered a la carte for customers who need to skip the omakase. Top-flight ingredients prevail throughout, from the choice of rice to wasabi to the salt.

Savouries conclude spectacularly, with a bowl comprising a bit of rice crowned with a whole lot of uni. An absolute knock-out that the green tea ice cream dessert can’t compete with – though it is clear from start to finish that this meal is a winner.