Kinme Sashimi & Grill Bar at Bukit Damansara

This sparkling specialist in raw seafood and grilled meat recently debuted at a relatively inconspicuous section of Plaza Damansara, but strong word-of-mouth should swiftly seduce swarms of sashimi-worshipers.

Top Dish

Our top tip here: Chef Voon’s Nigiri Special, an ever-evolving selection of showstopping sushi.

Tuna Belly, Scallops and Sea Urchin

Patrons might receive the luscious likes of tuna belly anointed with fermented mushroom puree, or perhaps a king’s ransom of scallops crowned with sea urchin.

Signature Snapper

Or maybe Kinme’s signature golden-eye snapper complemented by citrus onion jam, or shrimp coated with mentaiko or red snapper with seaweed paste. The list is inventive and illustriously long.

Each piece clocks in north of RM10, with what seems like a minimum order of six. Chef Voon (formerly of Hilton’s Iketeru) creates a tour de force of sushi; the fish and rice would be fulfilling on their own, but the toppings prove masterful matches. Greater than the sum of its parts.

Bara Chirashi

But what prevents Kinme from soaring to the heights of, say, Sushi Hinata (our top 2013 Japanese discovery so far) might be a couple of mediocrities on the menu. The mini bara chirashi is nicely priced at RM23 nett, but its nuances teeter toward blandness.

Grilled Dishes

Thankfully though, the grilled fare here is great; we’ll save the skewered chicken parts for a future blog entry, but the juicy-hot whole quail (RM6) deserves an immediate showcase.

Quail eggs? Count us in. Kinme focuses on its specialties, so the menu’s kept suitably small, with no trace of tempura, teppanyaki and other distractions.