First reaction you must have is, VEGETARIAN?!
My mum's family are mostly vegetarians due to religion,
which means almost every rare time we eat out (usually Mother's/Father's Day),
we go to the same boring place at Chinatown for vegetarian food. :x
I tolerate and suppress my carnivorous ways for my mum and grandma's sake.
So this year, Mother's Day, someone had the idea to try this new place.
I admit, in my mind I was cursing and swearing, because the last time we tried a new (vege) place,
it was sooooooo freaking horrible.
But this.
This is a (vegetarian) miracle.
I got eggcited when I saw the layout of the place.
And even more excited when I saw the menu.
Vegetarian Japanese Cuisine!
I admit I didnt think so much about how it would actually taste like,
which by right I should have been. hahahah.
I saw sushi and soba and just about went bonkers.
*the names may not be actual names, I forgot already :x
Genmai-cha.
They charge a pot of tea at per pax rate, cause we were a big group.
Long table is long.
Deep Fried Tomato Rolls
Tastes like popiah wrapped with spaghetti sauce and fried, tempura style. yums !
Agedashi Fried Tofu
Smooth tofu tempera tofu. love of my life.
I like that it was served hot, with the skin still slightly crispy
You know how the sauce sometimes tends to make the outside too soggy?
Yeah, nope didnt happen :D
Sliced King Mushroom with Teriyaki Sauce.
The sauce was a little too salty but the mushrooms were chewy.
Cold Tofu with Seaweed Sauce.
I think I love tofu.
Usually cold tofu is served with light shoyu, but this version is not bad either!
Not too salty - like seaweed soup/puree.
Tempura Shiitake Mushrooms with Cheese
They resemble burgers without buns, dont they? :D
Shiitake Mushrooms were tempura-ed and slapped with cheese on top, with a drizzle of teriyaki.
Awesome when hot, but not so when cold.
Unagi Maki
THIS IS THE HIGHLIGHT.
So damn delicious, we ordered 2 more rounds.
Dont know what sorcery they used, but the unagi is even nicer than the real unagi !
The texture is exactly like real unagi too, but no fishy taste which may sometimes be present.
I'd go back just for this, i swear.
Cold Tsukemen
Dipping noodles!
Have wanted to try this dish for quite some time.
The cold, thin noodles are dipped into a light tempura/shoyu sauce and you noms it happily.
Very refreshing, i like!
What's cute about the dish is that it was served with ice underneath.
Bento Set
If you're looking for value for money, this is it.
Miso soup + rice + mains + dessert.
There are different options for the combinations but that's generally the structure.
Eh but skip the tonkatsu, it was quite dry.
Green Tea Panna Cotta
Flavour was matcha-awesome, but got slightly sick of it after awhile.
The texture was one of the factors; a little too creamy, not firm enough.
My dad is obviously very happy with the food.
My parents actually used to run a vegetarian stall,
so he was quite impressed with the chef's creativity.
with the irritating jx.
Overall, I feel that despite it being a vegetarian restaurant,
TENG transcends the traditional ideas of the dishes served by daringly coming up with Jap food.
Not only are they creative, the dishes actually really yummy.
You'd forget that it's vegetarian.
Of course, it helps that there's cheese and milk involved in some of their foods.
Oh, and that means its unsuitable for some types of vegetarians, so please take note :D
Price-wise, some dishes are worth it, while the others not so.
I'd be willing to pay because of the quality, and creativity behind it.
If I were to choose, I'd order the Unagi Maki, Cold Tsukemen and Cold Tofu. (:
But right now, gimme the bacon please !
