For its artistically delicate presentation and sumptuously genuine mouthfeel, sushi has never gone out of worldwide culinary fashion. And as new sushi eateries are opening in Bangkok with people still queueing for the next available seats, the city has yet to take the art and science of sushi for granted.
The translucent lobster sashimi reveals a bracing texture and naturally flavoursome taste.
Having opened two years ago, Sushi Den is a Japanese restaurant launched by a team of young enterprenuers. Thanks to its success, the restaurant has over the years expanded to four outlets at Siam Paragon, Central Lardprao, Terminal 21 and CentralWorld, the latest location that launched in October.
The Sushi Den at CentralWorld, which we recently visited, occupies a sizeable space on the seventh floor's commodious restaurant zone. Decked out to present an inviting blend of simplicity and modernity, the 90 seater is a place where sushi connoisseurs can partake in a wide selection of premium dishes that come with affordable price tags.
All seafood is imported, mostly from Japan, except the Norwegian salmon and Maine lobster, which are among the restaurant's bestsellers.
We sampled the lobster sashimi (1,699 per lobster), which arrived almost tinglingly alive on a bed of crushed ice. In bite-sized morsels, the super-fresh lobster exhibited translucent pink meat that revealed to our taste buds its bracing supple texture and naturally sweet flavour.
The leftover part of the gigantic crustacean (the head and tail) were perfecly cooked and served in a miso soup and proved delectably soothing.
Equally remarkable was hotate sashimi (560 baht per scallop). Delicate slices of fresh Hokkaido giant scallops were sweet and tender without any fishy trace.
From a mind-numbing list of maki sushi (sushi rolls), nigiri sushi (bite-sized lump of sushi rice with topping) and gunkanmaki (sushi wrapped with nori seaweed), a parade of tasty delicacies was brought to our party of four with no disappointment.
Worth having are maru-aji, or Japanese jack mackerel (100 baht per piece), hamachi, or yellowtail (110 baht per two pieces) and hotate (140 baht per two pieces), Kobe beef sushi (235 baht per piece) and foie gras sushi (160 baht per piece). However, the most impressive during our lunch was engawa aburi, or flash-flamed fluke's fin (94 baht per piece).
This to-die-for delicacy featuring white meat from the fish's fin boasted velvety melt-in-the-mouth texture and delicate buttery taste _ almost comparable to that of foie gras _ with a pleasant burnt touch.
Also ideal for diners looking for the luxurious sushi at bargain prices is the selection of gunkanmaki, which until the end of the year is offered at half price.
Highly recommended choices include engawa kura uni, featuring sushi topped with fluke's fin, salmon roe and sea urchin roe (300 baht _ before discount); otoro ikura, or fatty tuna belly and salmon roe (300 baht); ika tuna, or fresh squid and tuna (94 baht); hotate-hokkigai-tsubugai, or scallop, surf clam and whelk (160 baht); and Kobe beef-foie gras, featuring slightly-grilled, top-grade Wagyu beef graced with soft and silky cubes of goose liver (320 baht).
The 50% discount is also applied to a variety of Sushi Den's signature creations. Of those I found the utmost palate pleasure from salmon kampyo (74 baht), which presented partially cooked salmon scrumptiously complemented by mayonnaise, with a sweet-and-sour taste and the crunch of pickled gourd.
For those not very keen on seafood, the restaurant also has an impressive collection of yakitori (chargrilled meat on skewer) on offer. We tried quite a few of them and were truly satisfied.
The restaurant is packed at lunchtime. Service was pleasant.
