Value Japanese food with no fuss or muss

NEW RESTAURANT

Koji Sushi Bar

3 Pickering Street #01-42 Nankin Row

Tel: 62256125

Open for lunch and dinner Mon to Sat: 11.30am to 3pm; 5pm to 10pm.

IF you're undecided about whether Sushi Jin is mid-priced or upmarket, Koji Sushi Bar is one place that knows what it is and isn't, and doesn't make any apologies for it.

Right smack in office lunch crowd territory, Koji is primed for the budget-conscious, quick lunch crowd with no fuss or muss. Don't expect nice comfy surroundings - you're packed elbow-to-elbow in tight counter-only seating that's efficiently built around the chefs' station, where bowls upon bowls of the S$17 chirashisushi bowl are rolled out at assembly line pace.

This is Singapore's version of the salary man sushi joint - good pricing, adequate portions, no high expectations. But you do get nice little touches such as cutesy knick knacks placed in little wall niches and gritty cement screed walls - it's budget but yet nicely done. Chalk that up to the owners of Shunjuu Izakaya in Robertson Quay, who also run this place.

The chefs in their "enclosure" are not dressed in starched whites but casual white t-shirts, which makes chef Benny Cheong look more like a young apprentice than the man in charge. You know he is because he's the one who's handling the fish and picking out the best bits for those who actually want to order the more expensive cuts.

It's hard to beat the Teppei-like pricing here with its S$17 sashimi rice bowl filled with a generous assortment of admittedly cheap tuna and salmon bits and a blob of almost greyish minced tuna. But mix them all up with the sprinkle of tempura batter crumbs for crunch and you have a serviceable bowl that you really can't complain about for the price.

Even if you want to get a cheap sushi fix, you can with five-piece sushi sets priced at a ridiculous S$9 for sea bream, swordfish, tuna, prawn and salmon. If you really want to splurge, the most expensive sushi set will cost you all of S$23 - including fatty tuna, scallop and conger eel. At S$25, the wagyu sukiyaki is one of the pricier items, but it's a generous serving with enough marbling in the meat to withstand all that overcooking.

For a more relaxed dinner, a full omakase costs S$100 nett, which gets you the works from sashimi to sushi, teppanyaki and hot pot. We can't vouch for the quality but the omakase sashimi we order for S$85 gets us a whole aji which is sliced and presented with the bone, and a few other sashimi cuts. The aji is more than acceptable for the freshness and quantity, even if the other slices of sashimi are pretty ordinary and few. The bone from the aji is taken away and turned into a comforting fish miso soup which hits the spot.

We also try some of the ala carte sushi, and Chef Cheong surprises with neat clean morsels of shime saba (S$9 for two) topped with a clear slice of konbu, fresh sardine (S$12) and sweet very fresh uni (S$20).

Koji Sushi Bar won't change your mind about getting what you pay for in Japanese food, but with careful pricing and smart menu curation of inexpensive and better ingredients (more cooked than raw), you'll come away with a perception of value that you don't get every day.

Rating: 6.5

WHAT OUR RATINGS MEAN

10: The ultimate dining experience

9-9.5: Sublime

8-8.5: Excellent

7-7.5: Good to very good

6-6.5: Promising

5-5.5: Average