Recipe | Banana Bread

Ingredients 1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup water
2 to 3 ripe bananas

1. Put dry ingredients in medium sized bowl.
2. Mash bananas and mix in wet ingredients.
3. Add (2) to (1) and mix until incorporated.
4. Bake in preheated 350C oven for 40 minutes. For muffins, reduce baking time to about 20-25 minutes.

Quick and easy recipe for fluffy banana bread every time.

井井屋

 in-house made lemon tea

+1 for the grilled chicken - tender with a slightly sweet sauce and fragrant sesame seeds. 

Hokkaido Butter Ramen

Not the biggest fan of ramen, but I wanted to try this new place at Liberty Square. It's a really small restaurant with only a few two-person tables. They serve bentos, noodles (ramen, udon) and rice bowls, which come with Coke and seaweed salad. I also saw someone order some sort of fish burger. The ramen and meat were a bit bland. I liked the soup but it wasn't as buttery and rich as other ramen places. Overall, no 'wow' factor, but I did like the seaweed salad, chicken and tea.

Takura Bune

Takura Bune Roll (mango, pickled ginger, wrapped in salmon)

 Something I order every time~ The spiciness of the ginger really complements the sweetness of the mango.

In the background: Hamachi 3 ways

Thick, rich Hamachi sashimi, maki (with bits of green onion) and grilled hamachi.

From previous occasions: 

Sashimi - fresh, quality, thick-cut

Braised (?) mackerel and daikon in a slightly sweet sauce, topped with green onion and ginger. 

More pictures from previous visits here and here.

Takura Bune is a Japanese restaurant I visit frequently for its fresh, quality fish, unique dishes and comfortable, cozy atmosphere. One of my favourites!

Ichiban Fish House

Combo 1 ($11.99)

Haven't been to this place in a while. The salmon and tuna sashimi was quite fresh and flavorful. I like how they give a bit of each type - sashimi, sushi and California rolls. Sometimes they also give spicy salmon and salmon rolls instead of all California.

Tonkastu bento ($8.99)

Both the tempura and tonkatsu were quite dark in color. The pork coating was crispy but the meat itself was a very thin piece.

I've always thought Japanese food is the healthiest choice when dining out - light, fresh, Omega 3s, low in fat and not oily. I also thought it's relatively low in calories - how much could a few pieces of fish be? After doing some research, here's what I found:

California Roll (6 pieces): 255

Nigri (per piece)
Tuna (Bluefin): 50
Salmon: 56
White Tuna (Albacore): 56

Sashimi (per piece)
Salmon: 52
Tuna: 40
White Tuna: 49

Miso Soup: 40-50
Green Tea Ice Cream: 140
Pumpkin Tempura: 56 (medium size)

So according to the above, my lunch meal was over 1000 calories!! It really adds up (especially since I'm trying to lose weight right now). I wonder how this compares to other lunch combos such as baked rice at Hong Kong style cafes or any noodle/rice dishes... Regardless, I still love sushi and it was a nice meal to have after a difficult midterm.

Verdict: quality of sashimi is good and they have the best rolls! (california, spicy salmon, etc.) Also try their grilled mackerel!

Akina Japanese Cuisine

Steamed Egg  

 I like the enoki mushroom but not the 魚片.

Eel Sushi

 Very tiny portion of sushi with an even smaller piece of eel - so thin I could barely taste it.

Grilled Cuttlefish, Salmon and White Tuna Sashimi, Grilled Saba, Grilled Shrimp Skewers, Grilled Eggplant, Grilled Salmon Belly, Garlic Sirloin Cubes - all pretty good but white tuna sashimi wasn't the best.

Spider Roll (Soft Shell Crab)

The appearance of the rolls were quite neat compared to some ayce places that are sloppy with too much rice. The mango roll (not pictured) was made with avocado and cucumber topped with mango and mango sauce.

Kimchi Beef Hot Pot

 Pretty good! Very flavorful, not spicy.

Creme Brulee (Original), Japanese style (Green Tea)

The original creme brulee was surprisingly good. It was served cold and a good small portion. However, the green tea was bitter and did not taste like green tea. The egg white steamed milk (雙皮奶) was good too. 

I don't go to ayce places that often but my younger cousin wanted to go for her birthday. Visited Akina before and it's one of the better ayce places. Although it doesn't have tobiko (蟹子) salad/sushi and mussels, it offers a large variety of cooked foods, my favorites being the kimchi beef hot pot, garlic beef cubes, grilled saba and enoki beef rolls. The fish and tofu hot pot and fried scallop is good as well. It also has a unique selection of seven desserts in additional to ice cream. The large space is good for big groups but it doesn't feel very cozy.  $19.99 + 10% Mon-Thurs dinner.