A Japanese seafood festival in Manila
Missing Japan? You can enjoy a Japanese culinary feast without leaving Manila at The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)’s first “Seafood Festival” and enjoy the best Japanese seafood at Mitsukoshi’s hottest Japanese restaurants. JETRO is a Japanese government-related organization that works to promote mutual trade and investment between Japan and the rest of the world.
The JETRO Seafood Festival at Mitsukoshi BGC will run until next week, March 15. The festival aims to increase public awareness about Japanese food and beverage products, some of which are available in Mitsukoshi Fresh. JETRO has partnered with three of the best Japanese restaurants in the metro, as well as Mitsukoshi Fresh: Prologue d’Fined by chef Hiroyuki Meno, Bijin Nabe by Tsukada Nojo, and Sen-Ryo from the same restaurant group that brought a popular Japanese sushi chain to Metro Manila (Genki Sushi).
Visitors will have the opportunity to create their own Chirashi Bowl, a traditional Japanese dish featuring a variety of fresh seafood toppings, at Mitsukoshi Fresh daily until March 15. Diners can make this by selecting their base donburi (rice bowl) from options like Salmon Buri (wild Japanese amberjack) Don, Hokkai (North Sea) Don, Salmon Hotate (scallop) Don, Chirashi (literally “scattered” or mixed seafood) Don, and Kaisen Don (seafood rice bowl) then choose three toppings for each bowl. They can choose from a variety of toppings like unagi (eel), salmon, hotate, miyabi dai (sea bream), buri fillet, amaebi or akaebi (sweet shrimp), ikura (salmon roe), hanasaki shigure (crabstick), and tako (octopus) wasabi.
The participating restaurants have prepared special dishes exclusively available during the Seafood Festival, highlighting the freshest and most delicious catch of Japan’s waters. At Prologue d’Fined, diners can choose from the Hokkaido octopus, Kujukushima oysters Ahijo, and Hokkaido scallop risotto.
At Bijin Nabe, a Special Seafood Combo awaits diners, where they can choose between hamachi (Japanese amberjack) or scallops, which comes with premium crabsticks, tofu, shiitake mushrooms, mizuna (Japanese mustard greens), radish, and cabbage.
And at Sen-Ryo, foodies can enjoy snow crab nigiri (literally “two fingers” or sushi to be held by hand), fried Hokkaido cod, and seafood yaki udon (fried noodles).
Each dish from the limited-edition festival menu comes with a complimentary glass of sake or selected non-alcoholic drink to complete your Japanese experience. This promotional offer is only available from Friday to Sunday during the festival period.
Prologue d’Fined executive chef Hiroyuki Meno and his team prepared a five-course dinner that I attended and loved. The menu, crafted in collaboration with the restaurant’s culinary team, showcased premium products imported from regions of Japan like Kagoshima, Hokkaido, Shiba, and Miyagi. Prologue D’Fined’s Alyanna Uy explained the dishes while 2023 Miss Sake Kotoko Yamada explained the sake and wine pairings.
We started with a Hamachi Carpaccio using a yellowtail from Kagoshima. The slices of fresh fish are marinated in white soy sauce with yuzu (Japanese citrus), topped with ikura. This was paired with Nippon Premium Chu-Hi.
This was followed by Hotate and Shirako (cod sperm) Frites, highlighting the famous scallops of Hokkaido served with nori (seaweed) crackers, lotus roots, broccoli, and yuzu kosho (salt-fermented chili with yuzu) paired with Chateau Taisetsunokura Junmai Daiginjo Ginpu 50 from Hokkaido.
The third course had chef Meno harness the flavors of two kinds of clams from Chiba Prefecture, Honbinosu and Hokkigai, which gave a memorable, briny flavor to the risotto he prepared. It was served with shirasu (Japanese whitebait), arugula, enoki mushrooms, and clam juice and served with Kuheiji Eau Du Desir Yamada Nishiki Rice Polish 50% from Nagoya.
The absolutely amazing main course was a Gindara Coulibiac, very reminiscent of a Wellington dish but Russian in origin. This technique uses crisp puff pastry filled with gindara (black cod from Miyagi Prefecture), fish mousse, spinach, housemade Albufera sauce, and mushroom duxelles, which were matched with a glass of Kaze no Etude by Coco Farm & Winery.
Dessert was a Matcha Tiramisu made with green tea from Kagoshima with mascarpone cheese and kuromitsu (Japanese black sugar syrup) topped with crumble and tuile.
This dinner was superb and just a taste of the limitless possibilities when it comes to Japanese culinary craftsmanship. I will try the other restaurants as well and I have a week to do this!
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Visit www.jetro.go.jp/philippines.
Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.
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