JPN: Sai Dining (彩ダイニング)

My first taste of the heavenly Kobe beef!

A delicacy prized for its flavour and fatty, well-marbled texture, Kobe beef comes from Japanese Black cattle of the Tajima strain. It's considered one of the top three types of Japanese beef, along with Matsusaka beef and Omi beef. It was at Sai Dining where I had my virgin experience with the meat, which was grilled and flambéed before my eyes.

My BFFs and I ordered the following:

- Dry-Aged Kobe Beef Hamburg Steak (Course B) ¥4,800 (~S$64.10)
   (ドライエイジング神戸牛ハンバーグコースB)
- Japanese Black Sirloin Steak (Course B) ¥7,800 (~S$104.10)

   (黒毛和牛サーロインステーキコースB)
- Kobe Beef Rib-Eye Steak (200 g) Course (デリシャス蟹しゃぶランチ) ¥13,800 (~S$184.20)
   (神戸牛リブロースステーキコース)

The first two are exclusively served for lunch, while the last one is from the all-day dinner menu. Apart from the main courses, all three courses are inclusive of the items featured throughout this post. Pika's advice: Opt for Course A should you wish to skip the appetiser and dessert during lunch, which is ¥1,000 (~S$13.35) cheaper than Course B. Take note, however, that the less complete course isn't available for dinner.

Appetisers (Set Menu)

Taste: 8/10

We started off with two light bites: roasted Kobe beef slices and chilled chawanmushi (Japanese egg custard). The former were tender with a smoky hint, though they didn't fully represent the awesomeness of Kobe beef. The latter was topped with some kind of jellified sauce with a tang of the sea.

Seasonal Potage (Set Menu)

Taste: 8.5/10

Up next was a comforting dish of coarse mushroom potage that was fragrant and earthy. It was topped with a bit of truffle oil, a dollop of caramelised mushrooms and onions and dried herbs. Having said that, I was hoping that it'd be served at a slightly higher temperature to whet my appetite further.

Salad (Set Menu)

Taste: 8/10

Served in a square bowl was a medley of leafy greens, onions and tomatoes. The vegetables were adequately fresh with the onions being pretty sweet. Served at a slightly lower temperature than the ambient temperature, the salad was topped with some crushed almonds for an added crunch.

Seasonal Grilled Vegetables (Set Menu)

Taste: 9.5/10

Just before cooking the meat, the chef prepared some vegetables with truly appealing colours, which I understand came from Awaji Island to the southwest of Kobe. Boy, I was clearly thrown off guard by their superior quality. Each bite on the utterly fresh items was a delight. They were lightly grilled with just a pinch of salt that brought out their natural sweetness further.

Dry-Aged Kobe Beef Hamburg Steak (Set Menu)

Taste: 8/10

Hamburg steak, which is basically a patty of ground beef, is one of the more affordable choice of meat on the menu, second only to round steak. Cut into four pieces, it was juicy and tender enough for my liking, though I must say that it wasn't much more delectable compared to its other beef counterparts.

Japanese Black Sirloin Steak (160 g) (Set Menu)

Taste: 8.5/10

Let's up the game and try the sirloin steak. After being skilfully grilled for a short while, the red meat was flambéed with brandy that left a hint of the liqueur taste on it. Despite not being at the same level as the glorious Kobe beef, the red meat was delectably succulent with just a little bit of resistance with each bite.

Kobe Beef Rib-Eye Steak (200 g) (Set Menu)

Taste: 9.5/10

Here comes the review of the glorious Kobe beef of the highest grade, A5, taken from a cattle fed only with good quality grain and raised with attention to details. What else should I say, apart from the fact that given the very fine marbling, the red meat was literally melting in my mouth? The particularly rich beef went really well with a bit of Andean rock salt and garlic chips.

Beef Fats (Set Menu)

Would you resist those sinful beef fats? I wouldn't for sure, for they were particularly good with rice. The three of us finished the whole thing in no time.

Rice & Bread (Set Menu)

Each course gets you either a bowl of rice or a slice of bread served with melted butter on the side. While there's nothing much to elaborate for the former, the latter was well-baked with an adequately airy and crunchy texture.

Dessert (Set Menu)

Taste: 8/10

For dessert, each of us was treated to a thin slice of cheesecake and a scoop of pear sorbet topped with cornflakes. While the cheesecake was pretty rich, I'd prefer something less dense. On the other hand, the homemade sorbet was truly refreshing, a sweet ending to wash down all the savoury items earlier.

Hot Coffee (Set Menu)

Taste: 8.5/10

Served with the dessert was a choice of hot or iced coffee or tea. I opted for hot coffee, which was served in a dainty mug, and I didn't add any sugar into it. It was a robust drink that was awakeningly aromatic.

Melon's Rating

Taste: 8.5/10

Ambience: 8/10

Service: 9/10

Overall: 8.5/10

Take a look at the two types of meat before cooking.

I recorded the flambéeing process.

Finally, here's a photo of the exterior of the restaurant to help you spot the place. As we left the restaurant, the chef made it a point to go outside and waved goodbye to us. Thank you so much for everything!

Sai Dining

(四海樓)

3-1-9 Shimoyamatedori
B1/F Cosmo Building
Chuo, Kobe
Japan

(Daily: 11.30am - 3.00pm, 5.30pm - 10.30pm)

https://www.saidining.com/

*Prices quoted are subject to 10% VAT.

Have a nice meal,

Cliff(y)