A Journey of Japanese Flavors at cafe Too
An all-you-can-eat buffet featuring fresh sashimi flown in from Japan, Wagyu sukiyaki, and salmon roe, along with a wide array of Chinese, Western, and Japanese delicacies. For a foodie like me, it's incredibly enticing.
Tonight, I visited cafe TOO at the Island Shangri-La Hotel to indulge in my favorite Japanese flavor journey.
As soon as you step into the restaurant, you are greeted by the sashimi station! This area is particularly rich due to the Japanese theme.
First, there are different fresh whole fish flown in daily. Tonight, we had the chance to taste sea bream and deep-sea fish.
Next, there are freshly sliced bluefin tuna, spicy tuna, monkfish liver, yellowtail, salmon, and sea bream sashimi.
Around the corner, there are Japanese appetizers like Chinese salad, octopus, and various sushi rolls, with the Wagyu sushi being a must-try.
The highlight of this buffet is definitely the unlimited salmon roe! The restaurant thoughtfully provides mini sashimi rice bowls, allowing everyone to create their own indulgent rice bowls.
For hot Japanese dishes, there are cheese tamagoyaki, scallop salad tamagoyaki, bonito tamagoyaki, fried shrimp cakes, karaage chicken, and eel chawanmushi.
Western appetizers include smoked salmon, cold ham, salami, and prosciutto, with three cheese options: St. Maure, Comte AOP, and Camembert.
The chilled seafood section is a major attraction! Tonight, we enjoyed flower crab, clams, sea shrimp, half-shell mussels, bread crab, sea snails, and mantis shrimp.
The bread corner offers a variety of specialty breads, including butter bread, mini French baguettes, Logan bread, Italian herb cheese bread, and garlic French bread, making bread lovers very happy.
The ready-made salads are also of good quality, including crab meat salad, grilled shrimp quinoa salad, squid and mussel salad, yogurt, stuffed grape leaves, hummus, Caesar salad, fresh salad greens, and various dressings.
The buffet offers unlimited fresh steamed lobster, with options of plain steamed or garlic steamed, perfect for lobster lovers.
Moving on, there's a series of hot Chinese dishes, including XO seafood braised e-fu noodles, coconut taro chicken pot, shrimp dumplings, siu mai, curry fish, chestnut sea cucumber pot, and clear soup.
The Western dishes are also abundant and dazzling, starting with roast chicken, grilled beef ribs, grilled vegetables, cream carrot soup, Italian ravioli, grilled lamb rack, roasted cabbage, and pan-seared duck breast.
Next, there are Hong Kong-style roasted meats, including soy sauce chicken, honey-glazed char siu, and roast goose.
Other Chinese dishes include stir-fried kale with three treasures, sake-cooked clams, corn tofu seafood soup, chicken oil huadiao baked sea bass, and typhoon shelter lobster claws.
The Japanese hot dishes will definitely satisfy everyone! Watching the chef slice freshly fried Wagyu katsu, with its tender and enticing color, is mouth-watering.
Next to it are tempura, crab porridge, kelp steamed seafood, and the highly attractive Wagyu sukiyaki.
Finally, the skewer station offers grilled local eel, minced chicken skewers, grilled chicken skewers, chicken kidneys, mackerel, and chicken wings.
With the savory dishes introduced, it's time to satisfy the sweet tooth!
First, there's a colorful fruit platter, followed by six flavors of gelato, including vanilla, milk chocolate, Tieguanyin, roasted tea, Thai milk tea, and rum raisin.
Next, there's a vast array of desserts, ensuring everyone will find their favorite.
These include matcha black sesame cake, black sesame hazelnut cake, Hokkaido cheesecake, yuzu strawberry cake, Baileys tiramisu, oolong tea strawberry roll, mango daifuku, strawberry daifuku, chocolate tart, matcha chiffon cake, roasted tea coffee puff, white chocolate red fruit cake, matcha mochi tart, macarons, chocolate nougat, roasted tea cake, and caramel cookie brownies.
There's also my favorite, the low-key master egg waffles and pancakes! You can eat as much as you want without queuing, which is pure happiness.
One of the highlights of this buffet is the drinks, which are very sincere! They include fruit punch, grapefruit lime & lemon tea, orange juice, and bubble tea, all brewed to be fragrant and delicious.
This Japanese flavor journey buffet can be described as massive! Start with a glass of white wine with friends to open up your appetite.
I've never started a buffet with hot dishes before! The grilled local eel, with its firm and bouncy texture, is absolutely delicious. The sweet and not greasy sauce perfectly complements the eel's fresh flavor.
After being amazed by the eel, I enjoyed the fresh appetizers! The fresh cherry tomatoes are crispy and sweet, especially the grape-like ones, which are tangy and delicious. Paired with the sweet crab meat salad, it's a perfect match.
Next, I had to try my favorite chilled seafood! The bread crab with its rich crab roe is my top choice, and the flower crab, sea shrimp, mantis shrimp, and shellfish are all very fresh, making me very satisfied as a seafood lover.
The sashimi is also very fresh, with the yellowtail being particularly attractive. If you like monkfish liver, don't miss its rich and delicious flavor.
It's time to enjoy the main event, the unlimited salmon roe! The Japanese sashimi station has a large bowl of salmon roe, which can be paired with tuna or salmon mini rice bowls. You can generously add salmon roe to your rice bowl and savor it slowly.
The bright orange salmon roe bursts in your mouth, releasing a sweet and fragrant fish oil, with no fishy taste, making it very enjoyable.
Around seven o'clock, you'll hear the bell ring, signaling the arrival of the hot soup.
This corn, cashew, chestnut, red bean, and water chestnut pork soup is sweet and delicious, perfect for warming your stomach after the appetizers.
At the same time, it's also when the freshly sliced sashimi is served! The fatty bluefin tuna includes akami, chutoro, and otoro, with rich fish oil and a sweet taste, making it very delicious. The sea bream and deep-sea fish are also worth trying.
Now, enjoy half a freshly steamed garlic lobster! The lobster meat is firm and bouncy, with a rich garlic flavor, making it very tasty. Those with a strong appetite should definitely have a few more rounds.
Beef lovers must not miss the Wagyu sukiyaki! The marbled Hida Wagyu is tender and full of rich flavor, paired with the sweet sukiyaki sauce for an authentic Japanese sukiyaki experience.
Lamb lovers should also try the tender lamb rack! My friend praised its high quality and delicious taste.
I highly recommend the roast chicken! The roast chicken is tender and juicy, with a high standard for a buffet. The large shrimp dumplings are also my top recommendation.
Finally, end the savory section with a bowl of smooth crab porridge.
Now it's time for the exciting dessert time! Two large plates of desserts were brought by my friend to share with everyone, with the chocolate nougat and chocolate tart being my top recommendations.
Of course, the low-key master egg waffles are a must-try! The egg waffles are full of egg flavor and very delicious when eaten hot.
The Italian gelato has six flavors, with my favorite being roasted tea. The gelato is smooth and sweet, making it very tasty.
The Japanese flavor journey buffet is priced at $828 per person from Monday to Thursday, and $888 per person from Friday to Sunday, public holidays, and eves. Groups of 12 or more can enjoy a 20% discount, and Shangri-La Circle members can enjoy a 25% discount for adults and half-price for children from Monday to Sunday. Available until May 10.