Working near an Asian supermarket I’ve developed a bit of a miso soup addiction. I’m quite partial to a bit of raw fish as well but then getting hooked on Japanese food is usually a pretty healthy obsession to have I’d say. As luck would have it there’s a new sushi and sashimi menu on offer at Sapporo Teppanyaki on Liverpool road in Castlefield, so I headed down to go feed the addiction.
For the uninitiated, Sapporo offer more than just dinner, there’s a bit of a show too. The restaurant is organised into noodle bar style counters surrounding iron grill cooking stations, or teppan. It’s probably not the choice for an intimate date, but if nifty knife skills and catching food in your mouth are up your street then it’s a lot of fun.
Before any flames were thrown though it was time for a couple of Kirin and some seafood. I brought my brother along to sample the fare as we went to a family wedding in Japan last year that included, for us, a trip to Tokyo fish market, a sort of sushi pilgrimage, no pressure then. We shared the Chef’s selection sashimi of tuna, salmon and sea bass which was really fresh and delicious. Then we chose the mixed sushi roll platter of crunchy salmon and prawn uramaki, spider roll of soft shell crab, rainbow roll with shrimp, and salmon crunchy roll which packed raw and smoked salmon rolled with nori and was topped with tempura. The soft shell crab is new to the menu and was really tasty. I probably shouldn’t say it but tempura topping on sushi reminds me of scraps from the chippy, hailing from Yorkshire though I mean that as a complement of course.
If you haven’t seen those teppanyaki chefs in action I’d book yourself a table. Just make sure you order a couple of drinks as well to steady your nerves.
On to the mains then and our choice of meats to accompany stir fried veg and egg fried rice. After some deliberation we went for duck and, something that’s a bit of a bucket list food for me, Wagyu beef. First up the duck was really nice, it came in a teriyaki sauce but perhaps could’ve been a bit pinker for my tastes. Then that 8oz Wagyu rib eye steak. I’m surprised I can remember anything else I ate, it was magnificent. So meltingly tender from all that marbled fat and cooked just so on the teppanyaki grill, it really was something to savour and experience.
For dessert we opted for chocolate spring roll. A child on the table opposite tried to persuade his father to order about 6 portions of them, he’d obviously been before as they were a treat for a sweet tooth. Slightly more grown up, but no less indulgent, was the Japanese yuzu fruit cheesecake, tart but creamy and a nice accompaniment to the sparkling ginza, a house cocktail of gin, apple schnapps, elderflower cordial and soda.
All in all a top night in a fun setting with some great food, and that wagyu beef will be with for a long time. If you haven’t seen those teppanyaki chefs in action I’d book yourself a table. Just make sure you order a couple of drinks as well to steady your nerves.
