Review: Nakashima

19 January 2015

Still basking in the wonderful sushi experience at Iwa [いわ] the previous night, I got myself up early and fought the Tokyo commuting public to get myself to Haneda Airport for my flight to Hiroshima. Goodness, do NOT try to fight this crowd with bags…

The flight was short and uneventful as was the nearly hour-long coach ride into city centre; Hiroshima Airport is in the middle of nowhere near many mountains. The layout of the city is rather grid-like so it was easy to find everything.

For dinner this evening I chose the most talked about place in Hiroshima, the 3-Michelin kaiseki restaurant Nakashima [なかしま]. I walked all the way to the north part of the centre since I was a bit early. Having also skipped lunch, I was hungry for this experience.

I sat at the counter as Chef Tetsuo Nakashima and his sous worked the several simple cookers with which he concocted so many of the wonderful dishes tonight. The staff is ridiculously warm and friendly and tried to communicate as best as they can all night despite the limited English, but we did very well — with help of a few books!

I enjoyed a bit of sake, as recommended by them, as the menu was presented; the Japanese version is utterly beautiful caligraphy! I got an English translation, which was nice of them! They emphasise seasonal and regional cuisine specialties, so it ought to be excellent and fresh. And as it was winter, this master of dashi used it to his full advantage.

The first dish to arrive showed that off well, with a very generous ball of crab meat and roe under the radish tarp, alongside a tasty shiitake. Warms the soul this dish. The crab was steamed and the items were placed in the bowl before the dashi is added. Excellent.

Next up, as it is traditional, was the sashimi plate. The hirame (fluke) caught in the nearby Seto Inland Sea was fresh and clean, as was the sawara (Spanish mackerel) from Fukuoka was fantastic. The ika (squid) from Shimane was shaped into a cup and filled with uni formed a great combination, and the akagai (red clam) also from the Seto Inland Sea was delicious and had great texture. The o-toro, finally, was just awesome, melt-in-your-mouth stuff…

I enjoyed a bit more sake as we moved into the third course, one of Chef’s specialties — the lotus root ball. It isn’t as boring as you think, it sits in a very umami-rich base that had thickened into a beautiful viscous soup that you just had to drink. Mmm. Also, the dish that was served in was over 200 years old!

The next dish was a local specialty, anago. This eel was steamed and served plain, just needing a wee bit of wasabi (which he showed us the fresh wasabi roots earlier). Eel lovers would love this, just again melt-in-your-mouth stuff. Much better than the stuff at Nodaiwa [野田岩] the other day.

The next dish was an interesting departure, a cold dashi with local turnip and some karasumi — or bottarga. I love this item; I was denied some at Iwa [いわ] the other night, but finally got some now. This was refreshing, the dashi doing its job cold as well. I love how the grated radish really just makes this come alive. Excellent, and more sake!

Next up was another regional seasonal specialty, the oyster. These oysters were fried and covered in a sauce that I really didn’t like that much. But the oysters were superb, juicy and rich. I savoured every bite here.

Following this was fugu. Now I’m not a fan of fugu at all. These were raw pieces tossed with vinegar in a salad, with some flavourful mushroom shreds. Fish was tough and had no flavour, as fugu always is… But I don’t begrudge them for serving it as many people swear by it.

Next up was something I was drooling over, grilled pieces of wild boar. They had caught the wild boar in the mountains near Hiroshima, so this was proper game, wild and true. The meat tasted excellent, but it was the fatty portions that were just mesmirising…wow…mmm… I was trying to figure out what this boar was eating since I had this dish!

I was enjoying this evening and watching the pair work the dishes. As there were 3 private rooms alongside the counter, they were managing very well despite everyone on different parts of the set menus (and he offers 3 levels, so he needs to keep all that straight!). A little more sake and we move towards the end of the meal.

Next straight out of the steamer was chawanmushi (egg custard), with local radish grated and with some shirako (cod milt), cooked in dashi. This was very nice, the cod milt really added to the totality of this. Perhaps not as good as the uni/shirako rice improv from Iwa [いわ] the previous night, but solid.

The final dish, as always, is about rice. But this version has the rice bathing in that wonderful dashi, topped with both fresh grated wasabi as well as picked wasabi. Mix it all together and this was just excellent, with enough bite to really enjoy the dashi and rice.

I chilled out happy and finished my sake and had a little chat here and there with the staff as my dessert arrived.

The soy milk pudding was tasty as were the large black beans — to signify the New Year.

They also presented me with a “thank you” card with some artwork by Chef’s father, who is an artist. I thanked all of them and Chef took a wee break to pose here.

I headed out very happy, as this was a well-balanced meal. The dashi ruled the night, and brought out the best of winter ingredients from Hiroshima and surrounding areas. Probably the cheapest, 3-Michelin kaiseki meal you’ll have anywhere, very solid, and an amazingly friendly and warm environment!

Nakashima [なかしま]
Higashi-hakushima-cho 10-4, Naka-ku
Hiroshima, Japan