Meii Sushi – A Hole in the Wall with Dynamite Sushi

PUBLISHED January 14th, 2012 12:35 pm | UPDATED February 28th, 2021 06:51 am

The range of Japanese restaurants in Singapore is enormous. Though for the most past it seems to be a choice of either the standard chains……or you blow your weekly budget on one of the top end hotel places (which frankly have never massively impressed me anyway – you pay for super service and the experience really)… My mission, to find authentic and affordable, yet tasty sakana (fish). One place on my hit-list is a little restaurant I went to a while back called Meii Sushi. Located on Craig Rd in the CBD, you could easily walk past and never even notice this little gem on Tanjong Pagar Plaza HDB building.

The place itself is tiny. The sushi bar only seats 6, and the tables  can accommodate no more than 12 diners. The Chef husband makes the sushi, and his wife takes care of the service. A literal mom-and-pop shop.

Two things I noticed upon entering – 1. Half the business lunchers were Japanese themselves (good sign), and 2. Hot green tea was served as soon as we sat down – something that is done in 99.9% of eateries in Japan but hardly anywhere in Singapore. Good start.

So, being the name of the place is Meii SUSHI, we figured to order, yes – you guessed it..some sushi. Actually, Ms Demeanour and myself ordered a Sushi set ($25), Sashimi set ($25), and some edamame ($5) and agedashi tofu ($8) as extra…Gotta have some tofu!

First to arrive were the set’s salads… Very typical and simple, a savoury sesame dressing drizzled over some shredded cabbage, onion tomato etc. A tasty start.

Next up came our edamame and agedashi tofu (see image above). Now when it comes to edamame, it’s all about simplicity – it should be warm and tossed with a little sea salt. The Agedashi tofu on the other hand is not so simple, however I am pleased to say that this was yum! Massive piece of deep-fried tofu covered in a well-made dashi stock with a chopped spring onion, wakame and bonito flakes to add flavour. Good stuff.

Now here arrived the main event which so eagerly anticipated with both myself and Ms Demeanour – the sushi-holics we are…

You know sometimes when you have really excellent sushi and you hardly need to chew…it just squishes in your mouth with the soy sauce and wasabi tingling your tongue? Well that’s how their fish is. For the sushi set, these thick pieces of freshness were laid upload well-formed and delicious rice.

As far as the sashimi goes, a bowl came with 10 good sized pieces composed of salmon, tuna, scallop, octopus, seabass and seabream. Old favourites – the salmon and tuna were unsurprisingly excellent. But what really knocked me for six was the seabass, something that I never usually give much thought. Pure, soft, fresh and great taste – It was actually my favourite of the lunch! Aside from the sashimi itself, the set also came with a healthy bowl of warm rice coated with furikake (love that word!) a hot, flavourful miso soup, and course a slice of watermelon for a light, sweet finish to the meal.

All in all, I was pretty impressed. For under $30 it’s possible to get a nutritious and tasty sushi lunch – All fish imported from Japan by the way! It’s by no means luxury or fine dining and the menu is pretty limited – apart from the sushi, they have unagi (as memory serves – is also quite good), tempura and teriyaki, but the sushi is the main reason to come here. For a mid-priced sushi-lunch, Meii Sushi will definitely hit the spot.