There is a road to healthy eating when dining out.
YOU go to a restaurant, skim over the menu for vegetable entries and avoid the “temptations of the flesh.” A Japanese restaurant simplifies the matter.
Fresh greens and seafood—now that would make god happy when he sees you’ve eaten your day’s good intentions.
The Japanese phrase kagura is the name of a restaurant on A.S. Fortuna.
Eric Yu, Kagura restaurant owner who has a Japanese partner, said that the phrase means “god is happy.” (In addition, Taga, my sister’s Japanese husband, said that in kabuki theater, kagura refers to a small prop, like a house. It is also the name of an autumn dance to thank the gods for a bountiful harvest.)
A non-food detail is the spa within the setup. Korean, Japanese, and Filipino clients have tried Health Land Spa’s services, like the Thai massage, hot and cold taps, and aromatherapy.
It widens your dining options: To eat, then slough off the tempura with a steam bath; enjoy the spa, then have a meal of hot pot tofu; or visit the restaurant on two different days to decide which you like better.
While deciding on what to do, it might please you to know that you will not be forced to sit in the formal Japanese style known as seiza (kneeling) or even in the casual way with men sitting cross-legged, and women sitting on their knees laying both legs to one side.
The minimalist dining room has a platform with open pits and a table at the center. You plant your legs into that pit but first you have to remove your footwear.
Not only does it spare you from turning into a human pretzel, it also doubles as crawling space for toddlers while dad orders food and mom tries to keep the kid quiet, much like what the Japanese couple did next table.
You know a Japanese outfit is good when its own patronize it. The menu rings authentic, including the ubiquitous tempura made with jumbo prawns, yakisoba (ramen noodle with egg), sashimi, gyutan shioyaki (meat on a bed of egg and veggies) and Japanese steak.
The true mark are the familiar names: okonomi-yaki (means cook-as-you-please), an egg-based, doughy pancake filled with cabbage, shrimp and other items; hiya yakko (cold tofu), yu doufu (hot pot tofu), geso karage (deep fried squid that’s tasty but not so photogenic) and kamasu hiraki (pike with sauce).
Among the choices, surprisingly it was miso soup that still simmers in my mind. It had cubed creamy tofu, mushrooms, white fish, squid balls, vegetables and leeks.
Being an excellent and filling bowl was proof of what to expect, as it is said: A cook’s skill is judged by his soup. Besides, I felt that by eating well I had thanked God for my bountiful life.
