Kinsa Sushi - New Purple Rice Series Review [Media Invite]

Kinsa Sushi has a few outlets dotted over the island. Despite the relatively offshoot location of HillV2, the place was crowded when we visited around 2pm on a Sunday. 

Personally, I have a taste for the crunchiness of brown rice/purple rice, so the change didn't really affect much. In fact, it provided an interesting contrast of textures. 

Salmon Mentai Maki ($16.80)

Mentai sauce, torched salmon, cucumber, crabstick, crunchy purple rice and fish roe that pops in the mouth. This is a combination that worked deliciously with a contrast of creamy and crunchy textures. I could wipe the whole row in a go. 

No. of Tiaras: 4.5/5

Black Beauty Kurokarei ($15.80)

This came out visual tops. So pretty that it made me excited just seeing it. Instead of salmon, this has the shisamo fish, with cucumber and topped with a generous heap of tobiko and then laced with mentai-mayonnaise. Similar to the salmon mentai, but for those who prefer having shisamo (and the shisamo roe within). 

No. of Tiaras: 3.5/5

Mosaic Sushi ($38.80)

Contained within this set is 

Mosaic Sushi - these were 8 different toppings from tamago to unagi to fish roe topping squarish mounds of rice. The rice was less flavourful than your usual sushi rice (not enough vinegar?). In addition, the proportion of rice to ingredient was skewed very much towards rice. Our main gripe for the price was that the ingredients topping these sushi seemed underwhelming. 

Lobster salad - the salad had chunky, tangible pieces of lobster which we appreciated. The seasoning to taste could have gone lighter on hand, as we found it a little too salty.

Soba Tempura, Soft Shell Crab, Fried Oyster and Pumpkin Croquette

Soba Tempura - While it is something different, the tempura seemed to be more like a garnish as it was bunched together and quite plain without the sauce. 

Soft-Shell Crab and Fried Oyster - The oyster was juicy within and crispy outside, but just a tad salty. As for the soft shell crab, it wasn't bad -  but it had an oiliness to it.  

Pumpkin Croquette - Sweet, slightly mushy within and crispy outside. This was great. 

Century Egg Beancurd - Not a fan of century egg, so I am biased. The beancurd was silky and refreshing. 

Miyazaki Mochi - Apparently, this is flown in from Miyazaki. The mochi is just the right sweetness and the filling of red bean/yellow bean are spot-on delicious. 

The portion is good enough to share for 2 or 3 (if having other dishes). I would probably pick having the maki rolls over this, if just looking for having sushi.  

No. of Tiaras: 3.3/5

Kagoshima A4 Wagyu Kamameshi ($26.80)

The beef was a good proportion of meat and fattiness and tender in the mouth. Break the onsen egg and mash everything together and it is one umami spoonful. There was a slight smokiness to the rice too.  

Overall, Kinsa offers quality Japanese food at reasonable prices. The purple rice really differentiates the rolls here and adds a healthy, feel-good element when you indulge in Japanese. A return visit warrants the maki rolls (salmon mentai in purple rice please!) and beef kamameshi. Note for those who are keen to try the mosaic sushi: it is available only from 1 November to 31 December as a Christmas special. 

Many thanks to Shannon and Kinsa Sushi for the kind invite.

Kinsa Sushi

4 Hillview Rise, HillV2 #02-02, HillV2, S(669320)

Open weekdays 11.30am - 3pm; 5.30pm-10pm; weekends 11.30am-10pm 

Available at multiple locations island-wide