Nuanced flavours of Ginza

Minimalistic and monochromatic. The deceptively simplistic interior of Ginza is reflected in its dishes - the steamed gyoza, sushi, teriyaki, tofu and more. The food is understated in appearance, but packed with flavour, each succulent mouthful enticing the diner to reach out for more.
Ginza’s cuisine is described as fusion. Basically it is a Japanese restaurant, but the cuisine is subtly adjusted to appeal to the demanding Bengali palate. And appeal it does. Importantly, it retains the clear precision of Japanese cuisine - the delicate flavour of fish, the green crispness of vegetables, the dense umami taste of the beef and chicken savoury dishes, the fragrance of the rice and the precisely defined essence and aroma of every item. At the same time, a dash of chilli here and a touch of spice there adds a pizzazz that’s sets Ginza apart. The generous dollops of wasabi, of course, don’t allow for any chance of blandness, leaving the diners sweating and hankering for more.

The starters on the menu certainly set the taste buds working overtime. The essentially Japanese gyoza, either beef or chicken, is steamed to perfection. Juicy on the inside and silky smooth on the outside, these dumplings, dipped in the array of sauces, are appetisers par excellence. And also highly recommended are the tuna caviar maki roll and the shrimp shu mai.

“The midori steamed fish is unarguably the best item on the menu,” says a discerning diner, on his first visit to the restaurant. Others at the table are in consensus. The fish is succulent and its flavours are subtle, surely beckoning diners back for more.
The other recommended seafood items on the menu are Tokyo fish chilli, sautéed calamari and the green garlic shrimp.
The chicken nanban, tender fried chicken topped with a creamy sauce, comes as a delightful surprise. The sauce may seem heavy and overpowering, but the crisply fried chicken balances that out perfectly.
And who doesn’t love beef? Abu Sayem Shahin, one of the owners of Ginza, is enthusiastic when it comes to the Ginza dry beef. This is a ‘must-eat’ he insists.
He also points to the Nagasaki rice as another top-of-the-shop item. The diners debated on that a bit, some finding the spicy rice delicious and others not so. Of course, there is the Ginza special seafood fried rice, the egg fried rice and just plain steamed rice to choose from as well as Japanese-styled noodles.

“Perhaps a soup would add to the perfection?” suggests one of the diners. The clear Japanese miso soup could be a possible addition to the menu, but any soup beyond that may be detracting from the essentially Japanese fare. The fusion, after all, is in the flavours, rather than the cuisine itself.
The nuanced flavours, so pleasing to the discerning palate, have all the makings of fine dining. Ginza may not be cheap, but it certainly won’t burn a hole in your wallet.

Located in Dhaka’s popular food street, Banani Road 11, Ginza is fast becoming a favourite of the food connoisseurs who want something a little different, a bit above the norm.
If anyone one uninitiated in Japanese fare has a preconceived aversion to the cuisine, imagining it to be all too raw, too fishy and unpleasant, they are in for a pleasant surprise. After a meal at Ginza, they’ll have only one thing to say to such misplaced perceptions about Japanese food - Sayonara! But it’s not sayonara to Ginza - another serving of midori fish anyone? Or perhaps chicken katsu this time?