This stylish new izakaya in Bengaluru is meting out sake cocktails and Japanese small plates

It is a wet Bengaluru night after I park my automotive and stroll into Katana. The vibe is stylish and welcoming. The dimly lit restaurant has charcoal partitions, and the main target is the open kitchen that lies within the coronary heart of it. The artwork on the wall is screaming Japanese cool. The 45-seater is compact however feels cosy. Katana is the most recent enterprise by Chennai-based restaurateur Sandesh Reddy (Sandy’s, Oji Ramen, and Tokyo Diner) and cookbook creator Prasanna Pandarinathan. This distinctive collaboration was born out of a love for the informal Japanese izakaya model eating.

This marks Sandesh’s first foray into the town. “I’ve all the time been intrigued by the Bengaluru eating scene. We didn’t need to simply transplant our current codecs into the town. We genuinely needed to offer Bengaluru an trustworthy shot with creating one thing that was new but enjoyable. I really like Japanese meals and this appeared like a fantastic area to create a sake-led eating expertise which can’t be potential in Chennai given the rules,” says Sandesh.

For the sake of it

Sake is Japan’s staple beverage. Made with fermented rice it has a lightweight candy end. At Katana, traditional cocktails get a Japanese twist. The saketini is made with sake and shiso syrup. Shiso is a Japanese perilla leaf; this herby flavour with the crisp sake is a winner. It comes with customary skewered olives. The Zen backyard smash has cucumber, apples, ginger, honey and sake. This one is refreshing and fruity. You also can have neat sake, from manufacturers corresponding to Gekkeikan Daiginjo and Sawanotsuru. The cocktails are priced steeply (between ₹800 to ₹1,200) however if you’re a fan of sake creations it’s value it.

The two-page meals menu is brief and candy and the main target is on the components. We begin with a crab stick salad, that has a sesame-forward dressing. It is recent and creamy. The crunchy hand rolls are single serve sushi rolls. We attempt the unagi (Japanese eel) roll. Unlike a ordinary roll, the skin nori sheet is deep fried. Not solely does this add a crisp layer, however it additionally means the hand held roll doesn’t collapse after I chew into it. The eel is recent and marinated in umami flavours.

What is tiger’s milk, anyway?

It is the small plates, each cold and warm, the place the crew’s creativity actually shines. Corn custard on Japanese crackers is a singular creation. A creamy corn paste served on prime of a crunchy cracker — a textural delight. The hamachi crudo, thinly sliced uncooked younger yellowtail fish, is served with a miso emulsion. The fish is recent, and the miso sauce has deep flavours. The beet cured salmon (or watermelon for the vegetarians) with tiger’s milk emulsion is a visible delight. The emulsion is a sauce made from buttermilk and a brilliant inexperienced herby oil. The sauce is nutty and bitter, and the buttery salmon is a nice distinction.

Mains supply noodles and rice bowls. I attempt a sushi bowl with rice, avocado and salmon. Tasty, however nothing very distinctive. The dessert isn’t on the menu but, however we’re introduced with a matcha tiramisu. Somewhat too candy for me, however on pattern for the present matcha craze.

With years of expertise behind him Sandesh beings a finesse and magnificence to the restaurant. It is the cool vibe of the place that may make me return.

₹4,000 for 2. At Indiranagar. Open for dinner solely, 6 PM onwards. For extra particulars name 080 48521098