Wasabi Tei

Ok ok so this is for the Matsuo supporters, - I say Wasabi Tei is better. Seriously, I believe that it's a conspiracy amongst all the floggers -how can Matsuo be better than Wasabi Tei???? It's so good that Jane and I , who are chronic late wakers (and don't do anything before 12noon if we can help it), hate queueing (I really can't stand queueing for anything such a waste of my time and my life), hate dirty looking places, hate bad service and generally all the qualities that dining at Wasabi Tei possesses, would make an effort to wake up (relatively) early on a holiday, brave the horrible downpour and go to Far East Plaza (we don't even like going there) to eat Japanese food.
Complimentary Starter - it's some vegetable thing with chicken (Wasabi Tei does not serve pork) and dried tofu, which is served piping hot. It's slightly salty and sweetish, and a great way to start the meal since the chef is a one-man-(slow)-show and is a Nazi and the food takes quite a while to come.
Chawanmushi ($5) - The first time I came, I didn't order this since it was a whopping $5 - but nearly everyone around us ordered it! This time, since I made such a great effort trudging down, I made sure I tried it. It's the most ingredients I've seen stuffed into a chawanmushi ever!
Apart from the prawn hanging out of the chawanmushi cup, there's lots of fresh mushrooms. The egg itself is freshly steamed - it's only poured into the cups once your order it, and subsequently steamed. The egg is extremely wobbly and smooth.
This is what's at the bottom of the cup - some jelly-like thing (Konnyaku perhaps?), half a prawn, crab meat (I think it's the surimi fish crabmeat).And for the first timers here, I strongly recommend that you try the Chiraishi Don ($20). The ingredients are dependent on what's in stock, and today we got a really fat scallop. It was extremely fresh, juicier, larger and more glistening that Matsuo's. The salmon sashimi is so much thicker, fresher and fattier than Matsuo's. Matsuo's quality is just slightly above Sushi Tei. Wasabi Tei's quality is on par with Akashi.
This is the thickness of the salmon sashimi, it's the thickest that I've seen out of Japan.
Tuna and Mekajiki (sword fish) sashimi - thick, fresh and delicious.
This was from the previous time I went to Wasabi Tei - we had 4 pieces of salmon, 3 pieces of mekajiki, 2 pieces of hamachi, 2 pieces of tamago and an extremely fresh uni. All for $20. How can you beat this value???? This picture's courtesy of Julie cos I didn't bring my camera. Watermelon, which comes with the lunch set (along with miso soup).
The previous time I was here, my friends ordered the Salmon Teriyaki Set ($15 with miso soup, rice and watermelon). It was burnt on the outside, but for $15, it was a huge huge slab of salmon, and it was extremely fresh and juicy. Unlike those aneroxic dry salmon pieces you find at other places, this one was meaty and full of flavour. In fact, my friends were at first very unhappy with their dismal charred salmon, but once they started eating it they changed their minds.
My Califonia Maki ($6)from the previous visit too, I over ordered (had the chiraishi set as well as this). Though it won't rival Tatsuya's incredible Califonia Maki, it's still pretty good despite being a bit messy.
This is the Nazi chef himself - he looked real virulent the last time I visited, but then again, if he was, they wouldn't get an A for cleanliness? This was taken from outside the door, where I was queueing for really long. He cooks everything himself, and only makes if when you order. He's pretty scary (when he converses with his female helper) and he doesn't talk directly to the customers. Only the lady does the talking, and she looks very grimm. If you ever come here, do bring good and cheerful company!

Be prepared to wait quite a while for your food.A for cleanliness.
Wasabi Tei has these really particular set of rules - you have to order everything at ONE time, or they'll charge an excess of 20% for the second time you order (dunno about the 3rd and 4th times - do they increase it to 30 and 40% respectively? Or do they just do a First Thai?)

The restaurant is like a hole in the wall and only has 12 seats, hence all the rules. If you don't make it to the first seating, the second seating takes real long since you'll have to wait for the people before to finish eating. Since they have a mere 12 seats, at least one dish must be ordered per seat, and if your whole group of friends haven't arrived, you're not allowed to sit. They charge $2 for any drink (green tea, mineral water, canned drinks etc) but there's no additional GST or service charges.

This is the second time I've been to Wasabi Tei, and I'm extremely happy to say that the freshness, quality and the volume of fish is as good as my previous visit. It's definitely not a place to bring your client or a anyone short of your good friend, since they're really particular about their rules. But you won't be dissappointed with the marvellous sashimi.

Do note that they only accept cash payment.

Wasabi tei

14 Scotts Road

#05-70 Far East Plaza
Tel: 62388216 ( Like Julie, I really don't suggest you call them - they look angry enough to bite off your head)

Opening Hours:

Mon-Fri: 12noon - 3pm, 5.30pm - 9.30pm

Sat: 12noon - 9.30pm
Closed on Sundays and Public Holidays