A case for kaiseki

Known for its music schools, entertainment, automotive and land development business, KPN Group now expands into food retailing with Kagonoya, a Japanese restaurant offering sukiyaki and shabu shabu hot pots together with traditional multi-course style of eating called kaiseki.

Located on the second floor of Market Place on Soi Thonglor, the restaurant is a joint venture between KPN and leading Japanese restaurant companies Kazokutei and Kinrei. Launched in Osaka in 1990, Kagonoya now has 67 branches across Japan. Bangkok is the first overseas outlet.

While there are already several Japanese restaurants along Thonglor, the newcomer is confident that its exquisite kaiseki and the prime-quality, specially bred Kagonoya beef at budget-friendly prices will act as a magnet in drawing customers. This 220-day grain-fed beef is specially bred in Australia for the restaurant only and it’s praised for its silky marbling, rich flavour and tenderness.

With extensive menu offering some 100 dishes from which to choose, it’s wise to start with the Kagonoya beef sukiyaki set (Bt450). The sukiyaki comes with a cast-iron pan over a portable stove and a variety of fresh vegetables steaming in dark brown broth together with a rice bowl, a miso soup and preserved vegetables. Rice is served in unlimited portions.

The broth is intended for dipping rather than for sipping like Thai sukiyaki, promising to give just a touch of flavour and a delectable taste to the meat. When the soup boils, you submerge the thin yet extra-large slice of Kagonoya beef brought to your table on a separate platter and swish it back and forth until it is almost cooked before dipping a raw egg that is lightly beaten into a serving bowl. Other choices of meat are S-Pure pork (Bt320) and chicken (Bt280).

For shabu shabu, there are four choices of broth available. If you like clear and mild, opt for kombu (kelp). The soba-tsuyu is recommended if you order thinly sliced beef because the brown liquid has a strong and salty taste. The chicken stock is mild yet aromatic while the curry is suitable for all kinds of meats. The shallow aluminium pot can hold two servings of broth: just choose your favourites.

Two kinds of sauces are served. The white sesame sauce is nutty and aromatic while the ponzu soy sauce is a bit sour. Once the meats and vegetables have been eaten, add the steamed rice, udon or ramen in the leftover broth and eat it last.

The restaurant also offers shabu shabu in an all-you-can-eat style within 90 minutes. The pork course for Bt389 offer free flow of pork, fresh vegetables, minced pork and chicken, gyoza nabe, steamed rice, udon and ramen. For Bt449, you get additional Australian beef but opt for the premium course at Bt999 and you’ll be served additional Kagonoya beefs.

The generously portioned multi-course Kaiseki normally also comes with an expensive tag and only at high-end Japanese restaurants or at Ryokan – traditional Japanese inn. At Kagonoya, you can have the Matsu set for Bt530 and you’ll get to feast on Kagonoya beef served in kaminabe paper hotpot over a tabletop stove together with bento or lunchbox set of sushi platter, shrimp tempura, raw salmon and pickled vegetables and egg custard.

Kaminabe hotpot is made of strong washi paper with extremely dense texture that is durable against water and heat. Other kaiseki options include pork hotpot for Bt480 or chicken for Bt430.

Another signature dish here is the Milfille Katsutoji set (Bt320). The typical dashi sauce flavoured with soy sauce and mirin is slowly cooked with caramelised onions before being poured over deep-fried pork cutlets. The dish is then topped with fresh egg and simmered for a while to get the egg custard-like texture that gives it such a fantastic taste.

The restaurant also offers a variety of a la carte dishes and a lunch set for Bt280. The dishes worth trying are the combination platter of sushi, shrimp tempura, tonkatsu (deep-fried pork cutlet) and Karaage (deep-fried chicken).

There are few dessert choices but all are delectable. Among them are green tea ice cream parfait (Bt130), green tea pudding (Bt80) and green tea ice cream (also Bt80).
The second branch is set to open at Mega Bangna shopping complex on Bangna-Trat Road in the middle of the year.

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Kagonoya is at Market Place mall between Thonglor sois 4 and 6. It’s open daily from 11am to 10pm. Call (02) 392 5188-9.