In the heart of Water's Edge, Kobe is a restaurant that's dedicated to serving some of the best authentic Japanese cuisines in the city. Water's Edge used to have Ginza as their main Jap resto, but, things are a changing and we're very very happy that they are.
The Ambience
The ambience at Kobe is positively stunning. I mean, look at that! With dimmed out lighting, plenty of cushioned wooden furniture and potted plants (fake and not fake) at every table, the ambience at Kobe was the first layer to a rather brilliant experience. It's perfect for when you're looking for a really nice, fancy night out, particularly if the party you're going with is small. That being said, they do have a separated section at one end of the restaurant that's fit for a rather large party to dine in a more traditional way – on the floor. There's enough seating in the restaurant to seat more than 90 guests at once.
The Food
The menu at Kobe isn't enormous but, it's not that they don't have options -because they do. From a range of Sashimi to Maki to Mains to meats, they've got a small booklet featuring your favourites.
We started with the Tekka Maki (Rs. 1070). 8 well-made sushi rolls with generous bits of raw tuna on the inside, it was brilliant! A tightly wrapped roll of sticky rice, beautifully fresh tuna with a side of sweet, spicy pickled ginger and wasabi, the Tekka Maki was worth every penny of the Rs. 1070 we spent on it.
Plus, if you get up and go to the entrance, there's the sushi bar where you can see the chefs preparing your sushi. Pretty cool!
The Tonkotsu Ramen (Rs. 1840) came as a deliciously warm bowl of broth, noodle, pork, sausage, egg and lots of seaweed. If you're one of those people who need a heap of flavour in what you eat like we're used to, we suggest getting something else. But if you prefer the authentic Japanese kind, this is great.
The noodles were slightly firm in the middle, the pork was a tad hard but cooked through beautifully. Plus, combined with the super light broth, it went really well. The portion size is rather big, so it's bound to fill you up before you even think of leaving it aside, but, given how light the broth was, you're not gonna feel it till you feel like you're about to burst.
The two hard-boiled egg halves gave a creaminess to the whole dish while the leeks gave a slight tinge of zing. All in all, it's a great dish for when you're looking for something a bit on the filling side.
The true hero of the night was the Chicken Katsu Don (Rs. 1530). Essentially a giant bowl of rice with a full layer of crumbed chicken and egg on the top, it was fabulous.
The sticky rice was gorgeously warm and cooked to perfection with the chicken having an almost silkiness to it. Maybe it was the inside of the batter-fried coating, or it's something else, but the chicken was really good.
Falling apart at the touch, and soft with a rich buttery coating on the outside, this is one of the best in that kind. Paired with bits of leeks on top, this is a must-have if you go to Kobe – you won't regret it.
The Smooth Walker (Rs. 540) wasn't actually on the menu. We got it because our server recommended it and we're really happy with it. Lime, Oranges, orange juice, mint and lemonade, it was beautiful.
Citrusy and sweet in every right way with the perfect amount of minty goodness, this is a definite recommends on our part. Also, look how pretty it is!
Service
The staff at Kobe is superb. Dressed in traditional Japanese dress, they were helpful and kind throughout the whole procedure. From bringing cold towelettes at the start to checking back to see if everything was in order to even recommending dishes on the menu, they were quite helpful.
Plus, they managed to bring our food quite quickly. Kudos to that.
Conclusion
Kobe at Water's Edge is fantastic. The food is lovely, the ambience superb and the staff, the cherry on top to a very pleasant evening. Thus making Kobe a definite recommends on our part for Japanese food.
