Japanese culture is one that is quite far removed from our own, so translating nuances from it to fit into a distilled dining experience is quite the task. My own attempts at bonsai maintenance were short-lived; maybe I watered and trimmed it too much? I would have most certainly disappointed my sensei regardless. One of Liverpool’s newest eating establishments held its opening night on Thursday 28th May to much fanfare and much hustle and bustle. Miyagi’s appearance has been anticipated for a few months now and finally we were treated to a taster of what to expect from it; two very different dining environments over two floors of the former Yum’s Korean restaurant premises which had undergone significant renovation. We were ushered to the upper floor for our experience, so only had a brief glance at the slightly more gentile and dimly lit lower deck, this was in stark contrast to the sensory feast of the upper level. Think Tokyo of the 1980’s – Godzilla trampling over buildings, whilst robots, graffiti and neon all clash for your attention. The layout is much more of an informal dining style, similar to Wagamama with rows of benches and pots with chopsticks ready laid for a quick turnaround dining experience. It’s very bright on the upper level, almost too bright; with strip lights reminiscent of neon light sabres is a variety of colours bursting from the walls. Samuel L. Jackson’s preferred purple hue is eschewed, but it still raises amusement when twinned with the classic Godzilla motifs and plethora of anime strips on the walls and ceilings. It works, where really it should be too much – so many references to Japanese influences (wax on, wax off) in one place, but maintaining balance on the visual tightrope. Whilst this isn’t a review of the food (as this would be rather unfair on this occasion), there was some brought out as part of the invitation to the event – and I will comment. The sushi was almost immaculate, although some additional integrity on a couple of the pieces would have been welcome; the addition of soy brought about meltdown. Flavour-wise, there can be no complaint, if this is a portent of what is to come from Miyagi’s kitchen then it will be given a return visit. Deep fried chicken (that actually tastes, shock horror, of chicken) coated in a katsu and panko crumb was immensely satisfying and a larger plate would have been excellent, alas I had to share. The beer and spirits selection is good, there is a much wider focus on cocktails on the upper level from what it seemed; as such a dining experience on the lower level would be needed to fully establish menu competencies. The beers consisted of Asahi on draft (standard, but a very good clean pilsner that always works well with the different facets of Japanese food), in cans (not as pleasing, with the metallic tang being quite prevalent when tasted alongside the keg dispensed variant) and more interestingly some bottles of Coedo Japanese craft beer. Whilst they do not stock the full range, there were three available in the fridges; Shiru (white labelled hefe-weiss style), Runi (blue labelled pilsner) and Shikoku (black labelled black lager/schwarzbier). Whilst they are good beers; the hefe is a very light bodied and balanced effort and the pils is clean and slightly more refined than Asahi, the price at £5+ per bottle might prove a bit disconcerting for some diners.
It will be worth keeping an eye on Miyagi’s progress in the next few months, but under the stewardship of Lucha Libre’s Alex Hannah and Dave Roach, the ship will remain pretty steady. Now I’m off to catch some flies with chopsticks. Pedro.
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