Even though ROKA is in a massive shopping centre, Pacific Place, the ambience was terrific. Four of us were on a 'double-date' and it was perfect. The service was impressive too.
We ordered the Sake tasting set, which consisted of three sakes. They changed our sake glasses for each of the 3 sakes, which was good. We also had some japanese beers but they were too weak for us. Good to see these on the menu nonetheless.
We tried salmon sushi roll, eel sushi roll, scallop skewers, beef and asparagus skewers, chicken wing skewer, grilled mushrooms, yellowtail main.
The sushi's were fresh and i liked the salmon with asparagus and mayonnaise combination.
Scallop skewers were a highlight for me, with large, plump scallops that were cooked perfectly. Not rubbery, like most other robata places.
The yellowtail main dish was fantastic, and the favourite of my partner and our friends. The only fault was that I found scales on my portion, but the others didnt have that problem. Anyway, I just didnt eat the skin and it was fine. The flesh was very smooth and seasoned nicely.
Beef and asparagus skewers were tasty but tasted much more 'chinese' than 'japanese'. Similar taste to chinese beef with black pepper sauce.
Chicken wing skewers were a rip-off! There were four of us dining, and there were three chicken wings on the dish. They were tiny, too.
The grilled mushrooms were just as bad - the serving was about the size of a small chinese rice bowl, and it seemed ridiculous to share that little bit in such a nice looking restaurant.
Desserts here were a winner. Two of us got the ginger creme brulee, my partner had the self-saucing choc pudding, and my other friend had a mandarin cake. They were all amazing, but we all wished we had ordered the chocolate pudding because it was soooo good.
Overall, quite an expensive meal but we enjoyed it