Shimizu Grand

It was nearing the date of my return to Singapore from Australia. My friends and I were cracking our heads in search for places to eat. Daniel came up with the suggestion of us dining in Shimizu Grand, Japanese Buffet Restaurant, which is located at Floreat.

Haruhi blessed us, we actually turned up before the shop opened. It opens at 1800 hrs Wednesdays to Sundays only. And it was already fully booked! It was fully booked every single day they say! We were given a corner table. A corner for those who didn't book but lucky enough to come early. Those who came late will probably regret cause people like us stayed all the way till the shop was about to close. The food is really good, the service is great, the environment is nice.

The $35 price is reasonable for a Japanese buffet. This is one of the best find in Perth I ever had. My friends were all thumbs up about it.

When I said the service was great, I wasn't joking. We actually chatted with all the owners of the restaurant during and even after the meal, for quite some time! Apparently the Chia family were Singaporeans moved to Perth for retirement. Throughout the meal, the owners came along to check that we were properly served. Did I mention that each of us got a pair of Shimizu chopsticks as a souvenir? They are going to add a new out-door concept to the restaurant next year with Korean-typed BBQ. Yummy! Too bad I probably won't get the chance to try it.

My only complain would be the lack of different ingredients for the Teppanyaki. There is only beef. I was hoping to have some Shisamo or maybe a variety of ingredients like those offered at Vienna International Seafood & Teppanyaki Restaurant in Singapore. But I really should not be too fussy about this as Shimizu Grand is definitely the best place to get lots of good Nihon-ryori at an affordable price while enjoying great services. The lady owner told me that the first day of opening there was only 5 tables of customers and she was so afraid. But on the second day, through word of mouth, there was a lot more customers. I told her, if Shimizu Grand keeps this up, there will be nothing to worry about ;)

Without further ado, let me show some photos with captions.

The buffet counter. Everything is nicely placed and very delicious looking.


Some cold dishes before the meal. Japanese seaweed and calamari.


Can't help but to take some sashimi as appetizers. They have this glow in them. Fresh! Mr Chia said the restaurant slices 3 adult salmons on average every night.


Tempura complimentary with every table. There were other Tempuras besides prawns.


Small table filled up easily. Beggars can't be choosers, we were lucky to get a table without booking.


Even the tea, which is the only beverage provided, is not those cheap quality ones.


Chawanmushi anyone?


Teppanyaki beef nicely cooked. Medium done.


Fried rice is really good. Fragrant yet not oily.
Oranges are really sweet!
We were addicted to them and the owners asked the kitchen to cut a dozen more for us.


Some dessert cakes. The ichigo cake is my favorite :P

If I am ever going back to Perth for convocation this coming March 2008, I would definitely want to revisit this place again. YAY!

Last Flight Out

Upon reaching the airport after braving through the storm, traffic jams and road accidents, I was told that I was 5 minutes late. Great! Taking the next available flight back would mean I will have an extra 6 hours or so in Perth. Not to mention I can have another final dinner with my friends whom I will miss. Luckily there was no extra charge. Thank heavens I chose SIA.

This time round, I made sure I reach the airport 2 hours before the flight departs. Lo and behold, they told me that although I had a ticket which entitled me to carry 40 kg, the limit was 32 kg per luggage. Now, how am I suppose to get another luggage for that extra 8 kg? Lucky for me, a friend (Mel) of my friend (Dave) was also returning back to Singapore and she happened to have some space in her luggage. So I transfer most of the packs of Cashew & Macadamia nuts over to her. They weighed 400 g each, costing AUD$10. I bought 10 packs of them for present giving to relatives. They tasted good though. And some of my heavier stuffs, eg. DVD writer, also went over into her bags. Thank you again :)

After checking in, the three of us, me, Dave & Mel, stayed around and chatted for a good 1 hour before going in. I decided to shop for some duty free items in Perth Airport. Bought a Beyond Paradise from Estee Lauder for AUD$88.

Mel taught me some basic knowledge about buying perfume. She said perfumes have to be tested for a whole day before deciding on buying. Perfumes have 3 tones. Soft, Medium and Base tones. The Soft tone is the smell which one smells first upon spraying it onto one's skin. Medium tone lingers longer than Soft tone. The Base tone is the smell which stays the longest, mostly throughout the day. This is the tone which one can only smell after wearing the perfume for more than half a day. Having interacted with the natural smell of the body, the smell of the Base tone will be significantly different to the Soft tone which one smells when first testing out the perfume on one's skin. In addition to the 3 tones, she also taught me that the box of coffee beans by the side of the shelves are used for clearing away the lingering perfume smell in our nose before we start sampling other perfumes. Just give them a sniff in between the testing of different perfumes. And lastly, those paper strips used for sampling the perfumes can be placed in bags so that your bag will smell of your favorite perfume.

We proceed to board the plane after shopping. As the roar of the engine increased together with the speed of the plane, my heart got heavier by the seconds. Coincidentally, my MP3 player, which I was listening prior to take off, was playing Jay Chou's Yi Lu Xiang Bei (On Route Up North). I couldn't help myself from shedding some tears as the plane took off. The Australian terrain below, which I had grown to love, shrinking beneath. Beautiful memories of myself together with my close friends flashed across my mind like a kaleidoscope. Something which I will treasure. It took me awhile to regain my composure. I am returning home. For better or worst, only time will tell.