So katsu-crazy at Ginza Bairin

MANILA, Philippines - Picture Ginza with its cosmopolitan vibe, its throbbing upscale entertainment, shopping, and dining places. This late lunch, I’m delighted to be sitting beside two respectable, impeccably dressed Japanese executives in front of a table groaning with Japanese food. This restaurant stakes its reputation on its katsu that traces its beginnings to 1927. Hai, it’s so delicious, it’s so Ginza! But then, I’m not in Ginza, Tokyo; I’m at Ginza Bairin, which recently opened at Glorietta 2, Ayala Center, Makati. And the two guys seated next to me are Masaya Shibuya, president and owner of Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin, and Tetsuya Ohyabu, Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin manager, administration department, who flew in specially for the opening of Ginza Bairin. (Food note: It was Shibuya-san’s grandfather Nobukatsu Shibuya who put up Ginza Bairin in 1927 and brought his expertise as a pharmacist to the table by introducing good, healthy food and formulating Ginza Bairin’s famous secret sauce, but more on this a bit later.) Across us, wearing a suit and a big smile is Jimmy Tan, chief operating officer of the first Ginza Bairin franchise in the Philippines.

I imagine myself, on a piercing-cold Tokyo morning, being warmed by a nice and perky miso soup, followed by a dazzling array of katsu dishes accompanied by a smooth Japanese brown rice tea.

“Essentially, if you eat here, you’re like eating in Tokyo because all the ingredients, sauces, breading, oil, as well as the Kurobuta (black Berkshire pork, highly prized for its marbling, juiciness, tenderness, and flavor), almost everything, are from Japan,” says Jimmy Tan with a hint of pride.

Of course, katsu-crazy Pinoys are familiar with this popular Japanese dish. At Ginza Bairin, you can enjoy authentic katsu in three incredibly delicious ways. I try all three and, as they say, three’s a thrill. First, there’s tonkatsu (pork cutlet) — pork loin and tenderloin with panko breading that’s made of wheat, is crunchy and flaky, and doesn’t give a greasy, queasy feeling; Ginza uses only cottonseed oil, which has zero trans fat. For the dipping sauce for your tonkatsu, happily you have several sauce choices. One is the Ginza Bairin Signature Tonkatsu Sauce, the time-cherished recipe of its founder who was not content with the good old sauce and so, he mixed various fruits like apple, and onion, vegetables, and 20 other secret ingredients to come up with a mellow, sweetish, sticky sauce. Then there’s the ground roasted black and white sesame seeds (which I love eating with or without katsu), ground roasted sesame seeds with pink Himalayan sea salt, and pink Himalayan sea salt with karashi (spicy mustard).

Having had my fill of tonkatsu, I move on to the Ginza Bairin Special Katsudon, hailed as the No. 1 Donburi in Japan. It’s a rich bowlful of tender hire katsu sitting on top of fragrant Japanese Koshihikari rice flavored by a sauce of broth simmered for hours and topped by a double serving of farm fresh eggs. Now, who won’t get bowled over by this?

Can’t get enough of the katsu? Fret not! For there’s the Ginza Bairin Katsu Sando — crisp, hire katsu sandwiched between soft freshly baked bread with two special sauces. It’s perfect for the eat-and-run crowd — you can have it to go, these little nibblers are great for munching anytime you get a snack attack.

For the ultimate in katsu dining experience, Ginza Bairin serves its dishes with the bounty of the teishoku (set meal), which generously includes unlimited Japanese rice, fresh cabbage salad and dressings, miso soup, Japanese pickles, and genmaicha (Japanese brown rice tea) plus a serving of seasonal fresh fruit.

Perhaps unlike Ginza Bairin in Tokyo, our Ginza Bairin serves desserts like coffee jelly with vanilla ice cream. “Because Pinoys love to end their meal with something sweet,” Jimmy explains.

Hai, Ginza Bairin has its set meals that are delightful to the taste buds and probably to your budget, too. For instance, a Rosu Katsu Set (moist, flavorful loin) goes for P395 for large and P345 for regular; Hire Katsu (soft, lean tenderloin) is at P345 for three fillets and P395 for four fillets; a prized Kurobuta Rosu Katsu (flavorful Berkshire black pig) is not-so-pricey at P595.  Other fried and tested sets are the Seafood Set (prawn, premium white fish, salmon at P525) and Salmon Fry Set (buttery Atlantic salmon at P495).

For those who like it hot (meaning spicy), Ginza Bairin has its katsu curry sets with your choice of regular or spicy curry sauce.

It’s really a lot like you’re dining in Ginza Bairin Tokyo amid a simple, elegant ambience. “There are the white walls, the chandeliers made of rope, and a portrait of the painting of a female Japanese pig given by three friends of Shibuya-san’s grandfather — a calligrapher and two visual artists. The Japanese calligraphy is translated as ‘rare, beautiful pig.’”

This rare, beautiful gift is given every time a Ginza Bairin restaurant is opened — there are now five branches in Hong Kong, two in Shanghai, two in Singapore, and more restos in Seoul and Hawaii, and now in the Philippines.

“This painting is a sign of friendship, the turning over of a legacy to us,” says Jimmy. “We’re now responsible for maintaining the philosophy and quality of Ginza Bairin since 1927. We take that responsibility very seriously, which is why we also brought in chefs from Ginza Bairin Tokyo to train our own chefs, and we intend to consistently provide that quality so that our people will enjoy true katsu.”

Now, that’s a mouthful! What else can we say but doumo arigatou gozaimasu (thank you)!

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The newly opened Ginza Bairin is located at the ground floor, Glorietta 2, Palm Drive, Ayala Center, Makati with telephone number 553-7350.