Hidden away beneath the corporate enclaves of Central, Kakure is a contemporary Ginza-style restaurant that whisks diners on an intriguing journey of tastes and textures.
You could be forgiven for walking past Kakure without paying much notice. Stairs discretely sidestep away from the busy concourse leading to the Prince’s Building in Central Hong Kong, and lead to a hidden passageway inspired by Tokyo’s narrow lanes that in turn opens into an expansive, multi-faceted dining room bathed in honey-hued light.
More than just another Japanese restaurant where power brokers and movers-and-shakers square off over sake nigiri and amaebi sashimi, Epicurean Group’s newest addition is a space that must be discovered part by part: there’s a teppanyaki cooking station, and a popular sushi counter, as well as private tatami dining rooms and a hidden whisky den that rewards the curious-minded.

The name Kakure means ‘present but absent’, which might sound like your girlfriend giving you the third degree but actually reflects the venue’s hidden location and its innovative take on timeless Japanese cuisine, which, in our case, starts at the sushi counter.
Keep Your Sushi Simple
Kakure serves Edo-style sushi, referring to the simple yet delicious combination of raw fish and cooked rice seasoned with vinegar that has its origins in Tokyo in the 1820s. In the Tokyo of old (or Edo), this style of sushi was popular with an increasingly busy dining public looking for a quick bite, and the style now dominates sushi restaurants the world over.
At Kakure, seasonal seafood is flown in daily from Japan, to be served at the striking 12-seat sushi counter, which has been carved from a single Japanese cypress trunk. With a surgeon’s precision, sushi chefs prepare breathtaking nigiri mouthfuls and while the sushi menu is aflood with the likes of caviar and foie gras, we opted to keep things a little more traditional, with minced tuna belly with spring onion; charred blackthroat sea perch or Nodoguro from the Sea of Japan; delicate wild sea bream; and marbled bluefin tuna that literally melts in the mouth. We also try the Isaki from Mie prefecture, touched with a light soy sauce; kinmedai or red snapper; autumn sweet shrimp; and striped jack given a touch of earthiness with rice vinegar, all of which were fresh and delicious.

Things Are Heating Up
From the sushi counter, we move on to the teppanyaki station, where signature dishes include Hida Wagyu tenderloin served atop Himalayan pink rock salt; A5 Wagyu from Gifu; Hokkaido black pork; and Silver cod with Saikyo miso sauce. We also try dishes like the tempura oysters wrapped in Wagyu beef and served with uni, caviar and ponzu jelly; and deep-fried South African abalone with abalone liver sauce, which, while clearly been influenced by local palates, were still executed perfectly.
One of the best things about Kakure is that there really is something for everyone; in addition to the extensive sushi and sashimi selections and seafood and meat cuts of the teppanyaki grill, there are rice and noodle dishes that can be shared, as well as soups, hotpot and claypot dishes and traditional don buri bowls that are ideally suited for less adventurous appetites.

We don’t typically associate Japanese sushi dens with dessert but diners with a sweet tooth will be fools to skip “Soil”, a black sesame mousse pudding encrusted with Oreo cookie crumble and topped with edible radish seedlings and flowers, a dish that’s as delicious as it is eye-catching.
A Whisky Lovers Paradise
From the hot grill we make our way into another corner of Kakure, the restaurant’s intimate standalone speakeasy, home to over 120 rare and vintage whiskies as well as an extensive sake menu and a list of Japanese-inspired cocktails ranging from a Smoked Sesame Oil Negroni to a Wagyu-washed Old Fashioned. Highly-regarded bartender Sharad Chhetri can guide you through a flight of coveted Japanese single malts or tap into seasonal ingredients to create a libation that would make even the gruffest of Shoguns grin.

Summary
We found Kakure to be a nice alternative to the strict and traditional Omakase-style sushi joints that can be found across Hong Kong. The menu’s diversity and the dining room’s expansive size means that this space is as well suited for dining with mates or colleagues as it is for date night. Service was attentive and well-informed, although the restaurant wasn’t particularly busy when we visited, and the reasonable price point means this is one hidden Japanese restaurant that won’t break the bank.
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