I was strolling around Soho today struggling to be inspired by any one of the numerous mediocre restaurants in the area, when I passed by Taku and remembered seeing my friend's pictures of the house tofu. This turned out to be the inspiration I was looking for, so I found myself a seat inside.
Since I was here to try out the tofu, I decided to go all the way and order three different types. Overkill? Definitely.
Fresh "farm-house" tofu, served "au natural" with 3 condiments - hmmm.... not a big fan of this. It's cute that the tofu was left to air dry and "settle" inside a basket, creating a pattern from the shape of the mold. While I love the taste of shavings of yuzu skin encased inside, I didn't really like the texture. The "au natural" style meant the consistency was compacted and dense, but the grainy texture was what bothered me. I honestly thought I was eating sandpaper as the grains scraped against my tongue... I brushed it with the "vintage" soy sauce on the table, and added the three toppings of finely chopped spring onions, ginger shoots and spicy grated radish.
Chilled silken tofu, with ikura, nori, soy and spring onions - I liked the silken tofu much better, although in all honesty this wasn't really special. The ikura (いくら) and nori (海苔) provided the taste for the dish.
Steamed silken tofu, with lump crab meat, ginger shoots and yuzu - looks cute as it is served in a wooden box. The crab meat was full of the taste of the sea, but in the process of steaming it imparted a light fermented smell to the dish, making me wince a little. Didn't quite smell or taste the yuzu, the fragrance of which would have balanced out that fermented smell. Oh well...
Yes, having three different tofu dishes for lunch (and nothing else) was really too much, especially as I forced myself to finish them for fear of going hungry later. I think I've learned my lesson now...
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