Rakuichi (Greenwich V) - Better than those chain restaurants

Closed for Greenwich branch

The highlight of this restaurant got to be the ambience: Scenic view of the 2nd floor of Greenwich (I actually like this shopping centre a lot for tranquil surroundings), huge barrels of sake placed around the chic place with a bed of ice decorated with fresh seafood as the centrepiece to lure diners.

The food and service are ok: way better than other Japanese restaurant chains though. The food all taste quite nice (potato salad, ebi roll, etc - your generic type of Japanese food), and seems to be very fresh, the price tag is not very cheap but reasonable enough given the quality of the food. 

Highly recommended are the yakitori, rare items like mozuku su (seaweed in vinegar) and aburi sushi, which are very flavourful and this kind of food is not found in most Japanese restaurants, except for those specialize in these. The pearl-like rice used for the sushi and dishes definitely worth a special mention here. Fragrant, perfectly shaped to attain that superb consistency and texture, the rice is so good that it can really be eaten on its own. The serving of the food seems to be a tad slow despite the fact that the restaurant was quite empty. Though, this has improved a lot on the 2nd visit and subsequent ones.

Service wise, the basic standard is fulfilled - no hiccup or misgiving, but the staffs just looked bored and lethargic, even when taking orders. So I started to feel bored also, from looking at them (Note: Ths is the impression I had on the first visit). 

Got to mention that on the 2nd visit, the dining experience had greatly improved due to the great service provided by a middle aged, slim, local Chinese lady who is very friendly and helpful. Her colleagues paled so much in comparison to her when it comes to service standard. Things started to further look up on my later visits with a middle aged pinoy lady service staff joining the crew.

Actually nowadays, I find the service to be great since all greet us with lots of smiles and know our preferences.

I recommend this restaurant since the food is decent, worth a try. I do find myself liking this place more and more with each subsequent visit.

I have become a regular of the place already.

My Thoughts: Pretty Good

Only branch left is now at Dempsey.