Tis Me Michelle

Similar to Edoboy, I’ve been waiting for my chance to try Kadence. One day I’ll save enough to go back for their omakase experience. In the meantime, they’ve opened an option i&i which is a more affordable set menu experience. When I went to look for a time for i&i, I saw they had an option for their Japanese breakfast, so I decided to give that a go.

The Japanese breakfast experience is only offered on occasion, so I am glad I spotted it when I did because there were only six of us during our slot, which was a full house. I’m going to guess this is more similar to the i&i experience as it comes with a set of ~six items which you find out what it is when it’s brought out. I also tacked on the tea service.

I enjoyed the set, which came with a nice variety of items. I’ll start off with my favorite items from the plate. The small bowl of sashimi was fantastic, including salmon, fatty tuna, and one other fish I don’t recall, all of it was super fresh, light, and buttery. I also really enjoyed the egg with marinated pork, the pork was super flavorful, similar to bulgogi. It paired fantastically with the bowl of rice.

I wish there was a menu with what all the items were because I honestly forgot some things as soon as it was explained. Sometimes I have the memory of a jellyfish. One of the dishes was a mixture of things. It was interesting. There was bitter melon, I believe some kind of fried fish bites, and maybe egg? Or it could have been tofu, I’m not entirely sure. I grew up eating bitter melon, which made this feel like a very home-y meal. Another interesting item was the natto. I feel like I’ve seen it a lot in the last couple of years on social media, but I have never tried it. Definitely an acquired taste, leaning on the funky, bitter side, but I kind of liked it. They added some sashimi into the dish too which I felt was a great addition.

Onto the last few couple of items from the set. The pork curry was okay. It could have been more flavorful, but the pork itself was cooked really well. I would have preferred more of the marinated pork than the curry. The miso soup was salty, warm, and comforting. I really enjoyed the tiny little side of pickled cucumbers, cabbage, and radish.

And finally, the tea service, I would skip it. It’s an extra $12 and you get unlimited house tea plus a bowl of matcha at the end. I don’t even know what the house tea was, possibly green tea. It was fine, but I only had 2 cups which I forced that second cup because I paid for it. It just wasn’t anything amazing to pay extra for. There is a menu of drinks or coffee if you want to add something to the experience, but I would have been just fine with water.

It was a very filling set, and by the end, I was definitely ready for a nap. The variety of items made it worth it. I of course went alone and ended up chatting with a couple next to me and they said that it was a very authentic Japanese breakfast, which I loved to hear. I’ve had Japanese food, but usually it’s just sushi, so it was great to experience different dishes and it was good to know it was done authentically.

If you want to try Kadence, and not commit to the omakase price, I would recommend trying this option if you see it available. I want to try i&i and eventually when I win the lottery the omakase.

Rating: 8.4/10