Chef Bruce Ricketts' Pop-Up in Rockwell Highlights Kaisendon, His Way

Go by Sensei 
Stall 17, The Grid Food Market, R2, Power Plant Mall, Rockwell, Makati City
Instagram: www.instagram.com/go__sensei
Open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday to Sunday

(SPOT.ph) Chef Bruce Ricketts has long prioritized mastery of his craft. This comes out in the topnotch flavors of his food; just ask anyone who's dined at his establishments, be it the recently closed Mecha Uma where he'd lead elaborate omakase dinners, or the more casual (but excellent) of the lot like Sensei in BF Homes. Now, he extends that same shokunin ethos to the genre of Japanese rice bowls—specifically, kaisendon. Ricketts is launching fast-casual pop-up Go by Sensei at The Grid in Power Plant Mall.

Also read: 
Bruce Ricketts to Bring His Martial Arts Philosophy + His Stylish Wife’s Eye to Next Restaurant 
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Here's what to expect at the kaisendon pop-up by Chef Bruce Ricketts:

Drop by the pop-up open from February 5 to May 31 for a fresh selection of kaisendon, i.e. rice bowls topped with sashimi and sashimi-adjacent ingredients—similar to, and sometimes thought to be one and the same as, chirashi sushi. This being a Ricketts venture, expect high-caliber takes on the classic dish—one that showcases Ricketts' fish-aging and slicing prowess, and uses top-quality ingredients. 

"We start with fish that we age depending on [their] conditions [upon] arrival," says Ricketts in a statement. They'll be using both local and imported ingredients—local yellowfin and big-eye tuna butchered in Sensei, farmed Japanese bluefin tuna, chilled salmon, and hamachi given the ikejime treatment and dry-aged. As for the rice part of the equation, they'll be using koshihikari rice from a local Japanese rice farm in Canlaon, Bacolod that they manually polish, wash, and soak overnight, "to ensure even cooking throughout the batch." The attention to details extends even the rice vinegar they use—a blend of three types of vinegar (rice, sake lees, and aged vinegar) to give their sushi rice "a nice richness, color and freshness."

As opposed to kaisendon at other places that feature an assortment of seafood, each bowl at Go by Sensei (save for one) highlights one premium topping, with other ingredients and elements playing supporting roles. There's the Akamizuke (P520), starring shoyu-marinated yellowfin tuna; Negitoro (P850) with Nagasaki tuna given the negitoro treatment and topped with a soy-marinated yolk; Hamachi Tataki (P870) with aged, shoyu-marinated hamachi tataki; and the Salmon Oyako (P820), a salmon-plus-ikura version of the "parent-child" rice bowl traditionally made with chicken and egg.

Celebrating a win, or just in the mood to splurge? Go for the Smoked Toro (P2,200)—the most luxe of the lot with three premium proteins: akamizuke, plus smoked chutoro and otoro, taking after the smoked toro nigiri formerly served at Mecha Uma. All kaisendon come with miso soup, nori, and pickles; go ahead and dive into it like you would a regular rice bowl, or assemble your own temaki with the ingredients.

You can catch Go by Sensei at Stall 17 at The Grid from February 5 to May 31. As you'd know, Ricketts is also set to open iai soon by late 2024; watch this space for updates.

Photos by Hans Fausto

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