/ Reviews / Japanese
Inno-vative
by Steph Wy Ng
on Friday, September 11, 2009 12:00 AM
Japanese-owned Inno Dining is now open for lunch and late-night dining until midnight. They have also launched updated Japanese, Korean and Western menus and some enticing drinks deals. What hasn't changed is their unusual signature miso and cheese fondue, combining cream cheese, Danish blue cheese and mozarella. Make your own creations from a variety of vegetables and pasta options, or for RMB60 the chef will put together a combination of ingredients that you can dip into the cheesy delight. If you prefer curry, there's a miso and curry fondue for the same price.
Along with Japanese dishes, like the tangy carpaccio of tuna with crunchy leek and mayonnaise dressing (RMB40), the restaurant also serves a selection of Western and Korean cuisine. A lunchtime menu runs from 11:30am-2:30pm and offers pasta dishes and half pizzas for around RMB30.
Accompanying the cuisine, Inno Dining offers an array of Japanese drinks including shochu and Calpis soda, a cross between Sprite and milk. The drink deals here change nightly: on Mondays and Tuesdays there is a 20 percent discount on selected alcohols. Wednesday is Men's Day with buy-one-get-one-free offers on Asahi beer. It's the ladies turn on Thursday, when women can choose between a free glass of wine or dessert - our vote is the roasted banana and French toast with vanilla ice cream.
The interiors are decorated with dark red and purple drapes across the ceiling and delicately painted artwork on the upper half of the walls. Strangely, the decorators seem to have forgotten about the lower half, where the walls are only partly painted and the floors are spattered with dry paint. You can choose to sit on cream and brown leather chairs, or at traditional Japanese-style low tables.
The restaurant can be a challenge to find, especially if you're coming from the city centre. It is located amongst empty shopfronts on the even-number side of the road. Look for the black sign above painted white walls, with narrow windows and a swinging oak door.
The Bottom Line: East meets West at Inno Dining. Give the unique Miso and Cheese Fondue a try.
