Another great Japanese restaurant in Brussels – Yamayu Santatsu
A buzzing restaurant that gets packed for lunch and also in the evening. After having declared my love to Nonbe Daigaku, my absolute favourite sushi place in Brussels, it was time to make space for some other spots. Yamayu Santatsu doesn’t beat Nonbe Daigaku, but it is definitely number two in my list for good raw fish in Brussels.
This week Johan reserved a table for us for lunch, which was definitely the right decision as the restaurant gets full fast. Side by side to the people at the table next to you, you’ll be served some crunchy soybean salad immediately when you arrive, along with some meat in a very aromatic dark brown sauce. The menu is long, but you shouldn’t dive into it for too long, but move right to the unbeatable lunch offer.
During the evening you’ll easily pay 30 Euro for some sushi, but during lunch you can dine like a queen for only 13 Euro. You’ll get some green tea, a miso soup and a dish of your choice. You can choose ramen with gyoza, katsu don (breaded and fried pork), tori teriyaki (fried chicken) or as we did a bowl of chirashi. Chirashi is pieces of raw fish – sashimi – along with some pickled Japanese radish, wasabi and pickled ginger, arranged on a bed of rice. You pour some soy sauce on top and start eating yourself through this pretty little mountain of different tastes. The fish at Yamayu Santatsu is very fresh, soft and tender and a nice mix of salmon, tuna, cooked salmon and other fish, varying every day depending on the season
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You can sit either at the bar and watch the sushi masters slice and arrange the fish, or at a table just next to it. The food arrives incredibly fast, so don’t worry if you have only little time during your lunch break. The service is not the most friendly I’ve seen in town, but they aren’t rude either. I haven’t tried the place during dinner yet, but this will definitely be happening at some point.
Good to know:
Price: 13E for a lunch menu.
