Mactan is one of the top destinations for sun and sand being home to one of the top beach resorts in the country. But according to James Montenegro, Chroma Hospitality’s Country Manager, what the island needed was a different sort of Japanese restaurant.

“We didn’t want any of those usual Japanese restaurants with wooden boats of sushi.,” said Montenegro in all seriousness.

Aka is a modern Japanese restaurant in Crimson Mactan

While Korean restaurants were everywhere on the island, Japanese restaurants were few and far between, particularly a higher end one with premium sushi and sashimi.

Crimson Resorts and Spa Mactan would have been the ideal place to put one up, but at that time, the resort had a full complement of restaurants.

With destruction came opportunity. Crimson Mactan was among the resorts on the eastward side of the island that was devastated by super typhoon Odette.

With the reconstruction they needed to, particularly with the resort's clubhouse, this was a sign for them to fully pursue the Japanese concept at the tail end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Believe it or not, they found Chef Naoki Eguchi through Social Media. Not Facebook, not Instagram but, of all things, LinkedIn. Montenegro flew to Japan at the tail end of the pandemic when travel was not the easiest thing to do, particularly a trip to Japan where one needed to jump through a lot of hoops to get into the country if one wasn’t Japanese.

Chef Naoki and Chef Masahiro

It was all worth it because what they found was Chef Naoki’s 50-year-old family restaurant which specialized in the kaiseki -– multi-course Japanese meals much like the degustaciones that focus on cooking technique and premium ingredients. As a bonus, Chef Naoki was a master of tempura who honed his craft as head chef of a premium Ginza restaurant that specialized in this Japanese favorite.

From what used to be a sports bar, rose omAKAse by Naoki Eguchi aka AKA. AKA is also the Japanese word for “Crimson”.

Where other premium Japanese restaurants would have sushi and teppanyaki masters, AKA is one of very few to have a master of tempura with Chef Naoki’s name attached as primary consultant.

Chef Masahiro at work

While Chef Naoki flies in and out from Japan, Chef Masahiro Kinoshita stays full time to take care of AKA as the Executive Japanese Chef of Crimson Mactan.

Back in Fukuoka, Chef Masa trained under master chefs at Japanese traditional restaurants Teraoka,  Shiromiyagura, and Syunpanro sharpening his skills with preparing seasonal set menus, special bento boxes, and live fish cutting techniques. He also earned the prestigious Japanese Cooking License and Blowfish Handling License.

A glimpse of the private room 

True to James Montenegro’s word, there are no gaudy sushi boats to be seen in AKA. Take a look around the restaurant then step out to admire their island like private rooms. The restaurant is a picture of serene modern minimalism.In AKA's final form, omakase guests would start out at the bar for welcome drinks and sake with the tempura prepared as an appetizer. 

The bar

The bar has a well curated selection of sake, Japanese whiskies with signature cocktails in the drink list like the Matcha Mojito.

Then guests take a few steps to the counter where the omakase starts.

Sake cups

The meal begins with guests choosing their own sake cup to use throughout the meal. They do know their ginjos from their daiginjou and I appreciated how they paired the lighter more polished sakes with the more delicate courses, and the more robust sakes with the heavier tempura and steak courses.

Edamame

I thought the best way to eat this edamame was to suck sesame oil and shichimi togarashi first, open it up to get the beans inside while the nutty heat was still lingering on my palate.

Scallops

I’ve never had scallops these melt-in-your-mouth tender. These are sliced Hokkaido scallops with a bright yuzu jelle, pretty good when paired with a sweet light sake.

Sushi plate

For this platter, this was a selection of Hamachi, Lapu-lapu, salmon and tuna sushi, an unagi maki, and tuna, salmon, and lapu-lapu sashimi. As expected from AKA, these were all fresh and premium.

Gindara

The flies in special charcoal from Japan that burns at higher temperatures. With this charcoal, Chef Masa gets to grill exceptional dishes like this gindara. This fish tastes like butter and even melts like butter. Slices of pickled daikon add a crunch with a slight sourness that cuts through all that buttery richness.

Wagyu

The steak course was a collaboration of the two chefs.

Chef Masa has a special way of preparing these steaks. They’re first seared over that special charcoal at high heat. Then it rests under a salt dome to seal in the juices. Then it gets seared again, and only then is it ready to be served to guests.

Chef Naoki provided his steak sauce made with fruits and vegetables. Yes, that’s salt and wasabi on the side.  That herby heat from wasabi with the sweetness of the unusual steak sauce made this steak dish sing, made more exceptional between sips of full bodied ginjo sake.

Tempura and udon

What does tempura from a master taste like?

Take note that the tempura is served with skewers in them. That’s because the chef doesn’t just dump everything in a basket and load it into a deep fryer. Rather, the chef keeps watch and keeps turning the individual pieces of tempura in hot oil, much like a barbecue cook turns skewers over a grill.

The result is tempura with a crunchy paper-thin shell that’s translucent enough that I could see the prawn through it. And more importantly, I could savor the prawn’s fresh sweetness in all its glory. No panko or overly thick mushy breading here.

Tempura is often paired with udon and a simple dashi broth with a side of fresh wasabi ground fresh at Chef Masa’s side of the restaurant. 

Azuki and matcha

The  dinner ended with a green tea pudding topped with azuki paste. It wasn't that sweet and was a refined version of this Japanese dessert.

Chopsticks

But wait, there's more. AKA gives guests a handsome pair of chopsticks carved with the restaurant's name to bring back home.

I’d say that this is one of the best restaurants that opened this year. The execution was on par with what they set out to do, which was to give Mactan an elevated Japanese restaurant. I must say that tempura isn’t on my must-order food list, and Chef Naoki’s version made me see how balanced a bite of tempura can be. For Japanese food fans, this is a must-visit when in Cebu.

And yeah, I didn’t miss the sushi boat.

omAKAse by Chef Naoki Eguchi is located inside Crimson Resort and Spa Mactan. Please follow them on @akamactan for more information.