The new Prologue restaurant at Mitsukoshi Mall has a concept all its own; and for Chef Hiroyuki Meno and Managing Director Alyanna Uy, it’s about creating an upgrade on their by-now familiar Prologue offerings.
A Japanese national, Chef Meno was trained in classic French cooking; and for half a decade now, he’s been the culinary wizard behind both Prologue and Dough and Grocer. With a deft touch and effective creativity, he’s blended his innate know-how in Japanese cuisine and ingredients, with European cooking traditions, and it’s a journey of taste and flavors I’ve willingly surrendered to.
For those who recall Epilogue at SMaison, this new Prologue D’Fined will provide a shot of nostalgia - the “D’Fined” a play on how this new Prologue incarnation has more of a feel of fine dining, with enhanced ingredients on most every dish. In fact, I understand that when it officially opens, this restaurant/bar’s menu will carry explanations of what these uncommon ingredients are - a boon for those curious but often too timid to ask. I loved hearing this, as I’m often intrigued when introduced to a new flavor, or an exotic element to the dish I partake of.
This curiosity is best exemplified in the Tarako Spaghetti; that for me, may soon be the signature dish of Prologue D’Fined. It is spaghetti, but rather than Italian-inspired, it’s the Japanese flavors that somehow make this a fresher take on pasta. It’s Tarako cream, shrimp, shirauo, aonori, Ikura, and nori rice cracker. To taste is to believe! Even if I may not have been familiar with a number of the ingredients, I was immediately brought somewhere I want to go back to, with this dish that’s begging to be shared.
The Pumpkin Flower Tempura was our actual starter; and it’s stuffed scallop and shrimp mousse, padron pepper, cream and tumeric aioli. The padron pepper isn’t spicy at all but on the sweet side, and I’d take home the tumeric aioli as my new favorite dip - that’s how good it is.
The Hokkaido Scallop Risotto has dashi broth, shio kombu, mizuna, and bamboo shoots. Beyond the size and texture of these scallops, the bamboo shoots were a nice touch for additional texture variety.
The Jade Perch Aqua Pazzo (translated to “crazy water”) is the second potential signature dish for D’Fined. It’s like a bouillabaisse that’s cleaner and with less emphasis on the sauce. There are clams, shrimps, mussels, tomato, paprika, onion, fennel, and dashi broth to accompany the main ingredient of Australian jade perch, and you’ll love the firm but soft meat of this fish.
The Japanese A5 Beef has wasabi relishes, bagna cauda, Tamari soy sauce, and grilled mushroom. It’s Wagyu redefined; and I loved this, as it’s actually something that should be shared. Alyanna regaled us with how the Japanese are so meticulous and OC with their beef, that we could actually look up the provenance of the beef cut we were partaking of.
For those exploring the mall in the afternoon, be forewarned that Prologue has their own brick oven, and the pizza they serve up are gourmet meals in their own right. The Margherita Pizza has a huge dollop of burrata in the middle, making it so much more than your average Margherita. The Mushroom Cappuccino soup comes with foie gras raviolis, mushroom duxelles, and scallion; the raviolis just the added touch of exuberance to give this mushroom soup the edge over any other version served in the metropolis.
And leave room for desserts, as both Chef Meno and Alyanna are extra proud of the limited (four choices for now) but upgraded selection. There’s Tarte Tatin, with Caramelized Apple, Salted Caramel, and Vanilla ice cream (nostalgic on a personal level, as my late mom loved this dessert and introduced me to it). Then the Matcha Tiramisu, with hojicha, mascarpone, and matcha. The Baked Chessecake is an indugent version with custard cream, fromage blanc, and a scoop of ice cream. While the Chocolate Mousse comes with raspberry sherbet, and is predominantly white chocolate, so it’s unique to Prologue.
That is in fact a great, recurring theme to this Prologue “upgrade.” It’s serving up dishes that you can’t find anywhere else, and even when there’s an element of reading familiarity in the menu, what’s brought to your table is a refined, enhanced version. It’s truly wonderful to have this version of Prologue for the more discriminating and appreciative Food enthusiast.