There’s always an element of luck when you take children to a restaurant – will they have a meltdown, will they eat the food? We recently went along to Shiro in Quarry Bay to see how Japanese food would fare with our five-year-old and his 18-month-old brother, and we were happy to hit the parenting jackpot – clean plates all round!
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This cool, airy restaurant on the ground floor of Taikoo Place’s Lincoln House is very stroller-friendly, and, despite our initial reservations about kids shattering the Zen-like ambience, we were encouraged at the sight of a stack of high chairs. The attentive team were great with our kids, bringing drinks and the designated “Shiro Junior” menu for us to browse. As a fun bonus once you’ve ordered, the kids’ menu can be folded into an origami bird, which our five-year-old thought wonderful.
Having heard great things about Shiro’s bento box sets, we decided to go with this “little bit of everything” option. My husband ordered the wagyu beef rib-eye set – the beef was incredibly tender and it came with garlic, onion, soy sauce, miso soup, tempura squid (declared amongst the best squid he’s ever eaten) and pickles. I also opted for beef, ordering the Shiro premium bento ($328). This enormous set included wonderfully flaky and delicate chargrilled black cod, crisp tempura, udon noodles with just the right amount of bite, and fresh sushi, all of which was absolutely delicious.
Meanwhile, the kids got stuck into their own Japanese food sets. Our toddler’s Tatsu bento ($98) was beautifully presented, with a good selection that included tempura, a chicken teriyaki ball and udon, along with a mochi ball, strawberries and a vanilla roll for dessert. But the highlight here was the Sakana sushi platter ($128) – essentially, free-flow mini sushi for kids. My five-year-old managed to astound everyone by inhaling three platters – that’s 15 pieces! – of sushi while still leaving room to “share” plenty of our sesame and yuzu ice cream desserts ($48).
For an easy meal with kids that feels that little bit more special than the usual family fare, Shiro is absolutely ideal. I’d certainly return here; in fact, my five-year-old is begging me to let him loose with the sushi train on our next visit – something that, given his form, may well prove expensive!
Must-try dish: Saikyo-style chargrilled black cod
G/F, Lincoln House, Taikoo Place, 979 King’s Road, Quarry Bay
This article first appeared in Expat Living‘s Dec/Jan edition. Subscribe now so you never miss an issue.
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