REVIEW: 7 best Japanese restaurants in Singapore for sushi, omakase and kaiseki

BORUTO

1/6

#01-01 Golden Castle Building, 80 South Bridge Road, tel: 6532-0418.

Japanese izakayas can be intimidating. One always feels like it’s necessary to be “in” with the chef or owner to be let in on the off-menu specials and shots of exclusive sake. Boruto – a Japanese izakaya, tapas and sake bar located in a double-storey former bank along South Bridge Road – certainly does give that impression.

The restaurant signboard is not clearly visible, lending it a secretive air. The interior is dark and moody. But all discomfort is eased with the warm greeting from the hostess. The service she extends has us feeling at home.

To help us with our sake selection (the establishment offers more than 100 varieties), she brings three bottles for sampling and patiently explains the differences, before suggesting a suitable bottle size for us to share.

The food is no less impressive. Ubiquitous edamame is tossed with garlic, sea salt and black pepper, elevating it to an unexpected, addictive level. We are further blown away by the tender slices of Saga beef, lightly seared and dressed with aromatic saffron strands. Finally, the fresh, sweet Okayama oyster with yuzu wasabi vinaigrette is topped with tiny yuzu “molecules” that pop delightfully in the mouth.

Exceptional food aside, it’s the attentive, patient service that will have us returning for a memorable dining experience.

Text: Olivia Lim

HASHIDA SUSHI

2/6

#04-16 Mandarin Gallery, tel: 6733-2114.

Chef Kenjiro Hashida could serve you a plain-looking knob of steamed onion and you would enjoy it. The magic the 37-year-old chef possesses is a masterful ability to draw out exciting flavours from the simplest produce. Steaming the Japanese bulb, for instance, brings out all of its natural sweetness which he then enhances with a light, comforting broth.

Hashida opened the eponymous restaurant here in 2013, an off-shoot of his father’s sushi joint that’s held court in Tokyo since 1967. But he has put his own spin to the Edomae-style his father practises religiously.

Take a Thai snapper fish, for instance. Hashida serves this fresh as sashimi, together with a selection of botan ebi, octopus and a playful “prawn oil snow” on the side. It’s lovely as it is, but Hashida smartly demonstrates there’s more than one way to enjoy the fish – in his hands, that is. It appears twice more – as a jelly that’s an intriguing mix of firm and wobble, and another time baked in a salt crust, served with monkfish liver that’s torched for a light caramelised layer.

A team of highly talented and skilled chefs serve the guests, but consider it a double treat if the man himself serves you for the night, for he is a born entertainer. While serving a three day-aged botan ebi, he jokes about how it is a clever name for leftovers he can’t sell. Pay him no mind, because the jumbo shrimp has a deep, rich sweetness that lends it an added complexity.

But all jokes are set aside when Hashida crafts the piece de resistance of the meal: a hulking slab of tuna belly that makes up the last piece of sushi he will serve for the night. He slowly shaves off a thin slice of ootoro which he drapes over his two fingers; he then carves another bit of belly, dabs fresh wasabi on both pieces, and teases out a third sliver of fish. Finally, the marbled layers are wrapped over a nugget of sushi rice. This is one technique Hashida has kept from his father, and it is art at its finest. Crowds would come back for this dish alone.

Text: Meryl Koh

 

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WAKU GHIN

3/6

#02-02 The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, tel: 6688-8507.

There are a few things one can always expect at Waku Ghin. First and foremost: fresh, premium ingredients, skilfully cooked in uncomplicated ways so that said ingredients shine. Second: a tranquil dining environment, manned by servers who are attentive but unobtrusive, thanks to the fact that the four private rooms in this establishment seat a maximum of only 25 guests.

Another thing that all of Waku Ghin’s regulars have come to expect is the restaurant’s signature dish – marinated botan shrimp with sea urchin and oscietra caviar, which remains a familiar constant even as the other offerings on the omakase menu change. The second item on our 10-course menu, it is reliably divine, with a briny richness complemented by the fresh sweetness of the shrimp.

Yet other courses shine in their own right too. Think an Ohmi Wagyu beef lightly seared on the teppan grill and served with wasabi and citrus soya; and other highlights such as a crisp, pan-seared amadai (tilefish) with maitake mushrooms that contribute earthy sweetness and texture.

Curveballs do not faze the staff here. Informed only at the start of dinner that one in our party is allergic to eggs and oysters, the chef accordingly omits the poached egg from a dish of pureed potato with truffle and caviar. It would have been more impressive to have the egg replaced with another ingredient, but the response is fair given the short notice.

For dessert, an egg-free item – rice pudding with mango – is also thoughtfully served, in place of the evening’s red bean pie with matcha. A sweet ending to a practically perfect meal.

Text: Lynette Koh

KAISEKI YOSHIYUKI

4/6

#B1-39 Forum The Shopping Mall, tel: 8188-0900. 

Tucked away in a discreet basement corner of the forgotten mall that is The Forum is Kaiseki Yoshiyuki. Designed by award-winning local agency Asylum, the entrance pathway with its walls clad in traditional roof tiles is a nod to the origins of kaiseki from Kyoto temples, while a 13-seat kappo counter room bathed in warm light is a comfortable haven.

The same modern yet distinctly Japanese elegance comes through in the well-executed cuisine here. Heading the kitchen is chef Yoshiyuki Kashiwabara, who spent seven years as personal chef to Japanese ambassadors in San Francisco and Singapore. His clientele now is made up of well-heeled business types looking for a quiet spot to entertain and impress, and Kashiwabara is happy to lend a hand.

He shows off remarkable knife skills by swiftly shaving paper-thin slices of daikon. These, he carefully arranges on a plate of higedara sashimi, akami and ootoro, before putting on a soya espuma which he came up with to replace the traditional little dish of soya sauce. “The flavour is more intense. It’s easier for guests to put on the sashimi also,” says the chef.

But Kashiwabara knows when to return to simplicity, too. A bowl of clear soup, redolent of the natural sweetness of clams, is immensely comforting. And he is unabashed when insisting we take home what’s left of a tasty sakura ebi rice he doles out from a large clay pot. “For lunch tomorrow,” he quips, as his hands deftly pat and roll up the rice. A lovely gesture, and a smart way to leave you with something to remember him by.

Text: Meryl Koh

 

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TAMASHII ROBATAYA

5/6

#02-01, 12 North Canal Road, tel: 6222-0316.

Within reasonable walking distance from the towering offices of the CBD is Tamashii Robataya, its location ideal for quick gourmet rejuvenation on a workday. A choice of executive business or regular set lunches are offered in the afternoon, though the restaurant keeps its a la carte menu on hand for those who prefer to linger.

The counter seats offer the best view of the elevated open kitchen and the wide array of market-fresh produce meant to whet appetites. The kitchen action before your eyes also makes the dining experience memorable. We can still taste the moreish flavours of an Award of Excellence dish of maitake mushrooms simply grilled with a delish butter soya sauce – even months later.

But the memory is made even more unforgettable by the spectacle of our chef placing the bowl on a samoji (small wooden oars used by Hokkaido fishermen to serve their catch of the day) and stretching out the wooden paddle to present it before us.

And where there’s no chance for them to act this out, the chefs deliver equally brilliant performances in the execution of dishes like beef donburi with tender slices of Saga A4 striploin, accompanied by a wobbly onsen egg; and a tender truffle chawanmushi that is lovely to inhale in every way.

Text: Meryl Koh

USHIDOKI WAGYU KAISEKI

6/6

57 Tras Street, te: 6221-6379.

In every journalist’s career, there inevitably comes a time when a decision has to be made: Keep quiet about a special spot or publicise it and risk long queues. To be fair, the proliferation of social media has made such hoarding instincts futile. Thus, this write-up on seven-month-old Ushidoki Wagyu Kaiseki, though it is evidently well-known to the local Japanese community, going by the nationality of the guests.

The word will spread before long. Ushidoki is an amalgam of successful ingredients. Singaporeans’ love of beef – here, it’s specially imported from a boutique Wagyu farm in Japan – an experienced English-speaking Japanese chef who can banter with guests, a cosy, intimate setting conducive to conversation, and solid, surely executed fare.

Chef Nobuaki Hirohashi makes sure different cuts of beef get their share of the limelight. A basic six-course starts with beef tongue consomme, its balanced flavours foreshadowing the satisfying meal ahead. Indeed, the beef sashimi paired with raw oyster and ponzu sauce offers a delightful hit of silky umami. The sukiyaki, featuring beef slices dipped in a six-month-old mother sauce, half-boiled egg, and grilled rice ball in a beef broth topped with truffle shavings, will, I suspect, be the next must-have dish in Singapore dining.

There are two other menus – the 10-course Ozaki Beef and Premium Ozaki Beef. Guests who choose these options when they make reservations get priority counter seating and menus printed especially for them. It’s a lovely bespoke touch that shows you are in good hands, in terms of quality of food as well as standard of service.

Text: Jennifer Chen

 

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