SYUN - Contemporary Japanese Restaurant

At the recent highly anticipated G Restaurant Awards 2015, SYUN was awarded the best newcomer (Asian) restaurant. This is indeed a reassuring note for celebrity chef Hal Yamashita, whose restaurant is only 5-month-old in Singapore. Chef Yamashita hails from Kobe, Hyogo prefecture and his style of cooking is highly influenced by Kobe's fusion of techniques that allowed him to create his very own style.

We shall explore why this restaurant was deserving of the prestigious award. This would be based from a recent visit to the restaurant. Don't get me wrong, it is not that the food here was very expensive, but it was because during lunch, the items served were very limited to lunch sets only.

The grand entrance into SYUN. There is a little path
across the miniature Japanese garden. 

Simple yet modern layout. I like the 'gold' colour leaf which was used to rest the
chopsticks. 

Very attractive plates which I presumed was from Japan. 

Green Salad with Yuzu Ginger Dressing. The salad was fresh and it came with
the set but I was more attracted to the plate. 

Unagi and Foie Gras Teriyaki Jyu ($48).
Now, this was a very generous serving of Unagi and a thick slab of foie gras! The Unagi
was very well marinated in its sauce. The tender meat just melts in the mouth! This was
likewise for the foie gras, which just melted in the mouth with its distinct creamy flavour.

Bara Chirashi Sushi Jyu ($32).
Look at this piece of art. And the amount of sashimi toppings! You might think
that was probably just the top layer which was thin, but wait till you see the
subsequent pic. The sashimi was ultra fresh as fresh, and that went without
saying of course.  

See, what did I say? I think the rice was probably more expensive than the
sashimi hence the chef decided to give less rice and more sashimi. Well, this was
hell of a great value for money Chirashi I ever had!

The accompanying miso soup and chawanmushi. The soup was not too salty
which was to my liking. As for the chawanmushi, it was one of the silkiest
smooth and tasty egg curd I had thus far. 

I must say that I am hooked to this fine dining Japanese restaurant and the overall dining experience here was memorable as well. I will definitely want to try their dinner soon, which have more options.

SYUN

Festive Walk, Resort World Sentosa 

Tel: 6557 6688

Opening Hours:

Lunch:
12pm-3:00pm
(Tues-Sun, last order at 2:30pm)

Dinner:
6pm - 11:00pm
(Tues-Sun, last order at 10:30pm)

Close every Monday

SYUN Restaurant Webpage                   

Ryoshisushi Ikeike Maru @ Meidi-ya - Quick Fix Sushi Bar

Good conveyor belt sushi are hard to find these days. And how do you know if a sushi joint is really decent? Look at the type of customers it attracts! Ryoshisushi Ikeikemaru Sushi is frequently visited by the Japanese and of course, the locals. Since its first opening in 2012, it had attracted a steady stream of customers, which was hardly surprising given the relatively fresh food served and its pocket-friendliness.  

Entrance to Ryoshisushi Ikeikemaru Sushi at near Meidi-ya
Supermart.

Before I display the list of sushi and food that I had, let me explain how the pricing in this place works. The food items were categorised by plate colours, and the pricing was as listed below:

Green   : $1.80       Yellow : $2.80

Red      : $3.80        Silver  : $4.80

Golden : $5.80        Black  : $6.80

Conveyor Belt Sushi that offers Spacious Seating as well.  

Sushi Chef in Action

The price of food would also be in multiples of the plate colours. For example, say if there was an item that cost $20.40, that would mean 3 black plates. Ordering of the food could be done through the serves via the menu, or one could just pick any favorites from the moving conveyor belt. Overall dining experience in this restaurant was OK. For those on a rush and craving for good sushi, this could be one good quick fix instead of heading to the usual conveyor belt chains. 

Aburi Salmon ($2.80). Used to come in pair for the same price, but had
shrunk to 1 piece instead

Sashimi Sushi ( i can't recall the name) ($5.80)
Well, if i can't remember, this was probably forgettable :-)

Salmon Head Miso Soup ($4.80)
Very big portion of soup here. To some, this could be a main course by
itself.

Natto Maki ($1.80).
A perennial favourite that can't really go wrong.

Teriyaki Meat Ball ($1.80).
The meat ball taste like flour ball. Don't
expect getting the Tori-Q type of meatballs.

Itako Sushi ($3.80)
Another can't go wrong option. 

Raw Oyster Sushi ($4.80)
 This was worth ordering. The oysters were
very succulent and fresh.

Hokkaido Fish Cake ($5.80)
 This was so-so. Looking at the colour, one
could tell that it was a bit over fried.

Green Tea Ice Shavings with Red Bean ($5.80)
Green tea syrup with condensed milk and topped
with that one single scoop of red beans.

Ryoshisushi Ikeike Maru

B1 Liang Court

177 River Valley Road

Tel: 6337 1022

Opening Hours:

Daily from 10:00 am - 10:00 pm

Ryoshisushi Ikeike Maru Webpage

Mezza9 @ Hyatt - An All Round Food Fare for Anybody and Everybody!

I'd always like dining at Mezza9 as it offers a highly diverse food options for anybody. For those fussy eaters, there are bound to be something that find its way to their stomachs eventually. The open concept of the various kitchens is also cool, it serves as a constant reminder that these food are prepared fresh from the kitchen right before our very own eyes!

2nd Level Entrance to Mezza9@ Hyatt

Open Concept Kitchens

Reservations are highly recommended for this place, and even during weekdays, the restaurant will be packed. The set lunches offered at this restaurant are very reasonably priced, more so if you are a Club at the Hyatt (CATH) member where there are certain food discounts for varying diners. For this particular visit, I had opted for the three course set lunch ( $42 ++). For the appetiser, I had opted for the loch fyne smoked salmon, grated egg, chives, sour cream, capers and shallots. Frankly, this in itself could be a main course for some and this was a great dish to whet appetite. 

Appetiser: Loch fyne smoked salmon, grated egg, chives, sour cream, 

capers, shallots

For the main course, I had opted for the Sakura Denbu Chirashi. This is really very decent and i loved it. The sashimi was fresh and the rice used was of good Japanese grade ( or at least tasted like one :-)).

Main Course: Sakura Denbu Sushi

As for the dessert, i had opted for the dessert of the day. As you can see, it was very beautifully presented and the sourness of the sorbet and accompanying berries was a good mouth cleanser.

Dessert of the Day: Meringue with Blackberry Sorbet and Berries

 On top of the main course, there was also a side order of oysters ($6/pc). The oysters tasted very fresh and succulent. Very yummy!

Seasonal Oyster with Lemon and Condiments ($6/pc)

For those who did not want to have meal courses, there were many other lunch sets as well, such as the Bento Box ($44) which was great value for money.

Bento Box ($44). Consist of seaweed salad, sashimi, grilled saba, chicken
meatballs, teriyaki beef, grilled shitake mushrooms, udon and fresh fruits. 

Dining at Mezza9 never fails to disappoint. This is a highly recommended place for any occasions, anybody and everybody.

Beautiful Man-Made Waterfall Garden near the Lift Lobby@ Grand Hyatt

Mezza9

Mezzanine Level, Grand Hyatt Singapore

10 Scotts Road, S(228211)

Tel: 6738 1234

Opening Hours:

Lunch: 12:00 pm to 3:00pm daily

Dinner: 6:00 pm to 11:00pm daily

Sunday Brunch: 11:30 am to 3:00 pm, last pour at 2:45 pm

Mezza9 Webpage

Chikuwa Tei - Haven for Chiraishi lovers!

I love Chirashi. Also known as Chirashizushi, there is a certain mesmerizing charm to the scattered bits of sashimi on top of the rice. I would personally called that artfood, something beautiful to behold and delicious to savour. Lately, I have been told that Chikuwa Tei serves one of best value for money Chirashi. 

Long-ish Restaurant, set in one of the shop houses along
Mohammed Sultan Road

Sushi Chefs in Action

Weekend reservations is a must, if not there would not be any seats, even for early birds who chose to walk in. The restaurant was almost filled up even at 6-ish pm as seen in the above photos.

Now onto the main meat of the review. The Chirashi portions were really generous, not to mention that the sashimi toppings were very fresh as well. At $25 per set, this was really quite a steal!

Chirashi Set ($25)

For those who want a separate sashimi from the rice, one could opt for the sashimi set ($22). As seen, the sashimi portions were equally generous and thick in cut as well.

Sashimi Set ($22)

Grilled fish lovers could also opt for the Saba Set ($14) which was grilled to perfection and still maintained its succulence. Squid lovers should try the Ika Teriyaki here ( $15), which was out of this world in my opinion! And of course, for those who could not get enough of the sashimi could order more from the ala carte menu. Obviously, the white tuna sashimi ($14) and the hotate sashimi ($14) had caught my soul this time round.

Saba Set ($14)

Ika Teriyaki ($15)

Additional Order of Hotate Sashimi ($14)
& White Tuna Sashimi ($14)

Chikuwa Tei

9 Mohammed Sultan Road, 

#01-01 S(238959)

Tel: 67389395

Opening Hours:

Mon-Sun

11:30- 3:00pm

6:00- 10:00pm

Chikuwa Tei Webpage