It’s nice to have friends who love food. Whenever I hangout with Beatrice and Velda, we will always be looking for new places to try.

During our recent glutton outing, we were joined by our friend Ming, and he introduced us to one of his favourite Japanese Restaurants in Singapore – Akanoya Robatayaki at Orchard Parade Hotel.

It was an exceptional meal, and despite the price tag, I think it is worth saving up for that special occasion.

Akanoya specialises in robatayaki. For the uninitiated, robatayaki is a technique in Japanese cuisine; customers sit around an open counter where fresh ingredients are displayed, and they can just point to order. The chefs will then grill the ingredients like seafood, meat, and vegetables over charcoal, and serve it to the customers using a long wooden paddle.

Robatayaki is a fun experience. You get to look at all the fresh ingredients and choose whatever you feel like having, but it can also be quite dangerous if you are the type like me, who always tend to over-order.

Our robatayaki feast began with Grilled Asparagus ($7) and Ginkgo Nuts ($7). Next we had a mixture of Shiitake ($15) and Enoki ($8) wrapped in aluminium foil.

After that was the Grilled Taraba Crab ($70), which you see in the first photo of this post. It was not only visually stunning, but also very delicious. The Lamb ($15) was equally good; it was sweet, juicy, and meaty. We also had Tebasaki ($8), and while the meat was nicely marinated, I felt that it was only decent.

The highlight of the meal was the Wagyu Beef ($40) – it was sensational. I know it seems a little extravagant to spend $40 for three cubes of beef on a stick. But trust me on this, it is absolutely worth every penny. To round off the dinner, we had Satsumaimo ($12) – Japanese sweet potato, and fruits.

The price (we paid around $852 for 5 pax), of course, might put off many people. But I do think that Akanoya restaurant is a good place to go for your first Robatayaki experience.

And the best part is they open till late night, so you can always head there for supper, and order a few dishes to go along with some drinks.

Akanoya Robatayaki
1 Tanglin Road
#01-01 Orchard Parade Hotel
Tel: +65 6732 1866
Daily: 6pm – 2am

For more recommendations, please read my list of Japanese Restaurants in Singapore

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I first heard of Mikuni Japanese Restaurant during their official opening in September last year. But I had something on and couldn’t make it for the launch party. Time passed quickly and somehow I didn’t get a chance to drop by for a meal.

Fast forward a few months, I received another invitation from Fairmont Hotel Singapore to visit Mikuni for their Winter Robata, a culinary special featuring Hokkaido’s finest produce and flavours.

The restaurant has specially procured the freshest ingredients from the sub-prefectures of Sapporo, Tokachi, Rishiri and Hakodate, to create a 11-Course Kaiseki menu.

We started our 11 course dinner ($280/pax) at Mikuni with a dry scallop paired with the classic Sapporo beer. Second course was Salmon roe with Hokkaido Smoked Camembert Cheese which was presented in a tiny bottle.

One of the highlights was the Potato Pork Gyoza with Mushroom Broth. I was telling my dining companions that this was a bowl of “atas” wonton soup. Jokes aside, it was sublime. I finished everything.

And I am still thinking about how good the Giant Scallop Sashimi topped with Sea Urchin was. We had sake. And more sake…

The Salmon was well prepared, but for me, the mushrooms were even better.

My favourite course of the meal was next. The Hokotate was a clam which came in a special sauce made of sake and onion butter. It was so damn good. Unbelievable.

Mikuni’s sommelier (one of the few who specialises in Japanese Sake) was pouring different kinds of sake to pair with the food. The Potato and Crab Tempura that came next was fantastic. (I am very sure I was still sober by then, so I wasn’t influenced by the sake. Stop looking at me like that, I wasn’t drunk!)

While the Wagyu Beef with Hokkaido Wine Sauce was well received by the others, I felt that it was good, but not amazing.

The visually stunning Abalone and Uni, Seaweed and Shio Gama Yaki.

If you are still not full by now, there’s the Sapporo Miso Seafood Ramen to fill your stomach.

Desserts too, were splendid. I thoroughly enjoyed the Milk Pudding and Apple Cake. What a lovely ending.

Suffice it to say, we had a very good meal at Mikuni Japanese Restaurant. The Winter Robata promotion runs from 1 to 29 February 2012 with set menus priced at $280+++ per person and $350++ per person with sake pairing.

Mikuni Japanese Restaurant
80 Bras Basah Road
Level 3 Fairmont Singapore
Tel: +65 6431 6156
Note: This was an invited media tasting.

For more recommendations, read my list of Japanese Restaurants in Singapore

Standing Sushi Bar has established a good reputation for good quality Japanese cuisine since opening back in 2009. The quirky concept of standing-in-a-sushi-bar has also helped boost their popularity in the Singapore Food Scene.

Fans of Standing Sushi Bar will be happy to know that they have recently added new branches at 8Q Singapore Art Museum and Marina Bay Link.

The new location at 8Q sam is much bigger than their original outlet at Raffles Place. While I like the idea of watching the chef in action while eating at a sushi bar, sometimes I just want to sit in a corner and enjoy my Japanese food in peace.

Standing Sushi Bar’s menu is very comprehensive and it includes a good variety of sashimi and sushi, agemono, robatayaki, noodle and grilled items. It took us a while before we could decide on what to order. Luckily, the staff was very knowledgeable about the menu and she advised us to go for some of their popular dishes.

The Sushi Take ($25) set came with 7 assorted nigiri, 2 pieces of maki, miso soup and a salad. Every piece of nigiri was so delicate and easy on the palate.

The Garlic Fried Rice ($7) came highly recommended and it did not disappoint. It had a lovely smell and every grain was so good. Seriously I could just eat this and ignore everything else. Definitely one of the best fried rice I’ve had.

Standing Sushi Bar’s Sashimi Platter ($35 for 6 kinds, 12 slices) is a good choice if you want variety. But we decided to focus solely on Salmon Sashimi ($10 for 5 slices). There are only so many words you can use to describe sashimi, and sooner or later, it is inevitable to repeat the same description. So here goes: the gorgeous salmon sashimi was extremely fresh, and it was excellent with a gentle touch of wasabi.

With choices like foie gras, chicken heart, chicken gizzard, chicken skin, chicken cartillage on Standing Sushi Bar’s robatayaki menu, it was very difficult to choose just one. In the end, we went for the Beef & Enoki mushroom skewer ($8 for 2 sticks) and it was fantastic! Together with the flavourful sauce, the mushrooms added an earthy tone to the succulent and tender beef.

Anyway, I am not sure if it is just me, but I do feel that most Japanese restaurants in Singapore have pretty expensive grilled skewers. Do let me know if you know any place that serves cheap and good yakitori.

We were quite full by now, but of course, there’s always room for desserts and we ended the Japanese dinner with matcha and black sesame ice cream.

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The fact that there are plenty of seats in a Standing Sushi Bar (SSB) is contradicting, but I am not complaining. The new Standing Sushi Bar at 8Q @ Singapore Arts Museum (SAM) is a place where you can dine in peace and have good Japanese food. Otherwise, there is always Food For Thought Cafe, which serves comfort food at affordable prices.

With sashimi, sushi and sake, my life is complete.

// Standing Sushi Bar at 8QSAM has an 1 for 1 Asahi draft beer promotion from Monday to Friday 5pm – 7pm happy hour.

Singapore Food Blog Review
Standing Sushi Bar
8 Queen Street #01-03 Singapore
Tel: +65 6333 1335

8A Marina Boulevard #B2-51
Marina Bay Link Mall Singapore
Tel: +65 6634 7068

1 Raffles Place #B1-02B
One Raffles Place (OUB Centre) Singapore
Tel: +65 6533 7078

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