Gyushi (Shenton)

Fresh and chunky sashimi slices served with juicy ikura, crunchy cucumber, and soft tamago. Enjoyed the thick cuts of sashimi and wouldn’t say it’s the best quality but great for the price.

𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐲𝐮 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐟 𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐥 ($16.80) - Tender, juicy, and well-marinated wagyu beef slices. Served together with onsen egg that added creaminess to the rice. Chose to add on beef for $6.80 and it was a truly generous loading of proteins. We did find the meat to have a slight gamy taste which perhaps the truffle Mayo or mentaiko would cover up for those that dislike a string near flavour.

Came to hear about the new Gyushi, which has opened its doors recently at Downtown Gallery. Gyushi takes over the former premises of the now-defunct Wafuken in the mall; a location that is situated at the corner of level 2 of the mall that is just right opposite Chen’s Mapo Tofu. Gyushi’s interior is decked in a pretty bright colour theme — the use of red in its facade is pretty attention-grabbing, while the dine-in furnishings feature blue elements amidst the wooden accents. The walls also features a splash of comic-style murals — a pretty fun look, with one of the walls detailing the “Tale of Gyushi” that sounds a little bit of a fictional tale that gives a bit of the backdrop behind the dining concept. Gyushi is pretty much a self-service concept with free seating; patrons are able to sit at a table that they desire, and ordering is done through a QR code — this remains the same even for takeaway orders, and patrons will be required to pick up their orders at the food collection point once it is ready. Similarly, patrons are also expected to return their used bowls and cutlery once done with their meal at a separate drop-off counter. Gyushi’s menu looks suspiciously similar to that of Waa Cow! (we have asked Gyushi’s staff about it; they claimed that they are a different company altogether — their social media account suggests links with Karubi within Huggs at Clarke Quay and GRILL by CUT) — the main focus of Gyushi surrounding its various Wagyu Beef Bowls featuring different sauces such as that of Mentaiko, as well as their Signature Truffle Wagyu Beef Bowl. For those whom are not so much into beef, there are other options such as that of the Gyushi Signature Chirashi, Aburi Spicy Salmon Mentai Don, Mentaiko Salmon Don and the Teriyaki Glazed Chicken Thigh Don that is available at Gyushi. Gyushi also serves up a number of side dishes, while choices of drinks are pretty much limited to hot Japanese Sencha and canned drinks.

Wanting to go for something a little different than the dons that seem to highly replicate the offerings available at Waa Cow!, we decided to go for the Hokkaido Gyu Don. Gyushi does offer patrons with the choice of opting for various sets — we had decided to go with the Salmon Sashimi Set, which adds three slices of salmon sashimi and a bowl of mini salad at an additional charge of $4.90. The Hokkaido Gyu Don at Gyushi is described to feature elements such as Simmered Grain-Fed Australian Beef Slices, Onions in Housemade Soy Dashi Broth, Onsen Egg, and Nigata Rice. On first look, the Hokkaido Gyu Don already seems pretty simple but wholesome — there are sufficient beef slices that comes atop the bed of Japanese short grain rice; the Onsen Egg is also seemingly topped with Ebiko that helps to provide a popping sensation as one chews upon them. Breaking the egg yolk and mixing all of the elements up together, the Onsen Egg with its runny whites and yolk help to provide a silkier texture to all of the elements together. Here, the beef slices were slightly chewy but carried a good bite; somewhat carrying a light hint of gaminess but aptly sweetened by the Housemade Soy Dashi Broth and the caramalised onions that come within. The short grain rice beneath absorbs all of that light sweetness that comes with the Housemade Soy Dashi Broth; the short grain rice also being pearly and sufficiently moist at the same time, making it a breeze to polish up the entire bowl of Hokkaido Gyu Don in no time.

Given how we had only tried a single main item at Gyushi, we would not be able to accurately comment on how their other dishes may fare. That being said, the Hokkaido Gyu Don was something in which that we found to be simple yet comforting — definitely an item which most would be able to agree with especially considering how it is pretty much fuss-free in nature; a natural crowd-pleaser in its own right. We also felt that the mini salad that came as part of the Salmon Sashimi Set that we had opted for was pretty appetising with a generous drizzle of Goma dressing that added a creamy and nutty note to the crunchy greens. The Salmon Sashimi on the other hand were pretty decent; nothing particularly premium about it, though was definitely something acceptable considering the price point that it commands for. Considering Gyushi’s location, it does seem that Gyushi’s main target audience would be the office workers that are working in the Central Business District — the prices are something which we would call decent; the most value-for-money offerings would be their Value Lunch Sets which are into available during lunch service featuring the patron’s choice of Donburi, 1 Appetizer, 1 House Goma Salad and 1 Beverage of the patron’s choice that are priced between $16.80 to $18.80. Their ala-carte Donburi in the meanwhile are priced in the range of $11.80 to $18.80. Needless to say, we would probably return to Gyushi another day just to give their Waa Cow!-esque items a go — it does seem like Gyushi is that sort of spot that would be a hit with the office workers around the ‘hood!