A 7 course dinner set, feels like an omakase but at the same time not as the serving speed of the dishes is mostly overlapping just short of serving everything at one go! 😅 But wells got it at a 1-1 deal with burpple beyond at Matsuya Dining along Beach Road!
The course started out light and it get heavier towards the end. My favorites of the set got to be the Oyster which was very plump, creamy and citrusy with the ponzu sauce; followed by the Sashimi Mori, with chutoro, tai and hotate sashimi being the leading choices in the platter. The Gindara miso was also torched to perfection. The cod fish was flaky, sweet and savory.
Their chawamushi is only tasty with the compliments of the Ikura otherwise, it’s like steam egg without stock. On the other hand find it a pity I didn’t get to really enjoy the Wagyu Niniku Rice. There’s a nice garlicky fragrance and aroma but the rice was a tad little too oily and the beef slices is a little overcooked to stomach after 6 courses of dishes.
It seems like they do better with their raw fishes and they do seem to have a group of regulars whom will frequent them! Ambiance wise it’s like an inbetween a tradition sake house and a Japanese restaurant. The staffs were pretty friendly too!
A very small restaurant housed in Beach Centre. It was full house on a Saturday evening so I would definitely recommend making a reservation. The place has a rather casual vibe but has impeccable service. Staff is very helpful and dishes were served right on time. One after the other. They were attentive and would clear your plates once you have finished your dish. It is worth noting that the Burpple set menu was different from the ones featured in their regular menu. I was shown a photo with 5 courses and no text but in a gist this was what they were, served in order:
1.) Oyster Sashimi
This consisted of 2 oysters served cut and was a pleasant surprise because it was different from regular raw oysters! The texture was a lot more chewy, less watery and was complimented well by the garnished soy sauce.
2.) Sashimi Platter (scallop, yellowtail, salmon belly, tuna belly and another white fish sashimi)
Sashimi platter was lack luster in my opinion. Didn't feel particularly fresh but a nice variety of fish was presented.
3.) Prawn Tempura (fried prawn)
I indicated fried prawns because it tasted more like it than tempura, lacking the crunch of tempura batter. I am not sure if it was intended to be a tempura dish, but deep fried prawns are also not common in Japanese menus 🤷🏻♀️ This dish was just alright. Not great.
4.) Grilled Cod with mayo and ebiko + Ikura Chuwanmushi
The grilled cod was buttery and fresh. Light mayo dressing has a tangy taste to it with crunchy ebiko making it a tasty dish. Chuwanmushi was disappointing. I am a big chuwanmushi fan this was bad steamed egg for restaurant standards. Egg was tasteless and felt like it was made without special broth. Only saving grace is the fresh ikura on top.
5.) Beef with Garlic Fried Rice + Fish Miso Ginger Soup
As I do not consume beef, the staff was very kind to swop it out into unagi for me. The unagi was well prepared and soft to the bite but was a really small (thin) serving. Garlic rice was delicious too. My friend who ordered beef however left most of the meat uneaten because she said it was overcooked and tough. On the other hand, the miso soup was good! It was served with fatty fish slices with bone that I don't eat, but it is my first time having miso with ginger and I was pleasantly surprised.
Overall: Even though there was good service and decent food, with a wide array of dishes, I was sweating while having my food because the AC was not strong. May be because we were seated beside the drinks fridge. If you picked Unagi for the rice dish like I did, this is a very seafood-heavy course. I think it is a nice dining concept but post-taxes (with green tea) the bill came up to $143.35 and at 70 per pax I feel like you can have pretty decent Japanese food that you personally enjoy instead of being restricted by a course meal. Courses were mostly a hit or miss and the dishes I truly enjoyed were the oyster sashimi and unagi fried rice + miso soup, but you could have something similar elsewhere.
Ambience: 3/10
Service: 9/10
Food: 6.5/10
Price: 4/10 (with Beyond)
Burpple beyond 1 for 1 was worth it. Sashimi was fresh and tender, portion of unagi rice was just nice. Location was easy to find, overall a great experience.
Inside, they served the typical kind of Izakaya dishes along with their wide variety of sakes and other drinks.
Nevertheless, the 7-course Omakase set we had showcased the skills and heart put into preparing their dishes. With thick-cut sashimi, oysters in ponzu, marvellously fried soft-shell crab and miso cod etc, it was a meal that satisfies. Of cos, the meal was even more complete with a bottle of sparkling sake.
Use the Burppler Beyond 1 to 1 lunch deal for their Unagi don, salad, miso soup, sashimi and tempura.. with refillable hot green tea. Would say it's a pretty good deal. Rice a bit overcook ;)
This was pretty good except that it pales in comparison to all the other dishes I had earlier. The fried rice could be less dry in my opinion. Nonetheless, I had the closest to what I would deem as authentic Japanese food outside of Japan here.
Although this doesn't look very appetising, I love how the soup had the essence of the salmon paired with miso.
The roe made the chawanmushi even more flavourful except that the egg was a little too diluted.
It's rare to find soft shell crab that is done just well, not too crispy or soft. This one was simply on point with its crispy batter and tender soft shell crab meat.
My favourite dish of all as the mentaiko was nicely added to give the cod fish a more creamy taste
Everything was really delicious but the scallop stood out most to me as you could still taste the sweetness and it was chewy.
Sashimi is fresh and chawansushi is equally good as well. Worth it for 1 to 1 omakase dinner deal
Good quality omakase meal. Food was very good but short handed, slow and not so welcoming service dampened our experience. We did not appreciate the next course also arriving at our table before we finished with our current dish, making us feel like we had to rush through our meal.
Overall worth it with 1 for 1 burpple beyond.
Oyster - very big, juicy and fresh
Sashimi - very fresh thick slices that went very well with the freshly grated wasabi
Chawanmushi - served piping hot with ikura. Also well done.
Soft shell crab - it was hot, crispy and fresh. Very generous portion served
Cod fish - very well done, tender and fatty and went well with accompanying sauce
Wagyu beef fried rice - sauce drizzled was too much and too sweet. A pity because the beef texture was very tender and almost melt in the mouth but it was overwhelmed by the sauce.
Fish soup - warm and comforting end to our meal
The Cod Fish was my favourite dish that left me craving for more in the 1 for 1 set dinner menu ($120++).
Got a date to impress? This seven-course Japanese dinner set will definitely hit homerun.
Photo by Burppler Tyler Koh
Garlic fried rice was really fragrant and flavorful and the beef really tender. However the beef had some powder sprinkled on it and it tasted like the Japanese chili powder which was really weird and unnecessary.
This oyster came topped with flying fish roe and scallions in a ponzu sauce. The oyster had to be cut into 3 pieces cause it was HUGE and i don’t joke around when I say it’s huge it really was. Oyster was super fresh and juicy as well.
All the fish served were nice and fresh but the champion would be the fresh scallop. Super large and juicy that we ordered another serving after tasting it. Hard to decide between the chutoro and hamachi for second place and we also ordered another serving of both woops🙈
The crab was really fresh and not the frozen kind that most japanese restaurants use. The batter was really light and crisp, not taking away the flavor of the crab. It also came with a nice ponzu dipping sauce that cut through the deep fried-ness of the crab.
