Tora-San

Looking for value-for-money Japanese food in town? Use Burpple Beyond at Tora-San in The Centrepoint, where the Koji Burpple Set for 2 offers an unbeatable deal!

This satisfying set meal includes 2 mains of choice, 4 pieces of perfectly grilled yakitori and 2 cups of Japanese green tea. Go for the Tora-Kaisen San Regular, which comes with a mountain of fish, scallops and octopus. Each bite is a testament to the quality and freshness, making the bowl an exquisite delight for seafood lovers.

Bonus! If you opt for a cooked main rather than one with raw fish, you'll also be treated to a silky smooth chawanmushi!

Tora-San is one of those F&B establishments that we had got to find out whilst going around The Centrepoint not too long ago — Tora-San did stick out with us particularly considering how there hasn’t been much movement in the tenants occupying shop spaces in the mall; most of the movement in recent times is noticed to be within the shop spaces located at the lower levels of the mall rather than being on the upper levels. Tora-San occupies a shop space at the third storey of the mall; their space being located around the area where one can also find other F&B establishments in the area such as that of GoroGoro Steamboat & Korean Buffet. On first sight, Tora-San is unmistakably a F&B establishment focusing on Japanese fare; this is particularly obvious from its tagline indicating “Chirashi & Donburi” — one can also find a statue of their mascot being a tiger holding up a bowl of Donburi being located outside of the restaurant. Decked on true Japanese-style, one can find the traditional Japanese clothes being draped at the entrance of the store; the interior of the store furnished with wooden furniture and fittings while an entire feature wall sees shelvings filled with lit paper lanterns marked with their logo. Skimming through the menu, Tora-San unsurprisingly places their emphasis on the various Chirashi and Kaisendon items which they carry — there are however a small number of Donburi that comprises of only cooked food on the menu for those whom prefer having something that does not comprise of raw fish. It is also noted that Tora-San does also serve up a small selection of items in the Children Udon Set Menu for children below 12 years old, while there are also a variety of side dishes that one can go for. The selection of beverages at Tora-San includes the usual suspects such as green tea (refillable), canned drinks etc., as well as items such as the Hot Honey Citron Drink and Iced Honey Citron Soda.

One of the items that had caught our attention whilst skimming through the menu at Tora-San was the Mentaiyaki Kaisen San — this would be an item that can be found in the Mentaiko section of the menu. The Mentaiyaki Kaisen San is possibly the most basic Mentaiko-based Kaisendon that Tora-San has to offer; Tora-San does not describe on the elements that comes with the Mentaiyaki Kaisen San on the menu, though it can be observed from our order that the item does come with diced seafood, diced Tamagoyaki and diced cucumbers all drizzled with Mentaiko mayonnaise that has been flame-torched, and topped of with a mix of Ebiko and Tobiko. Each order of Donburi also comes with a complimentary bowl of miso soup on the side, and also comes with a saucer that contains a knob of wasabi and ginger flower. The rice that comes served with the Mentaiyaki Kaisen San does come at a temperature just slightly warmer than room temperature; not sure if this is so considering that the bowl has been flame-torched before it was being served. We did feel that the fish was sliced in appropriately-sized cubes that enabled one to get a little bit of everything in one entire mouthful; that are some cooked elements, as well as the Tamagoyaki and cucumber that adds a contrast of textures to the entire bowl — one can mostly feel the naturally sweet notes of the diced seafood that is pretty fresh, as well as the soft texture of the Tamagoyaki and the refreshing crunch delivered by the cucumber in a single mouthful; the mix of Ebiko and Tobiko providing a bursting pop of umami flavour.

There was adequate amounts of Mentaiko mayonnaise drizzled over the top, while it is also adequately flame-torched to provide a smoky and umami note that would easily make it a crowd favourite. We had also given the Unagi Chirashi Don a go — this would come with slices of tuna and salmon sashimi, Aka Ebi, Unagi, Shiso Leaf, and the same mix of Ebiko and Tobiko as per the Mentaiyaki Kaisen San. Again, the raw seafood does come pretty fresh here; this being the one that would also appeal to those preferring entire slices of raw fish than cubes of diced sashimi — the only qualm we have had here was with the rice that although comes slightly chilled with a slight tinge of sweetness, does feel a little dry and clumpy. With its Chirashi and Kaisendon offerings being the much of its focus here at Tora-San, we did find that their offerings are rather decent though a little bit on the pricey side; their Chirashi and Kaisendon offerings are priced starting from $18.90 for their Tora-San Bara Chirashi Bowl to $29.90 for the Tora-King Chirashi Don — there are some establishments which do serve a wider variety of Chirashi and Kaisendon with more finesse or with an inventive approach than Tora-San for around the same price. Still, Tora-San does present itself as a rather decent option to consider when dining around the area especially if one winds up at The Centrepoint looking to settle for a meal without having to get out of the mall.