[CLOSED] Kiyoshi – Inaniwa Udon and Wholesome Japanese Restaurant [MEDIA INVITE]

Inaniwa Udon @ Kiyoshi Japanese Restaurant

Kiyoshi means pure, clean and clean in Japanese. True to its name, Kiyoshi Japanese Restaurant (‘Kiyoshi’) focus to provide light and wholesome meal for customers. Kiyoshi pride itself on fresh ingredients prepared using an innovative, contemporary approach.

Kiyoshi Japanese Restaurant

Kiyoshi specialised in Inaniwa udon, a type of udon made in the Inaniwa area of Inakawa Machi, Akita prefecture. This cream colour udon is hand-stretched and is slightly thinner than regular udon, yet thicker than sōmen, or hiyamugi noodles. Other highlights of Kiyoshi include sashimi, donburi, ramen, yakitori and affordably priced bento sets. Not forgetting, Kiyoshi is also known as an Izakaya, a casual place for ‘after-work drinking’

After trying their bento set from the delivery menu (review is available here), we attended the Media Tasting for their Dine-In Menu.

Nice Tea Cup at Kiyoshi

We started with Tofu & Avocado Salada with Sesame Dressing ($11.80). There are a lot of texture happening in this dish, from the leafy vegetables, crunchy cucumber and capsicum, juicy cherry tomatoes, creamy avocado and silky tofu. Bind all the ingredients together is the aromatic sesame dressing. A refreshing start to the meal.

Tofu & Avocado Salada with Sesame Dressing

Currently this salad is complimentary for diners who spend $10 and above.

Next up is the Temaki (hand-rolled sushi). We have Soft Shell Crab Temaki ($7.80), Unagi Temaki ($7.80), Salmon Ikura Temaki ($9.80) and Tuna Mayo Ebiko Temaki ($4.80). There were four of us, so each one chooses one type of temaki.

Temaki

I went for the Unagi. This luxurious hand roll is fillings include unagi (eel), cucumber, unagi sauce. The fillings are very generous as I can taste the juicy unagi till the last bite of the maki. LD tried salmon ikura as the salmon roe is just too attractive for her, based on her description, every bite burst out the freshness of the roe and salmon.

Unagi and Soft Shell Crab Temaki

Tuna Mayo Ebiko Temaki & Salmon Ikura Temaki

Following the temaki are Nigiri Sushi consists of Salmon Sushi ($3.80 for 2 pcs), Kanpachi Sushi ($4.80 for 2 pcs) and Maguro Sushi ($6.80 for 2 pcs); and Salmon Mentai Roll ($12.80).

Salmon Sushi

Maguro Sushi, Kanpachi Sushi & Salmon Sushi

The sushi’s are fresh, well made, however, it is not those that will give you the WOW sensation. Instead, it was the special maki that made me go WOW. The prawns are firm and crunchy, rolled with the right portion of rice and topped with super delicious aburi salmon and homemade mentai sauce. I think if you order anything with mentai sauce here, it won’t go wrong.

Salmon Mentai Roll

For the Yakitori Range, we were served Chicken Yakitori ($2), Buta Bara ($2.50), Enoki Maki ($3), Gyu Cheese Maki ($4.50), Cheese Maki (pork - $3.50) and Aspara Maki ($3). We had a great impression from the beef yakitori for the delivery menu. This time around, the Gyu Cheese Maki sure get out two thumbs up. It was succulent and the cheese fillings just enhance the flavour of the beef.

Yakitori

For the pork, the Aspara Maki got our nod of approval, combing the fatty pork belly with crunchy asparagus. We find the buta bara is a bit lean, we were hoping for pork belly to be fattier. To spice up the yakitori, there are three dips served: yakitori sauce, curry and ume (plum) salt.

[From Left to Right] Chicken Yakitori, Buta Bara, Enoki Maki, Gyu Cheese Maki,
Cheese Maki (pork) and Aspara Maki.

Aspara Maki

We finally get to try Kiyoshi speciality, Inaniwa Udon. We tried their cold udon, Tem Chirashi Udon ($16.80) and Vegetarian Inaniwa Udon (Hot Soup, $14.80).

Tem Chirashi Udon

The Tem Chirashi Udon is cold Inaniwa udon with assorted tempura: scallop, cherry tomato, mushroom, avocado and capsicum. The udon is lightly seasoned and in each bite, you can taste smooth and bouncy udon. The crispy assorted tempura compliments the udon perfectly.

Tem Chirashi Udon

Meanwhile, the vegetarian Inaniwa udon is a simple version of soup udon. The udon is softer, yet the vegetarian broth is warm and comforting. The toppings include beancurd skin, fried beancurd, seaweed, shiitake and shimeji mushrooms introduce contrasting flavour and texture to the dish.

Vegetarian Inaniwa Udon

Other main dishes that we tried are Pork Katsu Curry Rice ($11.80) and Tempura with Cha Soba ($19.80). The portion of the pork katsu curry is about medium in size. The pork katsu is on the lean side, I think it can be better if the meat has more fats. However, the curry sauce sure hits the spot.

Pork Katsu Curry RIce

The green tea soba is al-dente and comforting. The tempuras are well executed and the star of this dish. The batter is light, crispy coating provided the perfect vessel for the prawns and vegetables. Though the soba is good, I will probably order the tempura with cold Inaniwa udon for that extra chewiness.

Tempura with Cha Soba

Kiyoshi is designed and decorated for family comfort in mind. The design is clean, with light walnut wood colour elements. There are booth seating area, normal dining tables and of course the coveted chef’s table, where you can see the chef at work. The seating area is spacious and you won’t feel squeezy. As it is in Amoy street, you can also have your lunch meeting or after-work gathering here.

Part of Dining Area

Part of Dining Area

Overall, it was a delightful dining experience. The Inaniwa Udon dishes are a definite must-try here. The sushi, yakitori, curry and soba are good as well. A wholesome Japanese family restaurant. Kanpai!! Cheers!!

Chef's Table

Cheers!!

Thank you very much Jennifer Yeo Consultancy and Kiyoshi Team for the delicious meal

Food & Drink: 7.5/10

Value: 7.75/10

Service: N/A (Media Drop)

Ambiance: N/A (Media Drop)

Budget per Person: $11 - $25

Kiyoshi Japanese Restaurant

75 Amoy Street

Singapore 069894

T: +65 6223 0995 / +65 9366 6419

W: https://inline.app/order/kiyoshi/amoystreet (Online Order)

F: https://www.facebook.com/75amoystreet/

IG: @Kiyoshi.75

OH: Daily 11.00 – 22.00

*** Kiyoshi Takeaway

Order through:

- Online: https://inline.app/order/kiyoshi/amoystreet

- Call +65 6223 0995 or - Whatsapp: +65 9366 6419

- Email: info@kiyoshi.com.sg

* Islandwide delivery is available at $11. Minimum order is $30/-

The Public Izakaya 2 – Authentic Izakaya in Singapore

The Public Izakaya 2

Izakaya is known as a Japanese drinking establishment that served casual and relative bar snack. While it is still popular as a watering hole, it seems that Izakaya in Singapore has churn up a higher grade / quality dishes to accompany the drinks. One of those Izakaya in Singapore that attracted our taste buds is The Public Izakaya 2.

The communal seating

After a few visits, we are confident to recommended some of the dishes here. For Starters: Reba Shoyuzuke ($8) is Chilled Chicken Liver Marinated in Sesame Oil. Has a close texture to the chicken livers in our chicken rice. But their version seems to be more smooth and velvety, almost to Foie gras standard.

Reba Shoyuzuke - Chilled Chicken Liver Marinated in Sesame Oil

The oyster is also worth to try. Nama Kaki / Oyster ($6 each) served with Momiji Oroshi & Ponzu. Fresh with a touch of acidity from the ponzu, helps to accentuate the flavour of the oyster. It is a good appetizer.

Nama Kaki / Oyster

Washoku GOEN – Introducing Sumubiyaki [MEDIA INVITE]

Washoku Goen @ VivoCity

Washoku Goen ('WG') is a Japanese stall located in Food Republic Outlet in VivoCity and Wisma Atria. Established itself in Singapore since January 2015, Washoku Goen has a reputation for serving gigantic katsu portion and delicious Japanese Curry Rice.

The Menu

Since their opening, they have consistently adding variety to their menu. WG have just introduced Sumibiyaki - Japanese charcoal grill. After you placed your order, the grill master will do the hard work for you and grill the meat to perfection. There are two type of sauce you can choose from Japanese BBQ (using eel sauce) or Singa BBQ (using local flavour).

Sumibiyaki - Japanese Charcoal Grill - Chicken

Monster Curry – Monster in Size, Monster in Flavour

Monster Curry sounds more like an animation rather than a restaurant. However, in Singapore Monster Curry is restaurant serve a jumbo size Japanese curry with different type of protein such as chicken, eggs, pork, prawns, fish and scallops.

I was looking for a place to grab a quick bite after collecting my rewards from one of the food review website. When I spotted Monster Curry, my cravings for Japanese curry just get the better of me. Quick look at the menu, I decided to order Cheese Chicken Katsu Curry ($14). You actually has a choice of spicy level from 1 (normal hot) to 5 (monster hot). I decided to went with normal hot.

When I grab a seat after ordering, then after looking around the area, I realised that I was in a deep trouble. I saw how huge the plate was and normally each couple is sharing one dish. So when the dish come, I was staring at a 30cm in diameter huge plate. The rice filled more than half of the plate and the protein is the same size as the rice, with shaved cheese covering the top of my pork katsu. On the side, a few pieces of Japanese pickle and shaved cabbage. Staring blank at the plate, I was starting to wonder how am I going to finish it.

The pork katsu is quite tender and the batter is very thin and crispy. The curry is thick, flavourful and generous in portion. As I have only ordered a spicy level of normal hot, they added only one chilli sauce heart shape. Although the katsu is tender, it is also very lean, so you can feel on some part to be dry, instead of juicy all over. For the curry, it is served just like a sauce instead of with potatoes and carrots like other normal Japanese restaurant.

                                                                                   Cheese Chicken Katsu Curry

Service wise is very minimum. You place your order in the counter, make payment and they send the food to your table when it is done. So interaction with them is very minimum, other example of Japanese fast food culture with low labour cost involved. Like a normal Japanese establishment, we are still greeted very warmly as we enter or exit the restaurant.

Overall, I find the portion is tremendous and generous, so you won't mind paying a little bit more. Thus, if you are looking for a place to satisfy your Japanese Curry, give this restaurant a try. I assure you that you won't come out unfulfilled. Kanpai! Cheers!

Food & Drink: 7/10

Value: 8/10

Service: 6/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Monster Curry

2 Orchard Turn

#B4-52. Ion Orchard

Singapore 238801

Tel: 6509 8081

Website: http://www.monstercurry.com.sg/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterCurrySingapore

Op Hours: Daily 11.00 – 21.30

For other location, check out their website.

Note:

Monster Curry is part of En Group. A group that are well known for their passion in Japanese food. The founders not only want to showcase Okinawa style of food, but also traditional and modern Japanese treat as well. For their complete profile, check it out here: http://www.endiningbars.com/

[CLOSED] Kare Express Grill (KEG) – Simple and Delicious Japanese Curry

The Stall

Found this place by accident when I went out for lunch with my colleagues. The coffee shop is located behind Ang Mo Kio bus interchange, just beside Courts. Kare Express Grill (K.E.G) actually specialise more on Western and Japanese Curry.

It has been a while since I have a decent plate of Japanese Curry, so I decided to order Chicken Katsu Curry ($4.50). The chicken fillet is nicely fried, coated with batter and bread crumbs. The meat is tender and succulent. The portion of the rice is fulfilling, and so does the Japanese curry. They even provide you with a small portion of Japanese pickles.

Chicken Katsu Curry

Anyway, I am so happy with this meal, I even packed one for my colleague in the office that have not eaten. Additional $0.20 for take away. Based on the quality, I am sure they will not disappoint me on their other Western Menu. Check out their Facebook page photos for menu. Cheers :)

Food & Drink: 7.5/10

Value: 8/10

Service: N/A

Ambiance: N/A

K.E.G. - Kare Express Grill

Block 727 Ang Mo Kio Ave 6

#01-4236.

Singapore 560727

(Next to Courts)

Tel: 8100 0659 – Raj (Indian Dude)

9835 3149 – Fred (Chinese Guy)

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KareExpressGrill

Op Hours: 10.30 am – 10pm Daily

Menu available on the photos in the Facebook page