Conventional haute Japanese fare – whether it be kappo-style omakases, or multi-course kaiseki extravaganzas – are delicate, precise affairs. They’re ill-suited for the takeaway box, let alone the back of a delivery rider’s motorized bicycle. But these restaurants have made it happen.
Here’s 2021’s best Japanese deliveries (or takeaways, if you’re more trusting of your own driving skills) to sate your thirst for anything north of Kyushu. Perfect for times like now when dining in restrictions have become more strict if you ask us.
Chef Kenjiro Hashida’s swanky new digs in Downtown Gallery and unorthodox take on the classics are now available for takeaway only. There’s a humbler a la carte menu with a couple of rolls and chirashi don his way if you’re looking for a quick, yet refined, luncheon – as well as a full-blown omakase. It’s been trimmed down to seven courses for simplicity, though the ingredients are nothing less than a celebration of seasonality. Think deep-fried crab croquettes, black cod in an earthy burdock sauce and chawanmushi, served cold with a dollop of uni and caviar.
To order, Whatsapp 8129-5336 or email info@hashidasg.com for takeaway only
Fat Cow’s lasted more than a decade in an off-the-beaten-track part of Orchard Boulevard, snagging accolades on the way. What’s available: their uber-popular premium donburi, decked out with 21-day dry-aged (on-site) Nagasaki Wagyu A5 – and caviar, and foie gras; their take on the wagyu sando; and a selection of ready-to-cook beef sets for aspiring home chefs. What’s not: their gastronomic journey a la wagyu omakase. If you’re looking to get over that disappointment, they’ve got a set for two (or one – we don’t judge) featuring a duo of their housemade yuzu cheesecakes and The Fat Cow daiginjo label, made exclusively for them by the Watanabe Sahei Brewery in Tochigo.
To order, click here for delivery or takeaway
In Ichigo Ichie’s fledgling days, it was a weekly pop up at Michelin-starred Sushi Kimura. Now, chef-owner Akane Eno has been set free to fly on her own, and oh does she fly. It’s consummate kappo-style omakase with the fullest spirit of omotenashi, or stereotypical Japanese hospitality, embodied by the chef herself. She’s extended that hospitality even now, with a number of eats up for takeaway and delivery. There’s a ready-to-cook somen, paired with slow-cooked abalone, uni, nori and mushroom sauce; a comforting donabe of liver sauce, seaweed and abalone in rice; and other premium bentos.
To order, Whatsapp 9018-2897 (a day in advance) for delivery or takeaway
Sushi Kimura is helmed by its namesake, chef Tomoo Kimura, who’s spent close to two decades honing his craft at sushi restaurants in Tokyo and Singapore like Ginza Sushi Ichi and Sushi Hashida. It’s this experience – and years of elbow grease – that eventually led to the restaurant’s Michelin star in 2018. His takeaway and delivery menu is simple enough: there’s only three items, not including daily specials. You’ve got futomaki, where kuruma ebi, grilled anago and tamago, among others, are rolled with seasoned Japanese rice and nori; a basic barachirashi don; and a luxury, limited-to-five-portion-daily chirashi comprising slow-cooked Hokkaido kuro awabi, house-marinated ikura, uni and toro. And Amur River caviar. And a bit of gold flake for good measure.
To order, Whatsapp 8428-0073 for delivery or call 6734-3520 for takeaway
The famed kaiten sushi chain, originating from Tochigi prefecture, Japan, added another notch to its belt this year. With 13 outlets in Hong Kong and a similarly strong foothold in Shanghai, they came to Singapore in March this year. Only one thing was missing – kaiten sushi itself. Instead, they opted for a full-service restaurant with all the works. These works include wallet-friendly sushi and sashimi platters, as well as a series of bentos. They’ve even got larger party sets for hungry families.
To order, Whatsapp 8938-6026 or call 6974-6782 for takeaway only
Another beef-forward joint is Japanese mod-dining bar, well, The Gyu Bar. It’s headed by chef Yamasaki Kenichiro who’s cut his teeth with more than 20 years studying French, Italian and of course, Japanese techniques. Expect wagyu, and plenty of it, in a variety of ways. There’s a trio of full-bodied wagyu dons, done a la aburi, yakiniku or sukiyaki, as well as dedicated shabu shabu and sukiyaki sets. These come with all the trimmings you’d expect – appetisers, veg, and carbs, as well as housemade dashi broth (sukiyaki sets come, naturally with sukiyaki broth). There’s even an option of renting a portable gas stove and a pot from The Gyu Bar – garden sukiyaki, anyone?
To order, click here or Whatsapp / call 9150-3164 for delivery or takeaway
As far as sake bars go, newly opened Iko isn’t your usual sake bar. For one, they’ve opted for a more contemporary neon pink-blue aesthetic in tandem wave motifs on their walls (iko backwards is oki, as in okinami meaning ‘offshore waves’). For another, chef Jeremmy Chiam’s cuisine is anything but traditional. There’s a parfait-like construction of bafun uni and caviar, atop dashi jelly, itself atop cauliflower pudding; a moreish, comforting asari clam broth; and, a nod to his previous, charcoal-heavy venture Le Binchotan, Iberico pork neck on carrot puree, slathered in mustard jus. And if you’d like to treat yourself, there’s the luxe box – bafun uni, Hokkaido scallop, ikura and botan ebi on truffle rice. Yum.
To order, Whatsapp or call 8866-5218 for delivery or takeaway
A version of this article first appeared in The Peak