Koh San
Our favourites at Koh San are salmon teriyaki, yummy deep fried tofu and deep fried soft shell crab. They serve sashimi too. Koh San used to offer a promotional menu from time to time, when you could get the salmon and tofu (together with rice and salad with delicious dressing) for less than SGD 10!
Location: Bugis Junction food court in basement 1 of Parco Bugis Junction. Coming out from Bugis MRT station, turn to your right, walk for less than a minute, you will see 3 escalators, use the inner right one (behind a glass door) which leads you straight to the basement 1, food court, Parco Bugis Junction Shopping Centre.
Shimbashi Soba
Japanese restaurant Shimbashi Soba is located at basement 1 of Paragon shopping mall in the heart of Orchard Road.
Japanese restaurant Shimbashi Soba is small but popular, hence there is often a queue to get in. Do not be put off by the queue as it generally moves fast. Shimbashi Soba is not a restaurant where you would want to linger longer than necessary to finish your meal, which does not mean however that the food is not good. On the contrary, the food at Shimbashi Soba is excellent.
The menu at Shimbashi Soba consists of various Japanese rice dishes and sushi, but their real speciality is hand-made soba noodles. There is a hot version (in a soup) and a refreshing cold version of soba noodles available.
There are several good value set meals on offer at Shimbashi Soba, usually consisting of soba noodles, salad, sushi and other side dishes as well as fruits and dessert. Check their latest offers (accompanied by nice photographs) at their website. Ice-cream lovers who would like to try unusual ice-cream flavours for Western palate should leave some space for red bean or green tea ice-cream.
So if you are in Singapore and would like to try authentic, hand-made Japanese soba noodles, we highly recommend Japanese restaurant Shimbashi Soba at Paragon shopping mall. The quality of their noodles is easily comparable with the quality of soba noodles served in Japan.
Location: Paragon shopping mall, #B1-41, 290 Orchard Road. Web: www.sobaworld.com.sg
Sushi Tei
Sushi Tei is a successful japanese restaurant chain with restaurants among others in Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Sydney and of course Singapore.
We tried Sushi Tei restaurant at Raffles City shopping centre in Singapore. Guests enter the restaurant over a replica of a Japanese bridge adorned with decorative lightning. Interior of the restaurant is pleasant and characterised by Japanese minimalist style. The real attraction of Sushi Tei however is the food.
We decided to skip running sushi and ordered from the menu instead. There are many photos of the food in the menu which makes choosing easier even for guests who are not familiar with Japanese food. The choice of food ranges from sashimi and sushi to cooked dishes. All the sushi we tried was fresh and delicious. We particularly liked sushi wrapped in mango. It was the first time we tried such a combination and it was heavenly.
Many Europeans who have tried raw sushi in Europe claim that they don't like it and we can understand that very well since sushi in Europe is normally not fresh. So while in Singapore you should give it another try at Sushi Tei restaurant, as the quality of their sushi is way above anything available in Europe.
Prices at Sushi Tei are reasonable. We paid a little less than 40 SGD for a big lunch for two.
Location: Raffles City Shopping Centre, 252 North Bridge Road, #03-13/14 (MRT: City Hall). For other locations visit Sushi Tei website: www.sushitei.com
Yoshinoya
Yoshinoya (
) is a Japanese version of McD.
Yoshinoya is the largest among beef bowl (or gyudon) restaurants in Japan
and one of the leading fast food chains. It is often shortened to "yoshi
gyu" (meaning Yoshinoya's beef) among its enthusiasts. Yoshinoya’s
popular motto is 'cheap, quick and yummy’. Their beef is cooked with soy
sauce, onion and some secret ingredients. It is very nice despite being
a fast food. Their salmon is good too. Forget about their industrially
raised chicken though, it tastes terribly. Their meals cost less than
SGD 6 per set (with rice, vegetables and miso soup). If you don't like
anything that tastes kind of artificial, skip the soup and vegetables
and ask for a beef bowl or a salmon bowl only - you will save about SGD
1.
Location: B2-37A Ngee Ann City, Orchard Rd, and all other major shopping malls in Singapore.