Ushidoki, Singapore

[Bu Pun Su]

The popularity of Wagyu (or Japanese beef) has taken off in particular in the 21^st century. Kobe was probably the most famous one, but many people are also familiar with Ohmi, Matsuzaka, Kagoshima etc. The restaurants mostly only served either the sirloin or ribeye / tenderloin. Nowadays, anybody with deep pocket / willingness to splurge can quite easily access these luxury beef in Singapore. However, there’s yet any restaurant in the island specializing in cooking all parts of the beef from tongue to tail … until Ushidoki.    

 

Ushidoki has been around for a couple of years or so. The restaurant describe itself as a Wagyu kaiseki dining place. Hirohashi Nobuaki (Nobu-san), the executive chef, is actually an expert in traditional kaiseki. He was the head chef of Kumo and used to work at the prestigious Kitcho for more than 5 years. When opening Ushidoki, he wanted and was challenged to create something new that’s not yet existed in Singapore.

 

Ushidoki utilizes Ozaki beef (named after the farmer’s patron) from Miyazaki prefecture. Ozaki-san slaughtered his cattle at about 34 months, about 6 weeks longer than many other beefs because he believes it’s the optimal age for the beef’s flavors. My tasting menu consisted of 10 courses, including palate cleanser / refresher – cold tomato and cold soumen. My favorite dishes were:

-Sukiyaki with onsen tamago, onions, shaved black truffle and rice. The sauce was amazing – the base has been simmered regularly since the restaurant’s opening. It’s full body with delicious layers of sweet, savory and umami flavors. The melt-in-the-mouth Ozaki perfectly absorbed the broth and went along nicely with all of the ingredients above.

-The main course was a ‘simple’ slowly char-grilled of sirloin (fatty and very marbled) and tenderloin (tender with unique beef flavor). Nobu-san hardly put any seasoning on the beef. As expected, they’re delicious with the beef natural flavor and some charcoal aroma. The side dishes did not really improve the overall enjoyment; the beef portion was quite small though.

-The small appetizers of beef and seafood were in general very good. You could see the picture from the link below, whereas some other dishes such as gyutan, age-croquette and braised beef brisket were alright – not too impressive

 

As a whole, it was still a good meal. 1-star Michelin is actually a well-deserved for this place. I wonder how creative Chef Nobuaki can be for repeated guests given he limits himself where nearly all dishes had to contain some elements / parts of the beef.  

 

Meal photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/7124357@N03/sets/72157695805426292/with/42248894984/

[KennethT]

What was the price of the meal you had?

[Bu Pun Su]

The meal was 5 months ago ... I believe it was the 300 tasting menu