This underrated Japanese restaurant in Tiong Bahru might just have some of the most boujee donburis in Singapore—each overflowing with premium sashimi and ingredients like uni, A5 wagyu, snow crab, hotate and more!
Kyoten Japanese Cuisine is an omakase restaurant specialising in traditional Japanese fare, and when we saw that they had launched some new donburis stuffed with premium seafood and meats priced for up to a whopping $98++, we just had to head down to try them for ourselves. With prices of these dons ranging from $58++ to $98++, we definitely had high expectations both in terms of quality and quantity of ingredients/toppings included for each don.
The newly-launched dons are part of Sohoko no Shokuji menu, and there are 3 different variations of the available starting from $58++. While they’re undoubtedly not the most pocket-friendly, they’re supposed to be stuffed to the brim with premium seafood and meats. Given the price point, we expected a massive mountain of ingredients for the donburis, and we were a little disappointed to see that the dons came out to be much smaller than what we had in mind.
Komagi Charashi Don, $78
The Komagi Charashi Don ($78) is supposedly Kyoten’s version of the viral Tsujihan experience from Japan, and comes with an extra side of kanpachi sashimi finished with homemade goma (sesame) sauce—though the original Tsujihan experience probably offers more bang for your buck, save for the addition of lots of uni in Kyoten’s version. The don itself is topped with a generous dollop of 7 kinds of chopped fish, plus a heaping chunk of uni, ikura, hotate and snow crab. Out of all 3 options, this bowl has the most amount of seafood, so if you’re a seafood lover, this is probably the bowl to go for.
Wagyu Kake Don, $98
For a little bit of surf and turf, the Wagyu Kake Don ($98) is just the thing, and is our top pick out of all the dons! Our favourite topping has definitely got to be the strips of A5 Miyazaki wagyu beef lining the bowl, each seared to the perfect medium rare for maximum tenderness. The heaps of fresh uni and raw egg yolk further adds to the richness of the bowl. Make sure to get a little bit of everything on your spoon for the best, most indulgent bite.
Kuri Buta Don, $58
If you’re not a big fan of seafood, you can go for the Kuri Buta Don ($58) instead, that’s topped with slices of perfectly flame-grilled Hokkaido pork, tender bamboo shoots, sweet roasted chestnuts, and of course, more uni. The smoky slices of Hokkaido pork had a beautiful char, and made for a pretty darn good buta don.
But that’s not all, you get to enjoy these dons 2 ways: as is, and by saving half the don to make “ochazuke”! Once you’re ready for round 2, they’ll prepare a piping hot pot of homemade fish broth for you to pour over your rice so you can enjoy it as a hearty seafood/meat “porridge”. The fish broth is super comforting and rich in flavour without any fishiness; it’s so good that we’d gladly slurp the soup up all on its own.
@shout.sg This hidden Japanese restaurant in Tiong Bahru has some of the most luxurious donburis we’ve ever seen: they’re filled to the brim with premium ingredients like A5 wagyu, uni, hotate, snow crab and more! And if that’s not tempting enough, finish your bowl with a second round of “ochazuke” with their comforting homemade fish broth! Kyoten Address: 5 Yong Siak St, Singapore 168643
While each of the dons were undoubtedly delicious, we can’t help but note that the portion size of the rice itself was quite small, and probably might not be sufficient to satisfy some big eaters. Given that the prices for the dons are on the high side, we’d expect a more generous serving of rice to enjoy with ample toppings. Though not the most value-for-money in terms of price, you’re definitely getting quite a lot of top-notch goodies such that each bowl is practically overflowing with premium ingredients.
Price: $$
Taste: 8/10
Favourite item(s): Wagyu Kake Don
Kyoten Japanese Cuisine
Address: 5 Yong Siak St, Singapore 168643
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 11.30am-2.30pm & 5.30pm-10pm
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