In Chef We Trust

These six newly opened or revamped Japanese restaurants offer omakase menus that’s entirely dependent on seasonality and quality, the chef’s whims and your taste for adventure.

- Alvin Lim

The culinary world has undergone something of a rebirth, spurred largely by post-Covid-19 sensibilities. Robots, once anathema to self-respecting chefs, are now welcomed with opened arms. Customer contact points are a cause for consternation, not celebration. Not so for omakase restaurants – yes, some have undergone recent transformations, but these are metamorphoses divorced from current events. The core ethos remains: you are at the mercy of a discerning chef and what happens to be in stock. Omakases persist to be unhurried, deliberate affairs – a luxury within, and without, a pandemic. A luxury well worth the indulgence, even if it means leaving your sanctum for an hour or three.

KAPPO SHUNSUI

Kappo Shunsui has broken away from the overcrowded waters of Singapore’s bona fide Japanese culinary mecca, Cuppage Plaza, and found new ground in a shophouse on Hong Kong Street. Kappo basically means “to cut and to cook” – translating into a form of dining that’s cosier and slightly less austere, even for omakase. Head chef Shimuta “Shim” Kunihiko, who paid his dues in a variety of renowned Japanese kitchens including Chef Hirata Tasaku’s one-Michelin-starred Kodaiji Kanjin, struts his stuff with aplomb. The 13 counter seats get front row seats to the show, and if that isn’t enough, two large television screens provide a live bird’s-eye view of the action. 17 Hongkong Street, #01-01. Tel: [phone]. www.kapposhunsui.sg

WAKU GHIN