The only other two-Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant in Singapore, Shoukouwa is a sushi-ya helmed by head chef Kazumine Nishida, who expertly crafts Edomae sushi in front of an intimate sushi counter, where no more than eight people can sit. Expect only the freshest produce, with seafood and produce air-flown daily from Toyosu Market and exclusive delicacies like seasonal ikura and oscietra caviar from La Maison Nordique. 

The latest spinoff of the famed Shoukouwa is Shoukouwa Shinjidai, a joint venture by Kazumine Nishida and Emmanuel Stroobant. “Shinjidai” means “new age” in Japanese, so it’s no surprise that its contemporary kaiseki cuisine is modern and eclectic. Take dishes like “Like A Virgin” after Madonna’s hit song, featuring akami (lean tuna) accompanied by a secret dipping sauce infused with Mexican single-origin frupta tropicana coffee beans, or “Sweet Child O’ Mine” after Guns and Roses, where hairy crab and rice sit in a gazami crab roe sauce. 

Shoukouwa Shinjidai
Address: 1 Cuscaden Road, 01-03/04 Conrad Singapore, S(249715)

This new yakitori omakase restaurant has been making waves, and it’s not hard to see why. Shin Terroir’s entrance is tucked away from the main street, inviting you to its 10-seater kappo-style counter where you can see chefs Nicholas Lee and Takeshi Nakayama craft grilled delights over Kishu binchō charcoal. Yakitori shines here, made as it is with French chicken from Toh Thye San farm, like the signature “Mille Feuille”—a layered yakitori skewer of chicken gizzards, chives, and chicken skin. Look out for other treats like the Miyazaki A4 Wagyu served with asparagus, ikura, and a Hollandaise sauce, or the extensive wine list which includes top labels from Burgundy and Champagne.

Shin Terroir
Address: 80 Tras Street, S(079019), +65 9656 0654

Zeniya at the Shangri-la Singapore is the Singaporean outpost of its two-Michelin-starred flagship in Kanazawa, bringing with it all the ceremony of traditional kaiseki cuisine. Seated at the counter of Zeniya’s zen garden interiors, you’ll see head chef Shuji Yoshitaki and sous chef Akinori Nakano doing the finishing touches on your delicacies right in front of you. Whether you opt for the lunch or dinner omakase, Zeniya offers the finest gastronomic riches that Kaga cuisine (cuisine from Kanazawa) has to offer with the freshest seasonal ingredients. 

Tucked away within Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa is Imamura, which offers one of the best kaiseki dining experiences you can find in Singapore. With over 20 years of culinary experience, chef-owner Hirofumi Imamura turns magic in his hands, and you get to witness it in front of you at his intimate 13-seater counter. Dinner here might be slightly on the pricey side, but with the freshest seasonal ingredients and carefully crafted culinary artistry, it may very well be worth every penny. 

Imamura
Address: 14 Gunner Lane, S(099566), +65 8028 2608

At the heart of Hamamoto’s intimate dining area is the 12-seater curved hinoki counter, the only one of its kind in Singapore. It is from this vantage point that you get to witness chef-owner Kazuhiro Hamamoto’s unique sushi omakase in a kaiseki format, made with fresh ingredients straight from Tokyo and Fukuoka. But look out for other premium plates as well, like the ise ebi (spiny lobster) sashimi with seasonal uni and Kaluga caviar, or the sliced Wagyu with seasonal uni and truffle found on the Hamamoto Experience menu.

Located within the St Regis Singapore is Tentsuru, a tempura-speciality omakase restaurant helmed by chef Daiki Kawaguchi, a kaiseki-trained chef who cut his teeth at Michelin-starred restaurants in Japan. Look out for fresh and seasonal ingredients like Miyazaki beef sirloin and blackthroat seaperch, which are cooked right in front of you at the 15-seat counter—first coated in a light and crispy batter made with a blend of three different Hokkaido flours, then fried perfectly in enriched Hokkaido sunflower oil. 

With years of experience, including a stint at Michelin-starred Kyoto restaurant Gion Fukushi, kappo chef Kenta Yamauchi is here in Singapore to deliver one of the best dining experiences you can find in Singapore. Lounge in the bar area bedecked in Gucci homeware before entering the omakase room, where exquisite delicacies are presented on thousand-year old cedar wood place settings. Accompanied by sushi specialist Hirohito Tanaka (previously of Sushi Ginza Onodera in New York), expect delectable sushi made with wild-caught seafood from Japan and ingredients exclusively procured by Hazuki.

Not one, but two counters await you at Mizuki. Separated by wooden lattice screens are two bar counters, where sushi and tempura masters craft exquisite creations using ingredients air-flown from Toyosu Market in Tokyo four times a week. Guests can either choose a sushi omakase menu, a tempura omakase menu, or a mixed sushi and tempura omakase menu. Mizuki promises to present the best of the restaurant’s expertise in two of the most beloved Japanese foods in the world.

Read more: Mizuki’s latest sushi and tempura omakase menu offers the best of both worlds

One of the pinnacles of kappo-style dining in Singapore, head chef Takeshi Araki impresses at Esora with his modern Japanese cuisine with meticulous French technique. There is a skylight dressed in washi paper over the pristine main counter, shining natural sunlight in the day and giving off the impression of natural clouds. Dishes necessarily change according to the seasons, but expect twists on signatures like the chicken wing, the donabe bowl, and a tea pairing that takes you through the elegant ceremony of Japanese tea. There are few variations in the menu, making sure you get the full Esora experience every time. 

Don’t expect traditional kappo at Hashida Singapore. Chef-owner Kenjiro “Hatch” Hashida has embraced the philosophy of “shu ha ri”, a concept from martial arts dedicated to learning from your past to forging your own trailblazing path. It’s why the dishes served over the hiba wood counter keep getting better, with creative spins on fresh ingredients. Fresh sushi is a given, sometimes kissed by binchō charcoal or brushed with Hashida’s special soy sauce, while other exquisite dishes like fish noodles in dashi broth topped with caviar and uni are both comforting and exquisite. 

The cuisine of Osaka takes the spotlight at Takayama, a kappo-style restaurant helmed by chef-owner Taro Takayama. With prior experience cooking for the Japanese ambassador to Singapore—where he also once cooked for Crown Prince Naruhito and ex-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe—you can expect more innovative twists on traditional Japanese cuisine here, with highlights like the signature monaka, typically a sweet rice cracker sandwich but here elevated with foie gras mousse, yuzu and blueberry jam, and pickled watermelon rind. 

Taking over a colonial black-and-white bungalow on Scotts Road is Ki-Sho, which means “aristocratic craftsmanship” in Japanese. It’s fitting for its storied exteriors and exquisite kappo-style 11-seat counter, made of prized hinoki wood. With years of experience across Kyoto, Belgium, London, Monaco, Seoul and finally Singapore, its resident chef Shinichi Nakatake is sure to deliver a memorable dining experience. You might expect, for instance, an abalone and uni donabe, or delectable hairy crab with caviar and uni sauce. 

Situated within Intercontinental Robertson Quay Singapore lies Ichigo Ichie, an upscale kappo restaurant helmed by chef Akane Eno. Meaning “one life, one moment”, an ancient Japanese proverb celebrating a memory that is cherished for life, Ichigo Ichie endeavours to create a dining experience unlike any other with a mélange of unusual ingredients across her experience working in izakayas, kappo restaurants, and sushi-yas such as curry leaf, cream cheese, and maqaw pepper. While you can expect an impressive dinner with the Kurenai menu, more curious diners looking to see what Ichigo Ichie is capable of can choose the Akane omakase menu, where your dinner will be entirely decided and crafted in front of you by Eno.

Newly minted with one Michelin star, Sushi Kimura is just one of the many fine dining sushi-yas here starring a 150-year-old hinoki wood sushi counter and exquisite food. What sets it apart is master chef Tomoo Kimura’s Edomae-style sushi and personally-sourced organic ingredients, like special A-grade Tsuya-hime organic rice from Yamagata, organic premium vinegar from Kyoto, and a shin nori from the Ariake sea exclusive to Sushi Kimura. 

Sushi Kimura
Address: 390 Orchard Road, 01-07, S(238871), +65 6734 3520

A serene garden sanctuary awaits you at Sushi Sato, an elegant sushi-ya bedecked with leaf motifs and pink and cream walls, adorned by the verdant foliage of Dempsey Hill. Behind the luxurious hinoki wood counter is chef-owner Yuji Sato, who mastered the craft of sushi in Tsukiji, Tokyo. Sushi Sato is one of the priciest sushi-yas out there, but if you’re looking for a special dining experience with ingredients like Hanasaki crab from Hokkaido, bafun uni, or fresh ikura, Sushi Sato offers a worthwhile dining experience.

Sushi Sato
Address: 6B Dempsey Road, S(247662), +65 6971 8265

Also lauded with one Michelin star this year, Sushi Sakuta by Yoshi Sakuta offers a luxurious sushi-ya experience, with an unbroken counter of hinoki wood, carved from a 200-year-old Yoshino cypress tree from Nara prefecture. Edomae-style sushi is Sakuta’s focus here, with sushi rice made from a house-blend of white vinegar for the perfect, balanced acidity. With painstaking techniques like pickling abalone in seaweed, sake and water to high quality ingredients, Sushi Sakuta commands a high price for lunch and dinner.

Sushi Sakuta
Address: 15 Stamford Road, 01-88 The Capitol Kempinski Hotel, S(178906), +65 9863 9302

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