The Gyu Bar @ Stevens Road - Launches Omakase Menu For Beef Enthusiasts

The Gyu Bar at Dine At Stevens, a 35-seater yakiniku restaurant offering premium quality Japanese beef has recently launched a beef-centric omakase menu for both lunch and dinner. I dropped by for dinner to try their 10-course dinner omakase menu priced at $138. It also have a 6-course lunch omakase menu priced at $68.

Truffle Edamame & Assorted Namuru

Our Amuse Bouche is a trio of Truffle Edamame, Marinated Bean Sprout and Housemade Leek Kimchi. A great way to nibble on them, with a few glasses of sake before starting on the omakase meal.

Uni Yukke Cone 4/5

Next is the house signature, Uni Yukke Cone. The waffle cone is stuffed with beef tartare and crowded with fresh Japanese uni. It is small but luscious with the tender beef and sweet uni. The fussy me felt that the sweetness of the waffle cone distorted the appreciation of the uni's sweetness. Maybe using plain waffle cone would be a better choice, allowing the main stars to shine.

Rib Finger Salad 4.2/5

For the cold starter, I had the Rib Finger Salad. It comes with seared beef and cucumber in a chef's special dressing. The sweetness of the dressing complemented the slightly fatty seared beef, resembling the local char siew. The crunchy cucumber provided the refreshing touch some what like our local achar.

Truffled Chicken Somen 4/5

The hot starter is the Truffled Chicken Somen. Love the smooth and silky somen, paired excellently with the boneless chicken thigh and truffled mushroom puree.

Scallop Croquette 3/5

The Scallop Croquette is the chef's daily special. The hokkaido scallop is lightly wrapped in a crispy breaded layer and seaweed, paired with uni sauce. I thought the uni sauce can be more piquant to brighten up the dish.

Yakiniku 4.2/5

Moving to the Yakiniku, we have 5 different cuts of beef and a pork. The chef will showcases the fresh meat to the diners before sending them to the grill. The five different cuts of beef are Wagyu Tongue, Top Round (Rosu), Chuck Rib (Karubi), Shoulder Clod (Misuji), Rib Eye. For the pork, we are served the Pork Neck (Tontoro)

Yaki Shabu 4.5/5

My favourite has to be the Yaki Shabu. The thinly sliced sirloin is grilled and paired with Japanese egg yolk (Miyaki egg) and black truffle. Surprisingly the egg yolk is very fragrant. Not only giving the beef a subtle coating of creaminess but also elevated the flavour.

Ishiyaki Beef Fried Rice 4/5

If you are still not full, worry not as the next course is Ishiyaki Beef Fried Rice. The fragrant bowl of fried rice is further perfumed by the fats from the Ishiyaki beef.

Matcha Ice Cream with Okinawa Brown Sugar 4.2/5

Wrapping up the meal is the Matcha Ice Cream with Okinawa Brown Sugar. I really enjoy the creaminess of the matcha ice cream, ending the meal on a sweet note.

For this December, The Gyu Bar also launches their Japanese celebratory package which includes the thrilling "Kagami-biraki Ceremony" for all corporate/group lunch or dinner bookings, where guests get to wield a wooden mallet to break open their own sake barrel in full Japanese tradition. The corporate/party package is open to anyone who wish to have an intimate sit-down meal from 25 pax or a larger event for mingling with up to 100 guests. From $2,500, all bookings come with their own sake barrel and a delectable menu, with the entire restaurant to themselves.


The Gyu Bar
30 Stevens Road
#01-08
Singapore 257840
Tel: +65 67320702
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Website
Nearest MRT: Stevens (DT Line)

Opening Hours:
Tue-Sun: 12pm - 3pm, 6pm - 11pm
(Closed on Mon)

Direction:
1) Alight at Stevens MRT station. Take Exit A. Turn left and walk to bus stop at Stevens Court (Stop ID 40229). Take bus number 105, 132, 190 or 972. Alight 2 stops later. Walk to destination. Journey time about 8 minutes. [Map]

Menya Kokoro @ Eat At Seven (Suntec City Mall) - Largest Maze-Soba Restaurant Chain from Japan, Opens In Singapore

Menya Kokoro, one of Tokyo's most popular Maze-soba (Japanese dry ramen) restaurant chains established in 2013, has recently opened its first flagship outlet at Suntec City. Founder Chef Takuma Ishikawa has 13 years culinary experience under his belt and is trained under the original masters and creators of Maze-soba – Menya Hanabi – the restaurant known for introducing Maze-Soba to the world. In 2014, Chef Takuma even won the highly acclaimed Best Maze-Soba Award in Japan. It's no wonder that within a short period of 4 years since its opening, there are already 27 outlets worldwide in Japan, Indonesia, Spain, Thailand and Vancouver. The special minced meat sauce is imported from Japan and its extra chewy noodles is done locally with its in-house recipe.

Maze-soba 3.5/5

While the Chinese have their Zha Jiang Mian, the Japanese have their Maze-Soba ($10.80). There are other variations available, alongside with Singapore-exclusive creations. Accompanying the minced meat sauce are ground saba fish, poached egg, nori, green onions, leek, bamboo shoots and chopped garlic. To a certain extend the mixture does become too salty after a while and I find no relief from the raw greens. But thanks to the kombu vinegar at the side - a few drops of it opens and brightens the flavours of the dish, like that of our Bak Chor Mee. Interestingly, the richness of the sauce brings out the best of its springy noodles, both its taste and texture. The noodles are cooked for exactly eight minutes and forty seconds using the chef’s fine-spun techniques to achieve the perfect texture. All noodles is made with multi-grain flour, consisting of over 35 percent whole wheat. Japanese water-softening technology is used to remove the minerals in the water it uses as well.

Spicy Maze Soba 3.5/5

Personally I do like the Spicy Maze Soba ($11.80), though more voted against it. Not only there is an added dimension of aromatics from the spices, there is a slight sweetness in the sauce that balances its saltiness slightly. The vinegar gives it an even more rounded taste. The sauce sticking to the bottom of the bowl may be too good to be wasted, hence simply mix in the complimentary scoop of rice to sop in all the goodness. I love the free mushroom kombu soup, a much needed remedy to clear my palette at the end of the meal. The chopped greens do get quite overpowering after a while.

Curry Maze Soba 3/5

With noodles of that thickness and texture, Curry Maze Soba ($13.80) may be mistaken as a curry udon. The original is still preferred, as the curry tends to overwhelm the flavour of the minced meat sauce and doesn't gel well with the soba.

Curry Maze Don 3.5/5

The rice version Curry Maze-Don ($13.80) is created exclusively for Singapore, using 100% Japanese Michelin-acclaimed Tawaraya rice from Hokkaido and Niigata, specially selected by Singapore’s only Japanese rice sommelier. This Tawaraya rice is flown in straight from Japan in its raw state, and is polished only upon order to preserve its aroma. Although both soba and don come with extra grilled chicken cubes atop, the latter fares better as it was almost like enjoying a bowl of Japanese curry don, with extra heat and flavour from the minced meat sauce.

Takoyaki 2.8/5

Chicken Kaarage 3/5

Sides are available as well. The Takoyaki ($4.80) doesn't taste authentic, so what are worth your calories are probably the Chicken Kaarage ($4.80) and the Chicken Wings ($4.80), a Nagoya-style which most were vying for it.

Chicken Wings 3.8/5

Edamame 3.8/5

It unusual but we find the Edamame here, which comes with the stalk attached, a lot tastier than what we have tried before.

If you love chewy noodles, Menya Kokoro will serve your needs. There are other versions too, such as a a more indulgent one with Cheese or you can also go meatless with their Vegan Maze Soba. Each has its own selling point but there are reasons why the original Maze-Soba is still the best selling, and among which I feel is that the rich minced meat sauce alone works best with the chewy noodles.

Words and photos by Si An. A girl who is allured by travelling, loves the feel of freedom, smell of the rain and the aroma of fine coffee and food. Note: This is an invited tasting.


Menya Kokoro
Suntec City Mall
Eat At Seven
3 Temasek Boulevard
#03-313
Singapore 038983
Tel: +65 62353386
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Nearest MRT: Promenade (CC Line, DT Line), Esplanade (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 1100am - 10pm

Direction:
1) Alight at Promenade MRT station. Take Exit C. Walk to destination. Journey time about 5 minutes. [Map]

2) Alight at Esplanade MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk to destination. Journey time about 5 minutes. [Map]