SENS @ Holland Village - Newly Opened Japanese Restaurant Inside A Gourmet Grocer

Located at the basement of the new Raffles @ Holland Village is SENS, a Japanese restaurant within the gourmet grocer TASTE. It offers a wide repertoire of contemporary Japanese cuisine including sashimi, sushi, teppanyaki and omakase. It also boasts one of the largest selections of Japanese craft beers, sake and wines from breweries in different regions of Japan.

Sashimi Moriawase Mix 4/5

Dinner at SENS started with the Sashimi Moriawase Mix ($48.80) which comes with 5 different kinds of sashimi. On the plate, we had maguro, otoro, salmon, hamachi and ebi which is air flown from Japan. In short you can ensure of its freshness.

Aburi Salmon Mentai Roll 4.2/5

For those that does not take raw food, you can go for the Aburi Salmon Mentai Roll ($18.80) topped with mentaiko and roes. Pop one into mouth and enjoy a burst of different flavours and textures coming together.

Miyazaki Wagyu Tataki 4.8/5 and Beef Kaku Ni 4/5

A crowd favouruite was the Miyazaki Wagyu Tataki ($68.80) for both its great flavour and texture. The thinly sliced wagyu is lightly seared on the exterior while the interior is cooked to a beautiful pink. This gives it an extra layer of flavour on top of that flavoursome and juicy beef slices.

The other beef dish we tried is the Beef Kaku Ni ($16.80). The piece of beef literally fell apart as I tried to pick it up with my chopsticks. The melted in the mouth texture and its appetizing rich flavour calls for a bowl of rice to go with it.

Foie Gras Teriyaki 4.2/5

Not really quite Japanese but the menu does offer items such as Foie Gras Teriyaki ($16). I like the fact that the foie gras has a layer of caramelized sweetness that complemented the creaminess

Surume Ika 4/5

From the grill, there is the Surume Ika ($18.80) which is grilled perfectly to a nice bouncy texture coated with a nice caramelized sweetness for an elevated enjoyment.

Kurobuta Rosu Katsu 4.5/5

A worthy try at SENS is the Kurobuta Rosu Katsu ($17.50). The breaded deep fried pork loin has an interesting crispy crumbs on top of the juicy meat which tasted like tempura coating. putting it in another way it is like having the crispy KFC fried chicken except it is pork not chicken.

Niniku Chahan 3/5

If you are still not full, the Niniku Chahan ($8) may able to fill you up. Unfortunately I felt that he garlic fried rice lacked the garlic and wok hei aroma.

Yakitori Set 3/5

Perfect to go with some beer or sake is the Yakitori. We ordered a few different skewers such as chicken wings, meat balls, pork belly and mushroom to try. Maybe the chef wanted to showcase the natural flavour of the ingredients but I felt that a little bit more seasoning would be more enjoyable.

Overall food at SENS is above average. I would definitely go back for the miyazaki wagyu tataki, beef kaku ni, kurobuta rosu katsu, sashimi and sushi.

Note: This is an invited tasting.


SENS
Raffles @ Holland Village
118 Holland Avenue
#B1-12/13
Singapore 278997
Tel: +65 62625618
Facebook
Website
Nearest MRT: Holland Village (CC Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 11pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Holland Village MRT station. Take Exit A. Walk straight to destination. Journey time about 3 minutes. [Map]

Jiu Jiang Shao La (九江烧腊) @ Ghim Moh Food Centre - Crispy Roasted Duck Skin

If you are a regular at Ghim Moh Food Centre, you will know that there is always a long queue at Jiu Jiang Shao La (九江烧腊). Having been to the food centre numerous time, I was always deterred by the long queues. Not sure what got into me in my recent visit and I decided to join the queue to try the roasted meat finally.

Roasted Duck 3.8/5

After queuing for a good half an hour, I decided to order half a Roasted Duck for $16. The roasted has a good charred and crispy skin. The down side of having such a crispy skin is the duck meat is on the dry skin. Hence it is really up to individual preference.

Char Siew 4/5

Besides the roasted duck, I also order some Char Siew to go with the rice. I turned out that I preferred the char siew over the roasted duck. The charred exterior gives the succulent char siew an additional layer of caramelized sweetness.

Overall, the roasted duck at Jiu Jiang Shao La is not bad but definitely not the best I have eaten. I would go back for their char siew instead. A minimum plate of roasted meat starts from $3 and it is quite substantial. Even a plate of mix roasted duck with char siew or roasted pork costs only $3.


Jiu Jiang Shao La
Ghim Moh Food Centre
Blk 20 Ghim Moh Road
#01-17
Singapore 270020
Nearest MRT: Buona Vista (CC Line, EW Line)

Opening Hours:
Daily: 11am - 9pm

Direction: 
1) Alight at Buona Vista MRT station. Walk to bus stop along Buona Vista Road (Stop ID 11361). Take bus no. 92. Alight 1 stops later. Journey time about 3 mins. [Map]

2) Alight at Buona Vista MRT station. Cross the underpass towards Ghim Moh Estate Blk 12A. Cut across the open air carpark towards Ghim Moh Road. Cross the road and walk towards Blk 20. Journey time about 8 mins. [Map]