With the Japanese nuclear / radiation situation as it is right now, I’m guessing many of you out there are going to be hesitant about having Japanese food that comes from Japan. While I agree we have to be cautious about what we eat that originates from Japan, I hope that good Japanese restaurants (such as the subject of this review) don’t suffer during this period. To our Japanese readers our there (if any), ganbatte kudasai!!!
Now, on Hide Yamamoto, I guess amongst the foreign culinary stars that have opened shop at Marina Bay Sands, Yamamoto-san is probably (for want of a better word) the least “famous” of them all. After all, it’s hard to stand tall in the midst of giants such as Guy Savoy, Tetsuya Wakuda or the late Santi Santamaria. But I must say, the food at Hide Yamamoto is still very much up to par, and best of all, value for money.
At Hide Yamamoto, there are several seating areas, and are divided into the robata grill section, the ramen section and the sushi section. Greedy as we could be, foodsmithone and myself picked to sit at the ramen section because that was the way we could try food from all the various sections. We each ordered a set lunch, and supplemented the very ample portions with additional a la carte orders.
First up, the set lunches:
1) Special Set Lunch (S$38+++)
This came with an appetiser of Marinated Octopus and Salad, Tempura Moriawase, Char Siu Rice and dessert of Berry and Lychee Sorbet.
All the dishes (yes, including the sorbet dessert) were very well executed pieces of Japanese cuisine. Our particular favourite was the tempura, where the batter was crisp and crunchy, yet light and non-oily. It was easily one of the better tempuras we’d had in Singapore in a long, long time (Inagiku could learn something here).
2) Special Chirashi Set (S$38++)
This also was a good rendition of a Chirashi Sushi. The rice was topped with chunks of sashimi so fresh and smooth that they just glided down our throats. I’m afraid there just isn’t much to describe the dish by – it was overall satisfying.
As part of our attempt to sample the food since we’d come so far into MBS (I know it’s a sorry excuse), we ordered the foie gras skewer (from the robata section) and some sashimi to sample (it’s just not enough to try sashimi chopped up in your chirashi sushi unfortunately).
The sashimi, as expected, was fresh and simply put, YUMMY. I did however, wish they hadn’t served salmon in the sampler plate (not when the plate costs close to S$60). After all, you hardly see salmon sashimi served in a good Japanese restaurant in Tokyo for an omakase plate. But still, it was decent, and the tuna belly (chutoro) and the yellowtail / hamachi had just the right amount of fattiness. Paired with freshly grated wasabi (i’m a sucker for restaurants that use fresh wasabi), the fish was elevated to a higher level altogether. As for the foie gras skewer, the charring was just what we were looking for on the outside, but I guess the coals were too hot for the foie gras as the interior was way overdone – it lost the silky smoothness that one usually expects with well-cooked (!!! i.e. slightly wobbly) foie gras.
Overall, this was a meal that was perfectly value for money, and at S$38 per person for set lunch, I’d go back there in a heartbeat. Do recommend this place to your friends as well, Hide Yamamoto is really a gem in the mammoth building that is MBS. Don’t get frightened off by the fact that it’s on the 2nd floor of MBS amongst the other restaurants that will only warrant a visit on the most special of occasions, you should hopefully be able to find something that meets your budget (the ramen goes for under S$20) at the restaurant. If you do try this place out, let us know what you think, and whether you agree with our views!
Hide Yamamoto
10 Bayfront Avenue, L2-05 Casino Level 2, Marina Bay Sands
Tel: +65 6688 7098
Mon–Wed: 12pm–3pm, 6pm–11pm
Thu–Sun: 12pm–3pm, 6pm–3am
Think RICE NOODLES. I don’t know if that’s true.)
If you’re in the area, and craving some decent Vietnamese / Laotian food(interestingly I didnt see many (if at all) Cambodian dishes on the menu), Siem Reap II is a pretty good choice. Don’t be put off by the number of tourists outside and think it’s a tourist trap (it’s not), and give it a shot. Given that we don’t have that many joints that serve Indochinese cuisine (ex Thailand), Siem Reap II is worth a try. The prices aren’t low (the Bun Dac Biet is S$19), but they do have special offers from time to time on various credit cards (on our last visit there, there was a one-for-one on identical main courses with AMEX cards), which make it a whole lot more affordable.
Another standout for me at Inagiku is the very simple starter salad that they serve upon the ordering of a set lunch. I’m not sure if they have this on the a-la-carte, but I certainly don’t see why it wouldn’t hold it’s place there. Simple spinach leaves, topped with a crispy tofu skin, doused in a tangy sesame dressing really whets your appetite for the more good food to come.
I am told that Inagiku is also known for it’s tempura (do let me know if this isn’t the case though), but I’d have to admit, on my visits there, I’ve never been very very impressed by their rendition. Somehow, the batter always felt a touch thick, and a tad over-crunchy, but perhaps that is the way it is meant to be?
In terms of food, Taste Paradise’s flagship dish must be the Stone Bowl Braised Sharks Fin with Crispy Spring Onion Roll. For conservationists, the restaurant serves a “green” version of the sharks fin – that is, environmentally friendly sharks fin. Full of flavour, the sharks’ fin soup is thickened with lower grade fish maw and leaves a sticky layer around your mouth (if you’re a messy eater like me). It comes accompanied with a spring onion wrapped in popiah skin deepfried to perfection. For me, I don’t quite get how the 2 are meant to be eaten together, but both are tasty delights individually so I’m not complaining about whether they should be served together. Be careful about the stone bowl the soup is served in though, since it keeps the soup warm for 20 minutes, you can imagine how hot it’s going to be!
Amongst the other dishes we had that night was a well executed Braised Abalone with Dried Oyster and a slightly oily Deep Fried Eggplant topped with Pork Floss (forgot about the pictures). The eggplant dish is not something that is new – quite a few restaurants serve it these days, whereas the abalone and dried oyster dish is also something that is common place on most Chinese New Year menus at many good Chinese restaurants. I suppose what sets Taste Paradise apart from many other restaurants is that the food is generally well executed and does not deliver any unexpected / unwanted surprises.
Our final dish of the evening was a Pan seared Scallop served with Conpoy and Mee Sua in Superior Stock. This was slightly more unusual, with the use of crisped conpoy as a garnish proving to be a good choice on the part of the chef. The mee sua was al dente, while the seared scallop was as scallops should always be served – browned on the outside, tender on the inside. The stock that it was served in, of course, could not be faulted. A fish based stock that was light yet flavoursome, the lightness of the dish made sure that we did not find it overbearing at the end of a heavy meal. (As a side note, I should also add that I also had the chance of sampling a fish noodle dish garnished with prawns (something like what I had at 
Apart from the duck, we ordered a number of dimsum and dishes to share. We had the Tianjin Cabbage with Chinese Ham which was flavourful, yet simple. At S$20 for a small a dish, it was a touch expensive, though I suppose one could argue that in a restaurant like this, that would be the price one would expect to pay.
We also had a Cucumber and Chicken Salad with Sesame and Peanut Sauce which was a simple dish of poached chicken, on a bed of sliced cucumber and green bean sheets topped with a silky smooth sesame and peanut sauce. This hit the spot (taking into account the fact that I really like peanut / sesame sauces). If you’re not quite a sesame / peanut sauce fan like I am, it could well have been considered an above average dish only. I’ve seen a similar version of this dish jazzed up with a little apricot jam to give the sauce a slight tanginess and sweetness, but this wasn’t evident here. Still, being the “nutty” fan I am, I liked this.
Aside from the above dishes, we also sampled standard dimsum items like the Hum Sui Kok, Char Siew Cheong Fun, Lor Bak Goh and the Egg Tarts. All of these were well executed renditions of the items, and I particularly liked the Lor Bak Goh (or carrot cake), as it was nicely fried and stuffed with a good amount of lup cheong (waxed sausage).
Overall, I liked the food at Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck. The Imperial Treasure group generally serves up well-executed Cantonese fare that keeps closely to the basics, and the food here at Super Peking Duck is no different. While the prices are nowhere on the low side, the dim sum is well priced for the quality of the food. Ordering dishes will, however, push your bill northwards. I should also highlight that when the restaurant gets busy, service levels suffer a little and on occasion, we found it hard to get the attention of the servers. When things slowed down, however, the staff managed the situation much better and got back on top of things. Still, in all, the food here was the star, and while I am told the Peking Duck can’t quite compare to that served in Da Dong or other Peking Duck specialists in Beijing, this rendition is pretty good and worth a try if you’re in the mood!
On our visit here, we weren’t quite in the Poon Choi mood (it wasn’t CNY ceason then) so we sampled a few of the dishes that were recommendations on the menu. First up, was the Crispy Fish Skin served with broth. I liked the crispy fried fish skin (I told myself it was my intake of omega 3 and collagen for the week, even though the skins were deepfried), but i didn’t quite understand how to use the broth. As explained to us, one was meant to dip the fish skin into the broth to maximise the flavour from the fish skins. For me, however, I liked the fish skins on their own – there didn’t seem to be a need for the broth and in truth, after the 2 baskets of fish skins were cleaned up, the broth was still left standing, virtually untouched. To avoid being wasteful, we drank up the broth like soup and it was delicious, albeit a touch too salty (perhaps as they really were meant as a dip, not a soup!).
We also ordered the Smoked Duck which had a nice semi-crisp skin on the outside, and a tasty, oaky flavour to the meat. The meat was smoked to a light pink hue, and was reminiscent of a western-style smoked duck dish. It also reminded me of a smoked ham, like one gets at Christmas – with a hint of honey at the tail end of the palate. Loved this dish and would not hesitate to order this again on my next visit!
This was really why we had come – someone had recommended this place to us for the fried crab beehoon. Well, the dish seemed to lack a little wok hei, as is really necessary for fried beehoon dishes. The crab was as expected, fresh (but nowhere near Mellben Seafood at Ang Mo Kio which serves the most delicious crabs ever, imho) but the beehoon seemed to lack a little flavour. Now I’ve been reassured that the reason why this is so, is that the restaurant was insanely crowded that night, hence the lacklustre beehoon. I guess that could be a reason for the lack of flavour, but I’d hoped for alot more from this dish, especially after what I’d heard. Nevertheless, I’m tempted to give this dish a second shot, just to be certain I’m not missing out on anything!
The milk mousse is quite a staple on the Nadaman starter menu – I’ve had this a few times – and it really never disappoints. The texture of the mousse is like tofu, except creamier because of the milk, but less of a “bean” taste as little (or no) soya bean milk is used. The favourite part of the dish for me, is the freshly grated wasabi on the top of the tofu which just gives the tofu that little added kick.
Sashimi course (Chef’s choice)
Simmered Dish: Simmered Eggplant, Pumpkin Chicken in Yuzu Sauce
Japanese simmered dishes have a way of becoming comfort food, and this was no exception. The pumpkin chicken was a mixture of minced chicken mixed with mashed pumpkin and then shallow fried, and the pumpkin added a delicate sweetness to the minced chicken. Coupled with soft eggplant (which is one of my ultimate favourites), the chicken pieces soaked in to the tart yuzu sauce perfectly.
Rice course: Steamed Rice, Mushrooms
Dessert: Mango Mousse, Milk Sauce
By the time dessert was served, there was really no more stomach to fully savour the mango dessert. Luckily, the small servings meant the dessert did not go to waste. This was like a mango pudding topped with an evaporated milk sauce, and while not horrid, was rather pedestrian. It felt like more mango should have gone into it to make for a more robust mango flavour.
On the glass panel separating you from the hot oil, a picture of Anthony Bourdain (celebrity chef and of A Cook’s Tour fame) is pasted up, to let you know that even he has tried the oyster cake. Well if he’s tried the oyster cake, then so should you. The oyster cake comes in 2 versions: Normal (without the oyster) at S$1.50 and the Normal with Oyster at S$2. I swear by the version with the oyster, because really, what’s an oyster cake without oysters? The batter is made up of rice flour mixed in water, and stuffed inside this batter, is a mixture of minced pork, minced prawns, chinese celery and oysters (if you choose the oyster version of course). The batter is then topped with peanuts and deep fried to perfection. Each bite is filled chock full of ingredients, and the juiciness of the ingredients just oozes out with each bite.
To fill our stomachs before the real food came, the amuse bouche of a rice paper roll did its job. Combining Vietnamese rice paper with a western styled filling of raw crunchy vegetables paired with some Chinese roasted duck meat, this lived up to Jing’s “modern” Chinese reputation. It wasn’t particularly outstanding, but neither was it bland or uninteresting. This held our attention for the short span of time it sat in front of us.
The button mushrooms were battered and coated with a wasabi-mayonnaise, which is today, a rather common sauce used in many Chinese restaurants. The salad leaves were standard issue mixed greens normally found in western restaurants, but to put a slight twist to the savoury salad, Chef Yong added chopped mango and strawberries for a little kick. While purists may scorn at the use of fruits in a savoury dish, I thought the use of mangoes and strawberries was an interesting touch to the dish that set it apart from a run of the mill regular wasabi mayonnaise mushroom dish you might find in a Chinese restaurant. Simple but elegant twist.
The dim sum were well executed, and each were plump with ingredients, whether it be prawns or scallops. The abalone in the abalone scallop dumpling was tiny (that’s the brown patch in the middle of each dumpling in first picture) and while you really couldn’t taste the abalone, for the price of the dumplings, I certainly wasn’t expecting an 8-head abalone!
