One of the reasons why I love Singapore is that there’s an amazing selection of Japanese food and restaurants here, sometimes I feel it’s almost like I’m living in Japan!!

When itadakimasu by PARCO first opened, I was so excited because it has some of my favorite restaurants from Japan made their debut!!! 😀

itadakimasu by PARCO is a Japanese Food Town located at 100 AM Level 3 Shopping Mall offering authentic Japanese food specially curated from Japan, at affordable prices!

These are the 7 restaurants, some which you may be already familiar with, and some are the first outlets in Singapore!

1. Gyu Jin
2. Yakiniku Heijoen
3.
YAYOI
4. Saboten
5. Nadai Fujisoba
NI-HACHI
6. Ramen Keisuke Tori King
7. Numazu
Uogashi Zushi

I was so happy to know that Uogashi Zushi is finally here in SG!! If you remember my old blog posts you will know how much I love it haha. There’s one in Gotemba which I will visit every time without fail!

So today I will be reviewing two restaurants from itadakimasu by PARCO.

Gyu Jin

Most Singaporeans and Malaysians love our steamboat, but Japanese have their equivalent hotpot – Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki. And my favorite Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki restaurant in Singapore is Gyu Jin!

Before this review, I have actually been to this restaurant once already with family, and I was so so happy with the meal haha. I knew I would be back again!!

All-You-Can-Eat

During dinner time, Gyu Jin only serves free-flow style, so you choose a course you prefer, and get unlimited amount of food!!

There’s the American Beef course at $31.90++, Australian Wagyu at $40.90++ and Japanese First Class Wagyu at $72.90++ each pax. Even if you don’t eat beef, there’s still a selection of pork and chicken!

The first time we came we ordered Australian Wagyu, it was really good. And this time, we decided to go all out and get…

Japanese First Class Wagyu!!!

Honestly if you ask for my opinion about all the 3 choices, I’d say… just go all out for the best. Yes it is double the price of ordinary beef but trust me, you’ll never go back again!

After choosing the type of beef, it’s time to choose your soup base.

They have 5 varieties: Hidaka Kelp Dashi, Suki Dashi, Savory and Spicy Dashi, Yuzu Salt Dashi and Creamy Salted Rice Malt Dashi.

I love it that they allow you to choose two types of soup!!

Today we have picked Suki Dashi and Creamy Salted Rice Malt Dashi. Suki Dashi is slightly sweet so it would be a hit with the kids, while the creamy soup is a chicken based soup with a hint of ginger that’s super rich and flavorful that would be perfect for any meat!

Itadakimasu! (Sakura is already eating haha)

Here’s our glorious, perfectly marbled Japanese Wagyu that’s so so so soft with the right amount of fat that just almost melts in your mouth!

We also ordered the Kurobuta, a premium Japanese black pork that is so tender without a single hint of off-flavors that most pork carry.

I’d recommend getting the Suki Dashi together with an egg, so you can savor the delicious Japanese wagyu in the true Sukiyaki-style!

Crack an egg in the bowl and dip your beef (be careful not to overcook it!) in the bowl and enjoy the burst of umami flavors of the wagyu within the smooth texture of the egg mixture. So yummy T__T.

That’s also a vegetable bar with a wide selection of high quality greens such as spinach, pea sprouts, xiao bai cai, hakusai, negi (my favorite haha), as well as other protein and carbs such as crab sticks, tofu, fish cake , udon, etc.

I usually don’t really like veggies at buffet table because most of the time they look sort of half-withered and not very appetizing at all, but this one at Gyu Jin is kept at its freshest with the ice mist so we kept going back for more servings!!

This is Junya’s favorite section – mushrooms!! Shiitake, enoki, shimeji…

He had I think 3 bowls of just mushrooms alone hahaha.

This is rarely seen in Japan as Japanese usually don’t eat shabu shabu with many dippings, but we are in Singapore!! So it’s really nice that they provide a good mix of condiments, such as garlic paste, chili, coriander (no coriander for me though haha)…

And also sauces like sweet chili, sesame oil, etc!!

Here’s Cheesie’s Signature Sauce, if you are keen to try out haha:

Just mix garlic oil, La Yu (chili oil), vinegar, sesame seeds and spring onion. It goes really well with Shabu pork in clear soup base!! 😀

Did you know that other than all those, they even serve rice and curry??

Pearly white Japanese rice!! They are really not compromising on quality at all T_T.

You may eat it together with your shabu shabu/sukiyaki or pour curry over it as a separate dish! It’s not spicy so it’s child-friendly! Even Sakura had some of this haha.

I really think that Gyu Jin is a super family-friendly place to dine in with kids because of the healthy, balanced selection of food, and of course the comfy, spacious dining environment makes it a relaxing experience.

The adults can enjoy alllllll the meat your stomach will allow, where the kids get to load up on tons of vegetables. The flavorful soups also make veggies extra yummy for them!

After being a good boy finishing 3 bowls of mushrooms, vegetables, meat and soup, of course it’s his sweet treat time. Haha. You may go for your free-flow ice cream now. It’s included in the course!!

So we had a super satisfying dinner!!

The first time I was there I actually thought, wow, how do they even make money from this??? I remember seeing Wagyu selling in Singapore supermarkets for like over $80 for a mere 200gm. So let’s see! We have ordered at least 4 trays of beef and 2 trays of pork. That alone is already waaaaaaaay worth the course value??? I think we ate maybe an amount worth $300-$400 in the whole dinner if we were to order it ala carte somewhere else!! I used to think that Japanese dining in Singapore is insanely priced but this I feel is totally reasonable!!!

Why is Gyu Jin so affordable? Its operating company, Heijouen has a long track record of procuring quality meat in Japan, which is why Gyu Jin is able to serve the same quality of meat in Singapore at reasonable price.

SUPER VALUE OK!!! Meat lovers, this is your chance.

Oh oh oh. Also??

Kids under 3 EAT FOR FREE. FREE LEH!! Sakura was basically chowing down as much wagyu as she wants at $0 lolol. Too bad Junya has turned 3 now so we have to pay $6.25++ for him. (The first time we went he also ate for free because he was 2 years and 11 months and 3 weeks old hahah. It was a week before his 3rd birthday!!) But still!!! $6.25++ is like… nothing! You probably get like a bowl of kids-size udon if you dine somewhere else. WITHOUT WAGYU. Hahahha. Omg I love Gyu Jin T____T.

Please go and try!! I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I do!! 

To make reservation, call: 6538-1820

Please go and try!! I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I do!! 😀

 

Nadai Fujisoba Ni-Hachi

The second restaurant I’d like to recommend is Nadai Fujisoba NI-HACHI, Japan’s best soba restaurant which has just made their debut in Singapore!!

We know Soba means buckwheat, but do you know how it is made?

There are places that make these nutritional noodles with the ratio of wheat flour to buckwheat flour is 1 to 10. However, the golden flour ratio is 2:8 (20% wheat flour, 80% buckwheat flour), which is known as “nihachi soba” in Japanese. Yes that’s the meaning of the name!!

Fujisoba uses high quality soba and dry bonito imported from Japan, with careful management of temperature and humidity to keep in the freshness!

I went for a Joshikai (女子会) with my girlfriends at Fujisoba because we love the yummy and healthy food here! It was also Sakura’s first Joshikai hahaha. 3 fake Japanese and 1 half Japanese here HAHA.

I’m sure you have heard of the health benefits of soba, with it being low in calories with the added bonus of lowering blood pressure and aiding digestion.

Our lunch spread! 😀

Other than soba they also have a variety of delicious ala carte, and my absolute favorite is this Special Truffles Dashi Maki Tamago with Crab Japanese Sauce ($15++). You know how when they say truffle, usually it means truffle-scented oil (example truffle fries!). But this one you can see the real truffle bits in it!!! @.@ Sooo yummy, very worth it!

This is Agedashi Tofu with fried eggplant and my fav shishitou! ($8++)

Here comes the main!

This is Hot Sukiyaki Soba ($18++), if you love meat and onsen tamago!

Cold NI-HACHI Tempura Soba is a classic favorite ($20++), a very good size for a huge appetite!

Ahhhhh all the mentaiko lovers, here’s your Hot Mentai Cream Soba! ($17++). This unusual combination is actually a good match, with the al dente texture of the noodle paired with rich, creamy soup!

A great Joshikai we had. Looking forward to having Sakura join our secret girl talks. ^^

 

itadakimasu By PARCO
Location: Level 3, 100 AM Shopping Mall
100 Tras Street, Singapore 079027
(5-min walk from Tanjong Pagar MRT Station)

Opening Hours: 11am to 10pm, Daily

 

Find out more from itadakimasu’s Facebook Page and Instagram @itadakimasubyparco

Share: