If you are not on the lookout for Aoki Restaurant, chances are you would just walk past it without knowing that one of the best Japanese restaurants in Singapore is nestled within Shaw Centre since there’s no English-language sign outside. Directly opposite the HSBC building, just walk up Claymore Hill, past La Strada and Bistro Du Vin (yup, Les Amis paradise here, hah), and keep an eye out for the fabric-covered doorway leading into the restaurant.

Otoshi ($3++) is put on the bill even if you do not order it. It’s a small starter that varies depending on the restaurant and season. Mine was just stewed radish. I think of it as a sort of cover charge for the extra gestures like serving warm towels before and after the meal.

Set lunches are the obvious economical solutions to poor students like us. All are served with salad, miso soup and desserts.

Love the gorgeous colours of my Mazechirashi ($35++)! A bountiful bowl of vinegared sushi rice topped with mixed sashimi like uni, otoro, maguro, hamachi, sake, ikura etc. Not all was fresh as some had a fishy taste to it. Maybe supplies were old since it was just the 4th day of lunar new year? But in terms of presentation, variety and portion, this beats Nogawa hands down.

Service was disturbing though. I requested for no tako and ika but they were in the chirashi so I sent it back to the kitchen. Surprise, surprise, the same bowl was returned back to me, this time with its contents grossly messily rifled through. When I still spotted pieces of tako/ika in it, I knew that the staff merely tried to pick out the unwanted pieces. So I sent it back again, hoping they would get the hint to serve a freshly prepared one, as they should. But nope, the same bowl was returned back to me, and there were still tako/ika in it -_-

Frustrating! And I didn’t bother sending it back a 3rd time. If someone is going to “play” with my food, I’d rather be the one doing it!

Ok, back to the food. Mmm, the tamago ($3++) in the chirashi was so good that I ordered it ala carte. I’m not even sure if I should call it tamago since it’s nothing like an egg omelet. More like a spongy castella cake. Soft to goodness and irresistible!

Shokado ($38++): sashimi, nimono and tempura served in a lacquer lunch box. Because the sashimi wasn’t fresh, I thought this wasn’t worth the price since the tempura and nimono were mostly vegetables.

Aoki is the first Japanese restaurant I’ve been to that serves such an exquisite trio of desserts for set lunches. Instead of cheapo watermelon, we had three mini desserts: milk pudding, plum wine jelly and pineapple sorbet. Love them all!

As with Au Jardin, I left Aoki feeling ambivalent about the food and most disappointed with the service after that tako/ika issue.

Anyway, I’ve seeked clarification and it turned out that mine was an isolated mistake by the staff. According to Les Amis, “a dish that is wrongly served should be discarded and prepared again from scratch.” Great, glad to know that! I’m more inclined to go back again now, especially for that awesome tamago =)

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Lunching at Aoki makes is like having a vicarious tai tai experience. I’d like to think that everyone else there is either on some sort of business lunch or an actual, fully fledged tai tai. When I was there, the other group at the counter was a group of men in their 30s/40s having an extended wine tasting.

But anyway, for the mere mortal, lunch at Aoki is pleasantly affordable, and of a general high quality comparable to other Japanese restaurants in the same price point. I liked the little extra touches, like the ice cream and pudding for dessert instead of the usual watermelon slice. And how the miso used in the miso soup had an unusual (but very yummy) smoky flavour. Service is, of course, attentive.

before talking about the food, let me 1st forewarn that this place is costly. not exactly worth every penny but how do you put a value to good food?

we had 2 plates of very fresh sashimi. for someone who doesn't like sashimi, i devoured quite a few pieces because it was so sweet & doesn't have that fishy smell that i detest. then came all the tempura, soft shell crab, chawanmushi & what's not which i would recommend to skip because it's not that great. i can find better elsewhere for alot cheaper. the grilled fish however, was very nice. it was very nicely done & because the fish was so fresh, the taste was heavenly. we also had oysters, which was also very fresh & they had their own special sauce for you to dip in. thinking of it right now makes me want to run there now. anyway, now comes the highlight of my meal. beef with rice. i didn't catch the name of the beef but i remember they mentioned that it was better grade than wagyu. you can choose the doneness of your beef & if you'd like it as a steak of with rice, etc. the rice had a gas leak smell & it looked very oily but it was really very tasty. the beef was beyond words. the moment you take a bite, you can feel the taste of the beef & the fats blending very nicely on your tongue. add in the rice & it was perfect. please skip ice-cream if you can. nothing spectacular.

anyway, if i have spare cash, or a craving i resist, i will definitely come back here.

I just went back to Aoki last week cos I have a Korean friend in town. We went in a group of 3. I was the one who recommended the place to them. I remembered my first visit to Aoki, the item which blew me away was the exceptional grade sashimi with rice in a bento box. I love it, the choice of sashimi and the rice fits perfectly. And cos of this, I have been going to Aoki many times bringing different group of friends.

we ordered mainly the fresh and uncooked items. We had the abalone with their home cooked sauce. That is nice. We had the white fish with truffles. The sashimi with rice in bento. And other items introduced by the staff. We did not order any carbo items (rice or noodles). The food is fresh but definitely not worth the price. The bill was $640 for 3 of us. My Sporean friend and Korean friend felt that they could get same or better quality for lesser price in Korea.
The white fish with truffles cost us $90. We had 3 plates. Considering the size of the serving, it is expensive.

Service is excellent. Initially they put us in a private room with a weird sitting arrangement. We did not want that and they then changed us to a normal table. The service staff are attentive and regularly refill our table.

My friends were disappointed and definitely shocked by the bill considering the quantity we had. It will take me much courage to introduce this person to any friends again. Nevertheless, I will still come back whenever I feel like splurging and haver craving for the sashimi with bento rice. (-___________-)

the food reminded me of fine dining in Ginza. the prices are pricey - but it's well worth it if the occasion calls for a celebration and something great for your tastebuds!