Mum, me and 1 girlfriend decided on this place as we wanted to try something authentic. We were there on a Friday night, the restuarant was about 3/4 packed. We did not make a reservation but was promptly shown to a table without a fuss (to me that is 1 Plus point). Waitress was prompt in serving us Ocha, and the menu. We could not decide what to have, all we know is that we need some really fresh sashimi to start our meal! So we asked the waitress for some recommendations. She suggested that perhaps we should leave the decision to the Chef for our Sashimi Platter...so we did...and we are not disappointed! :p

Recommended Dishes:
Sashimi Platter for 3 ppl (KAM. Belly Sashimi, Salmon Belly, Mekajiki, Tai & Houbou (i think this is called Blue Robin).
- it comes in 3 slices each, except for Houbou Sashimi, which came in a plate with at least 20 thin slices and special sauce to go with. I think Houbou was the best! *Yummy* (SGD$90++)

Grill Dried Puffer Fish (SGD$13++)
- my frd and i thought it taste like dried cuttlefish (nothing to rave about)...mum thought it smell rather fishy.

Takenoko Dengaku (i think this is the Steam Bamboo Shoot)-SGD$15++
-was told this is a rather popular dish. Refreshing...but i think it was too light for my taste. The bamboo shoot has either miso or the dark miso smeared on it...

Dishes which we added on:
Akaimo Tempura (Sweet Potato) -SGD$12++
-this was really good. The slices were thick, and when u bite into it, the sweet potato practically melts in your mouth...its SWEET and moist too! Was hesitant to order this, as i have tried most at most restaurant, and they are usually thin in slices and dry! They serve about 8 slices. *Delectable*

Asparagus Bacon (4 in a Skewer) -SGD$6++
-was too salty and ordinary

Beef Fillet (4 in a Skewer) -SGD$8++
-tender and nice seasoning. They do not use that much fatty meat, melts in your mouth.

Claypot Udon Noodles (SGD$22++)
-Ordinary.

Salmon Pot & Beef Steak Set (SGD$45++)
-Chunks of Salmon pieces can be found in the hot pot. The meat was sweet and delicious. Generous in servings as well...about 3 large chunks in there, stewed together with white cabbage. As for the Beef Steak, if possible, i would not order again. Took the 1st bite, was ok...subsequent bites, i realized that it was really all fats no meat. It took me awhile to chew.

2 pcs of Ika Sushi (SGD$6++)
-they have a certain type of fragrant leaf in-between the rice and Ika. Frankly, the frangrance of the leaf was overwhelming. Would prefer if they just left the leaf out. Overall, ika was fresh.

2 of us came here for lunch on a Sunday. The place was 3/4 filled. The set up and atmosphere was nice. Not too upmarket and definitely more comfortable and peaceful than lots of places that cater to families. There were many varieties of lunch sets available, ranging from $25 to $45. There were of course seasonal sets ($68 per person) and a la carte items covering most types of traditional Japanese cuisine.
After looking through the menu, we noticed that there are now more dinner sets ranging from $35 to $46 than before, perhaps aiming for people watching their budget in this time of recession.
There was also a wine list. I believe there is quite a variety but I am no expert in this area.
We ordered 2 lunch sets. A "Tempura & Salmon Sashimi Set" ($36) amd a "Kuriya Bento Set" ($42).
Both sets started off with the a bowl of salad with finely shredded cabbage, green & red peppers dressed in a light dressing. A refreshing start and I prefer this dressing to the creamy dressing offered elsewhere.
A little bowl of oden appeared as part of the Kuriya Bento Set. 3 items were offered. A soft fluffy piece of potato, a tender, melt in your mouth taikon and a fish cake. Yummy indeed.
The 2 bento trays then made their appearances.
The Kuriya bento set offered sashimi (2 pieces of tuna, 2 pieces of sword fish and 3 pieces of salmon),a piece of sesame tofu, tempura (2 big prawns and some vegetabe items), a small piece each of grilled unagi, gindara teriyaki & omelette, chawanmushi, pickle, rice & miso soup.
The salmon sashimi & tempura set offered salmon sashimi (7 pieces, beautifully decorated), tempura (3 big prawns and some vegetable items), chawanmushi, rice, pickle and miso soup.
The sesame tofu turned out to be the discovery of the day. Neither of us has tasted anything like this before. Smooth as silk and lightly flavoured, it was decorated with some salmon roe as topping. What a wonderful and unusual appetiser. Pleasing to the eyes as well as the palate.
The chawanmushi was a just a small 'cup' but full of ingredients, including slices of shitake mushroom, chicken, a gingko nut and a crunchy prawn (as crunchy as those stirred fried in a good Cantonese restaurant) and it was not too salty. This is easily 1 of the best chawanmushi I have tasted anywhere. For once, I hoped that it was a bigger serving (I normally do not like eggs unless it comes sweetened in desserts and cakes).
The sashimi were a fine lot. The sword fish (mentijiki) was especially firm and fresh. They may not be the tip top best cuts but quite good enough for the prices asked for. The slices were thick and fresh.
The tempura items boasted crunchy fresh big prawns and super light batter. The vegetable items included the usual suspects like shitake mushrooms and lotus roots.
The gindara teriyaki literally melted in our mouth. The rest of the items (unagi, omelette) were less outstanding. Pickle, rice and miso soup were standard fare.
Both sets offered dessert in the form of 1 scoop of green tea ice cream (adequate but not out of this world)and a good cup of coffee.
Service was attentive, courteous and efficient. The couple of waitresses we spoke to did know the menu and ingredients sufficiently to answer queries. Green tea was free flow and generously refilled thoughout the meal. I also like the fact that they try to serve the various items in courses such that they do not all arrive together. Fresh paper towels were supplied when dessert and coffee was served at the end of the meal.
They did make a small mistake when we first entered, distributing some salad to wrong customers at our neighbouring table. It was promptly realised and profuse apology was offered. I am sure any reasobale customer would have accepted it.
It was a most enjoyable lunch and we believe we will be back soon for more.

Came here with the parents out-of-the-blue. My mom kind of likes Japanese, so we figured why not. They've got two menus at lunchtime - the ala carte and the sets. Suggestion is to go for the sets - they do offer a fair variety that is more value for money, especially compared to the ala carte.

My mom and I are boring. We both ordered the salmon sashimi and tempura lunch set ($36 each). It comes with one plate of salmon sashimi slices (beautifully decorated on a bed of crushed ice, I must add!), one plate of assorted tempura - three prawns, one piece of lotus root, one piece of brinjal, half a piece of mushroom, two pieces of asparagus and a fan-like battered object which my mom believes to be tempura-ed noodle strands. That is quite a lot of tempura, trust me. Also comes with the usual bowl of white steamed rice (very fragrant and tasty), one bowl of miso soup, one bowl of steamed egg custard (yummy!), pickles, a salad, a choice of coffee or tea, and dessert (a scoop of green tea ice-cream).

And yes, the food was pretty good. Sashimi was fresh, tempura was tasty... And boy was the meal heavy. There was just so much food. Even the service was top-notch, with the service staff being attentive to us, refilling our green tea without prompting, and even allowing my mom to change her order even just before the first order was being served to her.

The only downside - possibly the ala cartes. My father ordered the unagi don, which is four slices of grilled eel on a bed of rice, and a side of miso soup. According to him, the eel was fresh and delicious. But his order also came to the same price as our set - $36.

Moral? Unless you want the exotic like yellowtail sashimi, it's better to get a set for the most out of your meal.

Both me and my other half ordered their set dinner which was quite value for money. My Kuriya set dinner came with assorted sashimi, rice, miso soup, chawanmushi, assorted tempura and yakitori. All for like $52++ The unagi yakitori was gd. Sashimi was quite fresh.

My other half ordered the wagyu beef sukiyaki set. Excellent beef!! One of the better wagyu beef we had and at such reasonable price of $68++ it also came with sashimi and dessert.

Service was alright though they were not v prompt with topping up the tea and the tea was cold =_=

We've always ordered a la carte at Kuriya (especially from its seasonal menu) but feeling adventurous and desiring variety, we decided on the monthly course (abt 8 items) at our most recent dinner there.

May's course included

1) some creative items -- shrimp wrapped around an egg yolk (the yolk seemed to have been steamed/poached and was rectangularin shape), rice wrapped in bamboo leaf (rice was too sweet), some green soy jelly.

2) the more traditional items such as its 4 types of sashimi, grilled cod, chiraishi (tuna, salmon, swordfish on a bed of Japanese rice), vegetable tempura all met expectations in terms of freshness and crispness.
Only gripe was the sashimi having only a small piece of amaebi..

It could be due to the late hour but I thought that the course could have been served more leisurely, where the next item is served only after the last item was completed. Would have been a more fine dining experience..

Since we were famished, we also ordered the fresh sea urchin in sea water ($40), soft shell crab roll ($12) and our usual fav garlic fried rice.

Most memorable dish was definitely the sea urchin. I thought the uni I had in Inagiku was the best but this tops that! The uni came soaked in a glass bowl of sea water resting on a bed of ice. One can see the sponginess of each uni (unlike some places where it just looks like a glob) and that raised my expectations. The melt-in-my-mouth texture and freshness made the $40 worth it ;)

The soft shell crab roll was a bit disappointing with the soft shell crab kinda soft. Another thing to note is the sauce; unless you can take spicy (very!), stick with the mayo.

I like Kuriya's garlic fried rice for its almond chips - gives a nice bite/crunch to the dish!