Japanese Food In Singapore

Nestled on a tiny pile of rice and cupped within the confines of a strip of nori, each little orange sphere of omega-3 oil was as fresh as it gets, its membrane so thin that it dissolved from the warmth of the tongue, surrendering the deluge of the rich juices encompassed within, without the need of even biting into it. The juicy ikura (salmon roe) exploded in the mouth, releasing all its lovely salty fatty juices with a tinge of a refreshingly fruity and sweet tang from the yuzu that it had been incorporated with.

The horse mackerel is a small, silver-skinned, strong-tasting fish packed with omega-three acids, DHA and EPA, but can slightly turn people off with its potent flavor of the sea. The horse mackerel in Southpaw was served topped with spring onions and grated ginger so that their spicy sharpness cuts through the fishy taste for a brighter flavor. The flesh was a beautiful gradient of pastel pink to terra cotta red and had a firm al-dente texture with a slightly oily mouthfeel and a rich oceanic taste that lingered on the palate.

During winter, the olive flounder puts on a luscious layer of fat under its skin. Only a skilled chef is able to remove the skin while preserving that layer of fat beneath. This layer of fat can easily be seen especially when it is cooked. Southpaw lightly grilled the hirame to bring out the flavors of the fish, and the slick sheen glistening on its surface is indicative of a fatty and oily fish sliced with expertise. The hirame in the sushi assortment slightly differed from the one in the sashimi platter as the flesh from the aburi hirame sushi came from the area around the fish's fin called the engawa, prized due to its limited quantity (only eight servings in the entire flounder) and the slightly crunchy and chewy nature of the top muscle which in the process of mastication, releases glycogen from the muscles, turning it into simpler sugars as it mixes with the saliva in the mouth. It was thick and buttery in the mouth but quickly melted into a rich, oily and smoky combination of viscous juices with every chew.

The leaner meat found around the spine of the bluefin tuna is called the akami, which is the portion served when it is simply stated as “maguro” in restaurants. This cut of the tuna is usually a deep crimson in color due to the presence of iron rich myoglobin it its muscles which helps the tuna propel through the water at speeds of up to 70km/hour. The iron rich myoglobin gave the tuna a taste and texture almost like very rare filet mignon – smooth and velvety with a mild succulent sweetness, but without the metallic aftertaste.

The sashimi platter consisted of six varieties of sashimi; geoduck, ika, hirame, aburi shiro maguro, and otoro, beautifully plated and served with Southpaw's special soya sauce brewed with sake and mirin. The sashimi platter was served with a small chrysanthemum flower, a stalk of mint leaf flowers, and radish flower bulbs. Roy recommended mixing the chrysanthemum petals, the mint leaf flowers and radish flower bulbs into the soya sauce to create a floral, mildly minty and slightly sharp multi-dimensional dipping sauce for the sashimi. The contents on the sashimi platter change with season, so there is always that element of surprise for the diner.

The thin slices of salmon belly sashimi were each topped with spring onions, lumpfish caviar and candied bonito flakes, with truffle oil drizzled over. The salmon sashimi was fatty, creamy and tender, and the way that the salmon was sliced ultra-fine and paper-thin further added to a melt-in-the-mouth texture. The lumpfish caviar gave off a juicy pop of saltiness that perfectly brought the sweet bonito flakes, the evergreen freshness of the spring onions and the musky and earthy aromas of the truffle oil together with the silky and creamy salmon belly in creating a refreshingly complex flavor and texture profile.

Roy recommended pouring a splash of The Ten 2008 #3 Light Highland’s pale champagne colored liquid into the empty oyster shell, as the single malt scotch whisky will intermix with the lingering oyster juices to create a uniquely gorgeous amalgamation that cannot be recreated in bottled whiskies. The fresh, grassy and floral notes of the whisky suffused with the briny salinity left in the shell came out tasting like liquid sunshine at the beach, summery and sparkling with the floral, grassy, briny and salty flavors playfully dancing on the tastebuds.

The two appetizers were served together, beautifully plated to whet the appetite. It is an ingenious culinary decision to present both the light and juicy Scottish Loch Fyne Oyster along with the rich and creamy Monkfish Liver together, for contrasting textures and flavors that helped in opening up the palate.

Sweet with notes of chocolate, vanilla and caramel

Sweet and fruity with bouquet of bananas, peach, apricot and vanilla

Light and slightly spicy with floral and grassy notes

Sequestered along a row of shophouses on Cavan Road, it is easy to miss the sliver of the shopfront occupying a narrow unit. The obscure entrance is simply furnished with an automatic lock door and a small glass panel featuring several bottles of whiskies on rows of wooden shelves. The nondescript shopfront gives no indication to the gastronomical treasure trove that awaits within Southpaw Bar & Sushi, where the passion and dedication towards the art of gastronomy is almost palpable.