Miyuki Izakaya (Serangoon Garden)

For those whom have been following us for a couple of months now, perhaps the name Miyuki Izakaya might be one that some has heard before — we had given these folks a visit some time back when they had opened their very first location at The Brooks II near Springleaf MRT Station some time back. These folks seem to be ready for expansion; they had opened a new outlet in late 2023 — this time round in yet another unexpected location being situated in the basement of myVillage at Serangoon Gardens. Taking over the former premises of the now-defunct The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf location within the mall, one might initially think that the area that Miyuki Izakaya occupies in the basement is a bit on the smaller side. That being said, it turns out that most of the outdoor space that one would be led to at the basement when entering from the escalator outside of the mall is also part of the shop space tenanted to Miyuki Izakaya. This means that Miyuki Izakaya does have both outdoor and indoor dining area — the bar for drinks interestingly being located in the outdoor area while the indoor dining area is where one can find the sushi bar as well. The shop sees itself being decked in wooden furniture and fittings in a dark wood accent; one can also see red paper laterns being hung from the ceiling that adds on to the mysterious, but unmistakably Japanese vibes here — a theme that is fairly close to that of their The Brooks II outlet. Miyuki Izakaya does serve up quite an extensive menu at their The Brooks II outlet — the same can be described about the menu at their newer myVillage at Serangoon Gardens outlet, though there are some minor differences that could be said the least. The food menu at the myVillage at Serangoon Gardens outlet features sections dedicated to Hot / Cold Appetisers, Sashimi, Salad, Soup, Tamago, Sashimi, Donburi, Oysters, Makizushi, Soba, Udon, Handroll, Yakitori and Grilled Seafood. Meanwhile, alcoholic beverages does seem to form quite a bulk of beverages that they have to offer at Miyuki Izakaya, though non-alcoholic beverages includes that of green tea and canned drinks; just to name a few.

We had previously been to Miyuki Izakaya at The Brooks II to check out what they have to offer — that being said, we seemed to have overlooked the Donburi section quite a fair bit since it was the first time that we actually noticed that they do carry White Curry-based items on their menu after all this while; perhaps we were too fixated on having the Bara Chirashi / Chirashi Dons on our very first visit to Miyuki Izakaya at their The Brooks II location. Despite Miyuki Izakaya at The Brooks II being an establishment that serves up White Curry-based items, one thing that is worth noting about their myVillage @ Serangoon Gardens location is that the Beef Hamburg White Curry Set is actually an outlet exclusive here; the White Curry Sets available in the Donburi section of the menu at their The Brooks I outlet would be a Chicken White Curry Tonkatsu Set as well as the Kurobuta Pork White Curry Tonkatsu Set. The menu describes the Beef Hamburg White Curry Set to come with elements such as a charcoal-grilled beef patty, Hokkaido White Curry, Onsen Egg and Rice — it also comes accompanied with a bowl of Miso Soup on the side. Coming with Hokkaido White Curry brimming, the plating where the Onsen Egg sits atop the Beef Hamburg that in turn comes atop of the rice gives off vibes really similar to that of a spruced up Hamburg Don that was trending some time back in 2023. Excitedly digging into the Hokkaido White Curry, we found this to taste fairly similar for the of the usual Japanese-style curry that we are familiar with — only with a slightly more profound sweetness by just a touch, and whilst still carrying some peppery notes, also seem to taste less heavy of the more profound spices that makes it easier to have with a cleaner finishing note. There was also sufficient White Curry to go with the portion of rice; something that is worth commending.

If anything, we did wish the root vegetables such as that of the potato and the carrot can be cooked to a soft consistency — something that one can argue to be a matter of preference. That being said, the true winner here was the Beef Hamburg patty; the oddly-shaped patty is a clear sign that this is a hand-formed patty — what we absolutely loved was how it was brined in a way to carry that right degree of saltishness whilst the the surface comes slight crusty and smoky from the charcoal grilling process. The flesh itself was tender and juicy; definitely did not carry any veiny or fatty parts that would have otherwise caused an inconsistent texture — most certainly better than what we had experienced out of the beef patties that some Western cuisine stalls serve out in their burgers. Breaking the Onsen Egg, the runny yolk further helps to provide moisture to the juicy beef and flavourful beef patty — gives it a silkier texture and also binds it with the bed of short-grain rice that comes beneath. Apart from the Beef Hamburg White Curry Set, other unique dishes that we have tried this time round at Miyuki Izakaya includes that of the Pitan Roll — a Makizushi item that features Ebi Tempura, cucumber, sushi rice, tobiko etc.; all drenched in an umami century egg-infused sauce whilst providing a good variety of textures with a bit of chew, a bit of crunch and a slight crispness from the various elements involved.

The Buri Tataki bears some semblance to a Japanese-inspired taco; lined with seaweed and the bottom, this item also features rice and comes with chopped wild-caught amberjack that is marinated with Yuzu zest. What made this dish unforgettable was how the wasabi, seaweed and the Ikura somehow made the flavours of the fish sweeter; the consistent texture of the chopped amberjack and the sushi rice was also well-grasped. There is also the Okonomiyaki Stick that was an inventive way to serve up the Japanese teppanyaki pancake dish in a form of a skewer. Overall, our experience at Miyuki Izakaya at myVillage at Serangoon Gardens have been very consistent with what we have had from the visit to their The Brooks II location previously; despite offering such a wide range of items, there are dishes that are set to impress, and that the quality of their fare still shines through. It is perhaps so that made Miyuki Izakaya quite the spot for good Japanese fare in the area; the establishment being well-patronised during the day which we made our visit there. Items from the Udon / Soba / Donburi section of the menu which are individually-sized are priced within the range of $14.90 to $28.90 per item; the lowest-priced being the Cha Soba, while the priciest would be the Miyuki Saikyo Chirashi. With such quality Japanese fare and dishes that impress at reasonable prices, Miyuki Izakaya is most certainly a spot which we look forward to revisit in due time!

This was sadly too tough for me, and some parts were also too fatty for me.

Grilled whole squid (imported Surume lka) served with homemade yuzu spicy sauce on the side. The tail was a little tough for my liking, but the body of the squid was pretty well-cooked. Also had a nice light smokey flavour & char!

This grilled 3 days aged black cod marinated with Miyuki's special miso might not be very evenly seasoned, as some parts were more heavily seasoned, and on the other hand you do get to taste purely the flavours of the meat itself at other parts.
Still enjoyed it flavourwise even with the heavy seasoning, and this fish was soft in terms of texture but still had a bite.

Don't really eat sashimi but these were definitely thick slices!! You can expect Salmon, Maguro, and Makajiki here!

First time trying White Curry, and this is from Miyuki Izakaya's new outlet at @myvillagesg.

Hokkaido White Curry Seafood Udon ($20.90)
Definitely an interesting one for me -- it doesn't look like curry (more like cream), yet it does smell and taste like curry, except it's much milder, smoother and creamier than your usual Jap curry!
This bowl was stewed with spices from Hokkaido, fresh Hokkaido milk, potatoes, carrots, onions and shimeji mushrooms.