Okasa

A new Japanese restaurant by Daiyusan, which many people would familiar with their restaurant in Tai Seng.

Bringing a new concept to the center of CBD, offering their signature Japanese cuisine right under Asia Square.

Although they are located within the food garden, but they are a standalone restaurant in the space.

Most people would come here for their valuable lunch set, that comes with a main and all the side dishes.

Lots of set to choose from, and their chicken curry katsu is really decent for me. The curry wasn’t spicy but tasty. The chicken katsu has the texture I want, tender with crispy skin.

The side dishes included the Chawanmushi, pickled veggies and soup.

There has been quite a bit of shift in the tenants within Food Garden at Asia Square recently — whilst the change of F&B tenants are largely confined to the stalls around the food court area, there is at least one noticeable change in the restaurants operating within Food Garden as well. Opened in recent months would be Okasa; a new Japanese restaurant that is located just right beside the Starbucks outlet that is situated closer to Asia Square Tower 2; a window from within the dine-in area overlooks the lobby of Asia Square Tower 2 towards Marina One. Okasa looks especially formal from the outside; the entrance featuring a vast array of Japanese alcohol that leads up to the reception area. The dine-in area of Okasa is split into four distinct sections — one being the bar counter seats behind the wall of Japanese alcohol that is at the entrance of the establishment, while the main dining hall is towards the left of the entrance. There is also a quieter zone that is segmented out of the main dining hall; something that is almost akin to that of a private room that is by the side of the main dining hall — the smaller dining hall on the right being. W bit more casual than the main dining hall itself. As much as how the establishment attempts to have a simple look, the elements from the dining chairs and the dining tables, as well as the various ornaments placed around has a distinct oriental Japanese vibe — classy, yet without being over the top. The menu at Okasa is split into several sections, which includes categories such as Donburi, Sashimi, Maki, Hot Food, Sushi, Hand Roll, Appetisers, Yaki Grill and Desserts. Okasa offers a decent selection of non-alcoholic beverages — this includes Sencha, Honey Yuzu and canned drinks.

Visiting Okasa on a weekday lunch service, we went for the Bara Chirashi Don. For those who are looking to opt in for a set, patrons would be able to go for an add-on through the Ladies Set, Lunch Set or Sashimi Set from the Add-Ons section of the menu — we went with the Lunch Set for our order, which comprises of a bowl of Miso Soup, salad and Chawanmushi on the side. There wasn’t much waiting time involved for the preparation of our order; one would be able to notice the beautiful semi-transparent glass bowl with a gold rim that they have used for the Bara Chirashi Don here. First look at the Bara Chirashi Don and one would notice the splash of colours from the assortment of diced fish, cubes of cucumber, Tamago and all the other elements that makes it pretty aesthetically pleasing. Digging into the bowl, it is noted that the rice of the Bara Chirashi Don here comes at room temperature — something which we prefer considering how this ensures that the diced cubes of fish would not be “heated up” by the rice. The short-grain rice is suitably moist and sticky here — slightly vinegary and sweet almost akin to that of sushi rice. This went really well the assortment of raw dish that comes with the Bara Chirashi Don here; this includes diced octopus, salmon, tuna and swordfish — all coming appropriately sized so one could have enough of all of the elements in one spoonful. The Bara Chirashi Don here seems to be focused on the freshness of the fish; that means that the diced cubes of sashimi comes as-is without being marinated. The inclusion of Chuka Wakame (i.e. seasoned seaweed) adds a good chew to the Bara Chirashi Don, while the Ikura provides a popping umami sensation as one chews on it — the cubes of cucumber providing a refreshing crunch in between all the fish and the rice. Overall, a pretty good Bara Chirashi Don which pretty much resonates the sort of establishment it is being served at, and the price tag of which it is asking for.

Despite being situated within Food Garden at Asia Square, Okasa is an establishment that we would think of as a mid-tier restaurant — not really surprising considering how it is a restaurant operating within the grounds of a food court anyway. Whilst we only tried the Bara Chirashi Don with the Lunch Set during this particular visit, this was not our very first visit to Okasa — we had actually made another trip to Okasa prior for dinner service and they were especially quiet during weekday evenings. We quite liked the Maki that we had opted for; the Spicy Ebi Fry Salmon Aburi Maki being one that would satisfy those who love a crispy crunch in their Maki along with torched Mentaiko Mayo — a crowd favourite considering the elements featured in the Maki. For the Lunch Set, the Chawanmushi comes with Ikura sitting within the dashi stock on top of the steamed egg; also comes with Shimeiji mushrooms for a bouncy chew for a contrast of textures, as well as Surimi. The garden salad comes drenched with sufficient Goma sauce for a creamy and umami note to go along with the fresh and crisp leafy greens, while the Miso Soup comes all earthy and nutty with loads of kelp and tiny cubes of tofu for something to munch on. For those interested in their Donburi, the Donburi featuring raw fish at Okasa is priced from $21.90++ to $79.90++ — the most affordable being the Bara Chirashi Don and the Salmon Don, while the priciest item would be the 3 Kind Hon Maguro; the main courses in the Hot Food section comes at a lower price tag, with the main dishes featuring rice and noodles ranging from $12.90++ to $26.90++. With its ambience and quality of food served, Okasa is that sort of establishment that would work best for both business lunches and for those workplace get-togethers with a wider budget — a spot for Japanese fare with a quality at the price point it commands for.