Although it is my third time at Imakatsu, their amazing food quality and service standard never fail to disappoint me each time. Each visit is always a pleasant one because there’s always something new and different. I am just glad that they didn’t just stick to serving Tonkatsu but also other Japanese dishes which they also took pride in serving the best of the best to their customers.
To date, there are currently two Imakatsu outlets in Singapore with its new second opening at Boat Quay, facing the Singapore River. It is located among several other restaurants and bars catered mainly to the office workers and expats at Raffles Place and tourists on weekends. Thus their new outlet’s menu slightly differs from the menu at the outlet located at The Star Vista. Though the menu here is less extensive than The Star Vista outlet, they still served equally delicious Tonkatsu and tasty side dishes that goes well with Sake.
They’ve got two seating areas – indoor and outdoor seating area. The outdoor seating area is larger and it has a good view of the city landscape as the background and a beautiful scenery of Singapore River at its foreground. It’s like dining by Singapore River and I am sure it would be pretty lovely to dine by the river under the stars.
We sat indoors since it was slightly warm outside.
Enjoy a beautiful view of Singapore while you indulge in some juicy tonkatsu over Japanese sake.
They’ve got quite a good selection of sake and I really like the Tsukasabotan Yuzu Sake that was served at Imakatsu. It’s light, sweet and very fruity in flavour. The slight acidity in taste wheys the appetite.
Yes, even my mum loves it too. She had a few shots of it knowing that she wouldn’t get drunk over a 5% alcohol-containing beverage.
You will need to drink it chilled. The bottle of sake is served in a chilled tub of ice.
Ready for dinner?
Our small side dishes (or so-called appetizers) was served first. I ordered their kimchi because the last time when I had it, it was so good that we ordered two!
What makes the kimchi so appetizing, in my opnion, is how fresh and crunchy the preserved vegetables tasted. The freshness comes through before the spicy and sourish taste of it. Personally, I felt that their kimchi was really well done.
Next up, we had this really nice cheese sticks which I’ve forgotten what is it called. It is served with mentaiko, a marinated roe of pollock and cod fish. Who would have known that mentaiko would go well with almost everything? It is like a savoury fish roe paste that is smooth and creamy.
Finely shredded cabbage was also served where you could it eat with their sesame dressing. Don’t forget to sprinkle some freshly-grounded white sesame seeds as well! The shredded cabbage is freshly cut and they don’t serve cabbage that are left overnight here. Freshness ensured!
Drizzle their homemade sesame dressing over the cabbage!
Next up, we had the mochi cheese cutlet! It’s oozing lots of melted cheese and my Dad loves it! Crunchy on the outside, soft and warm on the inside.
While you are here at Imakatsu, you should order their PIYO PIYO minced meat cutlet that hids a golden egg in it.
Premium Pork Loin Cutlet served with a thick layer of Mentaiko topped with spring onions, radish and seaweed. It’s one of their signature Tonkatsu which uses premium pork from Kagoshima.
It’s tender and quite moist. Imakatsu’s tonkatsu differs from others with their thin layer of breaded crumbs and the use of less oil. It is healthier and less oily as compared to tonkatsu found in other eateries which often has a thick crispy but oily layer of breadcrumbs.
Even their chicken fillet cutlet is also thinly coated with a layer of breadcrumbs; enough to give it a cripsy texture.
We were also taught how to pair the chicken fillet cutlet with salt that helps to maximise the flavour of the meat. Their salt orginates from Yamaguchi Prefecture and contains plenty of minerals.
They offered 6 different flavours of salt and we chose truffle salt, lemon salt and wasabi salt. The saltiness helps to bring the flavour of the meat through and just a little pinch of salt would do the trick. My favourite is the lemon salt which is very refreshing for my taste buds and I felt that it goes well with the chicken fillet.
Last but not least, we had the Oyako Don, a Japanese rice bowl dish served with chicken, egg and onions. This bowl of rice would fill you up and what makes it so tasty is the onsen egg which they placed right in the middle of the bowl.
Oyako Don comes with a bowl of pork-broth miso soup which tasted nice and pipping hot!
Overall, I was very satisfied with their standard of food. Although it is not a fine dining restaurant, they maintained a high food standards that matches up with any good restaurants found in Japan.
As I’ve mentioned before, they pride themselves not only their tonkatsus but also other salivating dishes too.
Imakatsu Singapore @ Boat Quay
52 Boat Quay
#01-01
Singapore 049841
Other outlet:
Imakatsu Singapore @ The Star Vista
1 Vista Exchange Green
Star Vista
#01-17
Singapore 138617
