GINZA ROKUKAKUTEI
# 01-04 Odeon Towers, 331 North Bridge Road, S(188720) T 6266-1077
It’s easy to dismiss Ginza Rokukakutei due to its location and unassertive facade at the back of Odeon Towers; the entrance and visible front room give the impression that this is a whisky bar that serves food. But it’s much more.
Behind the heavy metal door are a bar, and two separate counter dining areas where guests can watch their kushikatsu (deep-fried skewered meats and vegetables) being prepared by chefs.
Ginza Rokukakutei in Singapore is not only the sister restaurant of a highly awarded kushikatsu specialist in Osaka, Rokukakutei, it is also its first overseas venture. Named after the Tokyo outpost in Ginza, the Odeon Towers branch likely has the same cosmopolitan sensibilities.
As specialists of deep-fried skewered foods, you can expect the omakase sets of nine, 12 or 15 skewers to be executed beautifully – each is almost bite-sized, light and hardly greasy. The setup comes replete with a range of sauces and salt for dipping and sprinkling. On our visit, the seasonal skewers ran the gamut from mashed green peas (a refined version) to scallops, fish topped with pickled chrysanthemum, and chicken tonburi (tonburi being plant-based “mountain caviar”, a delicacy of the Akita prefecture).
There was variety in the menu too, with uni and tofu, and a chazuke dish (rice with dashi) making appearances in the middle and at the end of the meal.
What was most impressive was the bold choices taken by the sommelier, Ludovik Petrow. The Frenchman paired mostly bold Italian wines with the various skewers. The juicy berries of the Sicilian Feudi del Pisciotto Carolina 2011 matched well with the meat skewers. The sweet notes of the fish and chrysanthemum were brought out with the Loire Valley’s golden straw-coloured Cour Cheverny 2014.
Who would expect a meal of deepfried skewers to carry so much depth and variety? We certainly didn’t.