Sakurazaka: Authentic Shabu Shabu in Greenwood Avenue

PUBLISHED April 14th, 2016 07:00 am

Shabu shabu never looked so complicated. Typically, there’s just dashi, your choice of dipping sauce, and you’re all set to swish your ingredients in a steaming communal hotpot. At Sakurazaka, there’re five types of broths, at least three types of sauces, and a whole lot of ingredients imported from Japan.

All the intricacies, however, shine the light on this oft-underrated style of Japanese dining. And eating at Chef Masashi Horiuchi’s (also the main man at Shelter in the Woods) new venture is akin to an education in the art of shabu shabu and sukiyaki.

Everything on the menu is available a la carte, but there’s definitely more value to be had with their set meals. Starting from $48++ per adult, all sets include a grilled ishiyaki starter, your choice of soup base, an assortment of seasonal veggies, your choice of carbs, and a Japanese shaved ice kakigori for dessert. The only difference is the type of protein – pork, seafood, or beef – you opt for.

We had begun munching on a cold appetiser of cucumber pickled in beer when our starter of Stone Grilled Wagyu Ishiyaki ($15) arrived. Cooking the meats personally on sizzling stones heated to 140°C, it’s a great, somewhat theatrical, start to your DIY meal. Just be warned that it takes some finesse to get your meat just right since ours ended up being well done. Paired with a tasty onsen tamago and sukiyaki sauce dip.

Next, the real test of any hot pot: the soup bases. A testament to Chef Masashi’s culinary background, two of the four soups we tried were inspired by his stints in Europe’s kitchens – the Fish Bouillabaisse ($12) and the Beef Consummé ($22). The other two – Pork Bone Tonkotsu ($8) and Ago Dashi ($9) – hail from Chef’s Japanese heritage.

Our favourite soup pairing of the night was the Shabu Shabu Beef Set ($64) with beef consummé. The beef stock is flavourful enough on its on, but it gets a major boost when you’ve cooked the veggies and the Aomori Japanese Rice-Fed Beef (the set comes with 150g of striploin and 150g of ribeye). Tender and juicy, the cattle are raised on whole rice crop, which is what gives this the sought-after umami flavour! If you prefer your meat, bolder, and beefier in flavour, top up $25 for Joshu Wagyu, black cattle raised in the Gunma Prefecture. The marbling is more intense for the latter, so you can expect it to be more fatty too.

Coming in a close second is Shabu Shabu Pork Set ($48) with the ago dashi. Featuring shirobuta (white pork) from Kagoshima, Kyushu, the meat is lighter, more tender, and slightly sweet. The mild sweetness of the ago dashi also eliminates the slight pungent smell that all types of pork possess to some extent. While we also tried the Shabu Shabu Seafood Set ($54) with bouillabaisse, the quality of the meats definitely overshadow the range of seafood. Only the prawn ball stands due to the addition of crunchy lotus root and herbaceous perilla.

There’s more delicious beef in the form of the Sukiyaki Beef Set ($75). However, the folks at Sakurazaka are less liberal with sukiyaki sauce – other places would have you dunk your ingredients into a whole pot of it – preferring to stew the Wagyu-Holstein F1 Crossbreed, veggies, tofu, and glass noodles in a shallow pan by slowly adding the sauce when needed. The marbling for the beef falls between the Aomori and the Joshu Wagyu, so if you’re looking for that, you got it.

A food coma is certain, so Sakurazaka’s choice of kakigori as a staple dessert makes sense as a refreshing end to the meal. The matcha-azuki fans should go for the Ujikintoki ($16) with matcha ice cream, shiratama, and kuromitsu (Japanese brown sugar syrup) while the Port Wine ($15) features port wine sauce, citrus confit, and red wine jelly cubes on shaved ice.

Fantastic ingredients, delicious soup, and great hospitality; this neighourhood restaurant is well worth my trek back to the lush enclave of Greenwood Avenue.

Sakurazaka is located at 24 Greenwood Avenue, Singapore 289221, p.6463 0333. Open Mon-Wed 6pm-10pm, Thu-Sun 11.30am-3pm & 6pm-10pm.

Top Image: Shabu Shabu Beef Set

All images by John Heng.