Lunch Buffet @ Shin Yuu

29th January 2011. Written by Xin Li.
Being pestered to have a buffet by my friend, I suggested Shin Yuu as I have heard good things about the restaurant and the price is reasonable for an ala carte buffet. Despite the rain that kept discouraging us, we visited Shin Yuu regardless of the fact that some of us were drenched.

We had the private room as the tables outside were fully booked and there was a considerable crowd when we arrived for the lunch buffet. There is a decent variety of Japanese food ranging from sashimi, sushi (maki and nigiri), grilled items, appetizers and other classic Japanese food. The only downside is that there are no desserts to round off the meal.

For a start, the signature Shin Yuu Special Chawanmushi is very nice, the steamed egg was smooth and silky and I love the addition of the savory salmon roe. The stock used was quite good too.

There was a complimentary platter of appetizers: the Salmon Nigiri Sushi topped with Cod Roe Sauce, another Sushi topped with some form of grilled meat and Smoked Duck.
I enjoyed the salmon sushi the most, it was savory and delicious, I like how the salmon was slightly charred as it gives it a smoky fragrance.

Shin Yuu also does a competent Ebi Tempura with a crispy batter and succulent interior.

The Yasai Tempura did not fare as well as the Ebi Tempura, some of the vegetables were undercooked.

We also had some Hamachi Nigiri Sushi

The Ebi Nigiri Sushi is quite nice, the prawn was fresh and rather sweet.

Chuka Idako, baby octopus is my favourite snack. Compared to Suki, Sakae or Sakura, this one is definitely better, the sauce is just right insteal of the cloyingly thick and sweet ones I had.

The Sashimi Platter or Sashimi Moriawase features six kinds of sashimi, namely: Maguro (tuna), Hiramasa (kingfish), Shake (salmon), Mekajiki (swordfish) and tako (octopus). The salmon sashimi was quite good, it has not sinewy texture and was rather smooth. In general, the sashimi were fresh and one can easily taste the different kinds of texture nad flavor of each type of sashimi. I enjoyed the shake and maguro the most. The hiramasa sashimi got a thumbs down for most of us for its rather rubbery texture.

The Wafu Steak (Tenderloin Steak) was just okay. It wasn’t cooked evenly, some parts can be very chewy while some are tender.

The Unagi Kabayaki (Eel with Sweet Soy Sauce) was good. The sauce wasn’t too thick and the unagi was nicely coated with a layer of sweet soy sauce. It got many nods from my fellow diners.

I didn’t try the Tamago Nigiri Sushi (Sweet Egg Roll).

The Spider Makimono was tasty. The soft shell crab inside adds crunch.

The Buta Misoyaki is really good, the meat was very tender and the mildly sweet sauce was addictive.

The Pork Belly with Pepper wasn’t as good as the Pork Loin with Miso Sauce. While we enjoyed the crackling crispy skin for this dish, the sauce was just odd. It has a rather pungent flavor.

The Hotate Mentaiyaki is a must order in Shin Yuu, succulent scallops topped with a savory cod roe sauce. We had seconds of this.

The Shin Yuu Special Ebi Miso Mayo Yaki, Prawns with Miso and Mayonnaise Sauce was just okay.

The Shin Yuu Special Sakana Chiizu, Dory Fish topped with Cheese doesn’t seemed to go well together.

Overall, the I thought the ala carte buffet was one of the better ones I had thus far, I enjoyed some the items a lot especially the Hotate Mentaiyaki. The service was okay. The whole buffet cost 35.00 ++ SGD

Shin Yuu
16 Greenwood Avenue, Hillcrest Park
Singapore, 289209

Mon - Sun:
12:00 pm - 3:00 pm
6:00 pm - 10:30 pm

Telephone no. : 6763 4939