Sumiya (Suntec City)

Sumiya, which means charcoal (sumi) house (ya), specializes in charcoal-grilled seafood that are specially flown in from Japan 2-3 times a week to ensure freshness. 

A new outlet has opened in Suntec City after the renovation was complete. Let’s go and check it out! 

Sumiya’s Kaisen Bara Don Set has been voted by Hungrygowhere as the best in Singapore, but I don’t quite agree with the verdict. The pieces of sashimi that sits on top of the bed of sushi rice are fresh but they lack the plumpness that Teppei Syokudo’s signature Kaisendon. The sashimi pieces are supposed to be marinated but I can’t really taste the marination. What really sets Sumiya’s Kaisen Bara Don apart from the rest are the special sauces to eat the sashimi with. There are sesame sauce, truffle sauce and seasoned laver (seaweed).

This is the red bean mochi that comes together with the set. Mochi is Japanese rice cake made of mochigome, a short-grain japonica glutinous rice. This is the real deal, just look at how springy the skin is. It is a little sweet for my taste but it would have been perfect with a cup of Japanese green tea. 

It does’t feel right to go into a Japanese charcoal-grill house without trying even one of the grilled items, so I ordered a serving of Oyster Isoyaki. The huge oyster is served in an oyster shell that sits on a bed of salt. The oyster is cooked in a special soy-sauce dashi broth. The slight saltiness of the dashi broth brings out the sweetness of the oyster. 

Served in an ice bowl embedded with seaweed that sits on top of a bed of crushed ice, Sumiya Tropical Dessert is a sight to behold. Inside the bowl are watermelon, rock melon and mango balls and chewy colored pearls swimming in coconut milk, topped with red bean paste and a scoop of homemade matcha ice-cream that is creamy yet refreshing. This is the best thing to have on a hot and sweltering day, but do note that there is a limited quality of 15 per day. Good luck!

The Suntec City outlet offers Singapore’s first Irori Genshiyaki and Sake Connoisseur experience, bringing your sake experience to a whole new level with more than 30 kinds of sake available in tasting portions.