Tanjong Pagar road has no lack of Japanese cuisine and making it to the already extensive list is Teppan Kappou Kenji which is a stone throw away from Orchid Hotel. On first look, the exterior of the restaurant feels inconspicuous and one would feel intimidated to step in. But once inside, the interior exudes a relaxed and casual atmosphere, serving a range of your familiar Japanese cuisine. There are both private rooms and general dining space available for use and the restaurant serves both ala carte and omakase. In fact, it feels like at some point this is a go-to place if you crave for anything – sashimi, agemono, yakimono, teppanyaki, garlic fried rice. You name it, they probably have it

And I like the place isn’t that crowded as compared to an izakaya

We started off with some of their seasonal items since their menu was so extensive we don’t know where to begin with. The staffs recommended a few items as some of the items were already sold out (oh wow) and I think each one is pretty good in their own way

Edamame Vichyssoise topped with Sea Urchin, Crab & Water Shield $12 (Seasonal)

First on the list was a cold broth, puréed and boiled from edamame. Very flavourful with the addition of sweet sea urchin but you could still taste the earthy flavour of the edamame

Corn Tempura $8 (Seasonal)

Freshly made from seasonal white corn, the result was a sweet corn with a lightly coated tempura skin

Sweet Fish Steak $18 (Seasonal)

Very sweet indeed, and I thought the pairing of the sauce complements it very well

Assorted Sashimi (Small) $38

Had a plate of sashimi to go along as well and I must admit their sashimi is very good

Crab Cream Croquette $12

I like that the crust wasn’t too thick and the filling was substantial with sweet crab taste coming through

Dried Stingray Fin $8

Decent side to go along with the drinks

Asparagus with Tamago $12

Don’t really understand this dish, you could probably order something else

Japanese Sweet Potato $10

The cousin really liked this but I thought the sweet potato was a little dry for my liking

Teppan Hokkaido Hotate with Sea Urchin $20

The scallops were decent but nothing outstanding in my opinion

Wagyu Cube Steak $30

I thought the wagyu cube steak was pretty good and I would order this again

Inaniwa Udon (Cold) with Kakiage $15

Pleasantly surprised with the udon. I really enjoyed the smooth texture with the udon dipping sauce

Seafood Garlic Rice $15

It’s probably not easy to find a place that serves good garlic fried rice and I’m glad there’s now a place for me to go to. And they have a variety to choose from – shiso, mushroom, seafood, beef and chicken which I was quite impressed. They had split the portion for us so that each of us could have a sharing portion though I admit we were quite shocked at the huge portion

I thought this place serves some decent Japanese cuisine at a reasonable pricing. It reminds me of an izakaya but perhaps without the noise. It’s probably a place I don’t mind returning since they have so much variety to choose from yet with a decent quality

Teppan Kappou Kenji

99 Tanjong Pagar Road #01-01

Singapore 088520