Japanese restaurant Kinki reopens with Unagi claypot, Geisha cocktails and more
What can diners expect at the newly revamped Kinki? A bold new look, Instagram-worthy food, and Asian-inspired cocktails await.
Unagi Claypot at Kinki Restaurant + Bar. (Photo: Kinki)
Here in Singapore, we’re blessed with a wide array of Japanese food options. But when Kinki Restaurant and Bar first opened here 10 years ago, it still managed to cause a stir with its refreshing concept. From its cheeky moniker, to its funky interiors and innovative food, Kinki was certainly not a conventional Japanese restaurant.
A decade on, the restaurant, located at Customs House, has undergone a revamp, reopening its doors today (Feb 19). For one, the menu has been refreshed and updated. Â
Classic, Instagram-worthy favourites such as the signature Rock and Roll maki (S$22) and Cowabunga (S$36) still remain, but new dishes include the Unagi Claypot (S$35) that was once served only on occasion as a chef’s special.
Other new dishes to try include the Corn Duo, an appetiser where baby corn is mixed with corn puree and tossed with furikake bits, served alongside a sriracha mayo sauce, as well as the Grilled Squid Chimichurri, a smoky and tender charcoal-grilled squid.
On Saturdays, make a booking for The Bottomless Brunch (S$68), where you can feast on unlimited a la carte servings of sushi, sashimi, maki, hot and cold Japanese favourites, and desserts. For an additional S$35, you’ll get to enjoy free flow beer, sake, Prosecco or shochu.
For drinks, expect innovative cocktails woven with Asian influences. There’s the Geisha-Rita (S$22), Kinki’s take on the margarita with Ocho Blanco tequila, Nigori umeshu, cointreau, lime juice and freshly cracked pepper instead of salt.
The Gin Assam Boi (S$20) is a nod to the local drinking culture of having a sugarcane juice with street food. It features Kyro gin, Malibu rum, Gori umeshu and pineapple juice that fuse into an olive-green tint, garnished with Assam powder and a pickled ume.
The restaurant also now boasts a new look. Enter the lift at the first level of Customs House and you’ll be greeted by retro Japanese prints stitched into a dizzying collage. The prints, designed by local studio Punkt Creative, evoke Kintsugi, the traditional Japanese art of mending broken pottery by joining fragments with capillaries of gold.
On Level Two, the doors open to a modern Japanese tea house. You’ll be greeted by several portraits of geishas on the walls. At the elevated open kitchen counter, watch the chefs prepare the freshest catch of the day.
Situated on Level Three is the rooftop bar. The previous dragon and sakura motifs have now given way to colour-saturated pop-art graffiti walls at the entrance. Snap a picture for Instagram against the Japanese characters for Kinki, fashioned in neon LED lights. The rooftop bar also boasts stunning views of the bayfront. Â
Kinki is located at 70 Collyer Quay, #02-02 Customs House, Singapore 049323
