The Place Located along 192 Joo Chiat Road, Kappo Suguru is a relatively new Japanese dining concept by the team behind the home-dining brand Suguru Home Dining. This shophouse space runs two concepts – Kappo Suguru from Sunday to Tuesday, and Suguru Sushiya for the rest of the week. 

It is a cosy counter seating layout with a direct front-row view of the chefs executing traditional kappo techniques. 

The Food Only seasonal omakase menus are available here from S$180++, where I had their 11-course seasonal menu (S$250++).

Here is what to expect: 
 
Sakizuke (Tomato Granita Somen) 
The meal started with this chilled somen dish topped with a vibrant tomato granita and sweet botan ebi. The cold texture of the dish makes it a refreshing start to the meal. 

Chawanmushi 
Steering away from typical hot version, the version here is a cold chawanmushi packed with muki hotate (scallops). The combination works for me and the cold texture didn’t bother me that much. 

Sashimi 
Seasonal selection of sashimi is up next which is served in two parts. The first part features freshly sliced Chutoro and Wild Snapper; followed by Sanna (Pacific Saury) and Aji with yuzu sauce topped with yellow chives. 

Hassun 
The hassun course is a seasonal selection where I had a combination of amela tomatoes with plum, Ayu fish and a Uni (sea urchin) shot with charred eggplant leek and ponzu jelly. 

Wanmono 
For the soup course, I had grilled duck & chicken tsukune minced meat along with some lotus root crunch and fried leek for added texture. 

Agemono (Signature Stuffed Chicken Wing) 
You cannot have a kappō meal without fried elements, and this course features a crispy, golden-brown chicken wing heavily stuffed with a luxurious mix of muki hotate, kami no ebi (wild shrimp), crunchy iburigakko (smoked radish), and shiso leaf. 

Mushimono 
For the steamed course, I had the steamed seasonal fish using Kue (longtooth grouper) in a sour and spicy sauce along with Japanese spinach. There is a Chinese twist here from the sour and spicy sauce. 

Tempura 
Seasonal vegetables are showcased for the tempura course where I had a mix of okra, lotus root and eggplant, served with curry salt and tempura sauce. 

Donabe 
A massive claypot donabe rice course was shown to diners which uses a mix of Niigata and Akita rice.

The premium rice grains are slow-cooked with kinki fish, shirasu (whitebait), charred corn, and salmon roe (ikura). Even though I was full by this point, the rice was so good that I didn’t mind a second helping. 

Yakimono (Tallow-Aged A5 Wagyu) 
For the main protein grill, you get to choose between a Kansai-style grilled unagi or a tallow-aged A5 wagyu.

I absolutely love the wagyu. It is grilled precisely to showcase biblical levels of buttery, melt-in-your-mouth richness as it is also coated with sansho berry glaze. No sauce or condiments are needed to enhance the taste of the aged beef. 

Dessert 
The finale course is a seasonal ice cream (corn ice cream) paired with charred corn kernels and savory sesame and konbu crumble. 

Rants Seating capacity is limited, and because it operates on a counter-only layout, it is unsuitable for larger group gatherings unless you managed to book the whole space. You will definitely need to secure your reservations well in advance. 

Will I Return Again? Yes. The team has managed to create a creative and thoughtful menu that honors traditional Japanese craftsmanship with a contemporary twist. It does not have the stiffness of high end Japanese omakase restaurants, so you can be sure of a relaxed dining setting as well. 

TheRantingPanda says:
Taste bud: 4/5
Hole in the pocket: 4/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Overall Experience: 4/5  

Kappo Suguru 
192 Joo Chiat Road 
Singapore 427463 

Opening Hours 
Sunday to Tuesday: 7pm to 10.30pm 

Ranted by The Ranter