En Japanese Dining

I don't know why it took me so long to try En Japanese Dining - Julie recommended this restaurant to me quite a while ago. It's so near my house too, just that parking's quite a hassel - the carpark was full when I went, plus it was raining. Lucky I wasn't the one driving! :P

I went to the En Japanese Dining Bar (Bukit Timah Branch) on a Saturday evening, and could only get the al fresco seats. But when I got there, we managed to get an indoor table, which has much better lighting (good for my photos :D). Amongst the 3 of us, we ordered a few dishes, as well as a steamboat and a carbo dish.

Takowasabi ($16.80++) Marinated chopped octopus with wasabi

The first time I ate this was at Nakasei, where I liked the chewy texture of the raw octopus but the wasabi was too potent for me. I like En's better cos they have these bits of vegetables which add to the texture of the dish. Plus, they're lighter handed on the wasabi so I can eat this without it going up my nose.

Yaki Mentaiko Okura ($8.50) Grilled Mentaiko roe with ladies finger

This looks to me like the perfect Christmas dish. Slimey pureed ladies finger served as a foil to the saltiness of the mentaiko. The mentaiko roe was half cooked - see that distinct pink/red border.

Kawaebi - Deep fried river shrimps ($9)
This was a hot favourite - little snack sized morsels of shrimps - crispy on the outside and bursting with prawn flavour. I imagine that this will be a perfect bar snack.
Sukugarasu - Salted small fish on chilled tofu ($6.50)
The intense saltiness of the little fish went well with the bland tofu. It's delicious when paired with a little soy sauce and the minced ginger and spring onions. The tofu was silky and smooth, and the soyabean taste was distinct.
Eihire ($12++) - Grilled sun-dried stingray fin

The texture of this reminded me somewhat of a more poke-y kind of beef jerky. It didn't have much taste, but it went really well with the mayonnaise, like how most things do. It reminded me of the dried fugu (puffer fish) I had at Akashi. It would have been even better if the the mayo had little bits of roe inside - I'm still reminiscing of my delicious meal at Akashi?

Yakitori - Grilled mushrooms stuffed with minced chicken meat. I can't remember the price but I think it's about 9 bucks.

The mushrooms were doused in a salty sauce - which reminds me of the yakitori at Tori Q (haven't eaten those in a really long time, but I used to be crazy over them in Sec sch).

The mushrooms were juicy and went really well with the generous minced chicken stuffing.

Maguro Natto ($9.00) Fresh tuna on fermented soya beans

I really like natto, which are fermented soya beans. They have this unique coffee-like smell and are delicious when eaten on top of freshly cooked Japanese rice. At least, I ate this every morning when I go to Japan for holiday. Though it might not agree with everyone's palatte - some people associate the goo with mucus. I must say that I couldn't taste much of the tuna after mixing everything together, but I quite liked this dish.Wagyu beef hot pot ($38++)

I didnt' eat this, but according to those who did, it was tasty. My personal belief is that steamboat doesn't require any skill in preparing and so I refuse to eat any outside and pay a hefty sum for something which I can easily make at home. To each his own. Soft Shell Crab Fried Rice ($20)

Reminds me a bit of muay fun (hor fun sauce on top of rice, at Tze Char stalls), just that it has 2 measly pieces of soft shell crab on top. Of course, the sauce tasted brilliant - egg-y goodness with lots of fake bright red crab meat. There were a few bits of real crab meat inside or else how can they call it crab fried rice? I think this dish would have been perfect if they had given more soft shell crab - the soft shell crab was delicious, crispy and slightly salted. The insides were juicy and meaty, unlike some of the charred anorexic ones that I sometimes get.
Tounyu Panna cotta ($6.50) Soy bean milk panna cotta

We nearly ordered another of this. The panna cotta was like an insanely soft pudding, drenched in a caramel-like sauce. It was a hot favourite and although the portion isn't very small, it was finished before I knew it.

Goma pudding - Sesame Pudding ($5.50)

The black sesame taste was distinct, and the texture of the pudding was silky. It's served chilled and is a delicious ending to the dinner.


Some of the waitresses wer quite blur. They didn't understand what I was saying when I was trying to ask them to describe the dishes in the menu in a bit more detail, but it was ok once a more senior staff took over. The restaurant is pretty new, and there are Japanese style tables inside private booths, but I suppose you'll have to book really early to get those. Each private booth can take about 6 to 8 people.


En Japanese Dining Bar
#01-14/16, Crown Centre,
557 Bukit Timah Road
Tel.:(65) 6468 5710

Other Branches:
En Japanese Dining Bar
#01-57/58, UE Square
207 River Valley Road,
Tel.:(65) 6735 2212

En Lounge
#01-59/60,
UE Square
207 River Valley Road,
Tel.:(65) 6732 6863