Bistro Du Le Pin at Orchard Plaza – Omakase at $60

‘Omakase’ – a Japanese phrase that translates to “I’ll leave it up to you”. Nowadays, it’s a trend at Japanese restaurants to offer Omakase sets, whereby customers will leave the selection of the day’s dishes up to the chef’s creativity and innovations, as opposed to ordering ala carte. The chef will generally prepare a series of palatable plates, beginning with the lightest fare and proceeding to the heaviest dishes, giving your dining experience a hearty finish. The phrase is not exclusive to service of raw fish with rice and can incorporate grilling, simmering or other cooking techniques of other meat selection as well. Customers typically received the highest quality fish available at a lower cost than if it had been ordered ala carte.

Bistro Du Le Pin is a hidden gem along Orchard Road, tucked cozily in a corner on the second floor of Orchard Plaza. Helming the kitchen is Chef Shigeru Shiraishi and he is offering Omakase at $60 per set. This is relatively affordable as compared to others, yet the ingredients and quality of food are not compromised here. Bistro Du Le Pin’s previous owner was a friend of Chef Shigeru. He wanted to close the restaurant down so Chef Shigeru decided to take over, retaining the same name. Chef Shigeru has been living in Singapore since 2010 and re-curated a brand new menu after taking over the restaurant in May 2015.

Chef Shigeru has been cooking since a tender age of 17 years old in Japan. He chose to hone his culinary skills after an exhausting life of moving around countless times with his parents due to his father’s work commitments. He was certain that he didn’t want to move around anymore so he decided to start his career as a chef, staying put in Japan. Over the years, he has travelled a lot between United States of America, Japan and Singapore, just to refine his culinary skills and finally, decided to make Singapore his home. His dishes are influenced by the experiences he gained all through his life while travelling around.

The restaurant sits about 14 people so do expect some waiting time. There are 8 counter seats where you can feast your eyes up close on the delicious dishes that Chef Shigeru whips up. I found the way he handles different groups of customers who order different dishes concurrently very impressive as he never mixes up any orders. The $60 Omakase set comes with 8 dishes, with complimentary potato salad to start off and yuzu sorbet, a delightful end to your meal.

The Potato Salad contains eggs and crunchy onion bits. It’s so creamy, with good savoury flavours from the mentaiko.

Burrata Cheese features a chewy outer layer, with its inner core so velvety smooth and silky. Its fluffiness makes the melt-in-your-mouth cheese superb and not too overwhelming.

The highlight of my meal was Hiroshima Oysters. The oysters were surprisingly deep-freezed and microwaved but it tasted nothing like microwaved food. I found it extremely fresh and very well-marinated. This is what I will return to Bistro Du Le Pin for! Simply the best!

Crabcake was chockfull of ingredients like crab meat, bread crumbs, milk, mayonnaise, eggs and seasonings. You can taste fresh crab meat in each bite as Chef Shigeru is very generous with portioning his quality ingredients.

Asparagus with Salmon and Ikura was topped with shredded truffle. I love the burst of flavoursome juices from the salmon roe as soon as they enter my mouth. The asparagus added a crunch to the overall dish.

Spicy Tuna was so fresh and I really enjoyed the fragrant fried garlic, which gave this dish its character.

Next up, Black Cod Fish with Truffles and Spinach Miso sauce. The cod fish tasted very succulent and fresh. It is done just right, not too tough nor too mushy and perfectly marinated such that there isn’t any fishy taste. Chef Shigeru does the sauce himself, in-house.

I was feeling quite full from the previous dishes but the scent of this wonderful creation of Iberico Pork whets my appetite for more! The pork was really tender and had a good balance of lean mean and fats, making it not as sinful as you thought it would be.

Uni Pasta, showcasing spaghetti done al dente, with plenty of ikura, seaweed and most importantly, delicious uni. This amazing pasta dish was drenched in a savoury rich sauce that was simply gratifying.

Your meal will end with yuzu sorbet, which is perfect as it cleanses your palate after devouring so many flavoursome dishes. Dining in this unpretentious setting puts your mind at ease and you have the luxury of catching up with friends and family over heartfelt conversations. Besides, let me remind you that their Omakase set is one of the more affordable one in Singapore! I’m planning to return to try the ala carte menu soon.

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MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visits and paid its own meals at the stalls featured here.