Mitsuba: Premium Japanese A La Carte Buffet With Over 150 Items In Clarke Quay

Most places serving up premium Japanese food charge a pretty penny too, but we may have found a wallet-friendly alternative.

Located on the third floor of The Central in Clarke Quay, Mitsuba is owned by a father-son duo and offers high-end Japanese cuisine, sans the eye-watering price tags.

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The ambience here is delightful, to say the least. Apart from the cosy wooden keyaki (train seats) booth seating which struck me as rather authentic, I really liked the windows watching out over the river.

If you come at the right time, Mitsuba is an awesome spot to catch the golden sunset as you dine.

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Mitsuba’s a la carte buffet runs daily at S$41.90++ (adults) and S$24.90++ (children). Although it’s not the cheapest out there, I found out that there are over 150 premium items to choose from, which puts Mitsuba a few notches higher than your usual Japanese buffet.

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Alternatively, Mitsuba also offers a Simply Ala Carte menu to order from. Prices here range from S$4 for a simple serving of Ebi Sushi, to S$88 for the Tokujyo Moriawase, which comes with 24 pieces of premium sashimi. I’d say that the a la carte buffet will provide more bang for your buck.

Not only do they have fresh sashimi, sushi, maki rolls and tempura on the menu, Mitsuba stands out by featuring various udon and rice bowls, along with teppanyaki items which aren’t so common at Japanese buffet spots.

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I started with the Sashimi Moriawase. This featured a selection of cuts from different fishes, ranging from sake (salmon), maguro (bluefin tuna), hamachi (yellowtail) to the more uncommon tako (octopus) and ika (squid).

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The sake sashimi was a vibrant orange and tasted rich, smooth and subtly sweet.

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All the fish sashimi here at Mitsuba are thickly cut and are extremely fresh.

I was especially impressed with the tako sashimi. It was tender and clean tasting, which I understand is quite hard to achieve as octopus tends to be rubbery in texture.

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I enjoyed the Spider Maki due to its texture. I could feel the tiny spheres of fish roe with my tongue, which contrasted really well with the crunch provided by the softshell crab rolled into this sushi. Overall, there was a good balance of sweet and savoury flavours here.

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Mitsuba plays with textures again in the Ebi Tempura Maki. Even though the sushi itself wasn’t as intensely flavourful as the Spider Maki, the little tempura bits added a delightful crunch to the dish.

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Don’t miss out on the Sake Mentai Aburi, which was really good.

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I liked how the char added a little earthy bitterness, breaking the monotony of the sweet and creamy pollock roe.

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Similarly, the complimentary Hotate Mentaiyaki was really enjoyable. The tender scallops were served hot, and were tender, soft and bouncy. The mentaiyaki layer was subtly sweet with a pinch of savoury saltiness, and paired well with the scallops.

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The Sake Teri has to be one of my favourite items on the menu. There was a slight crispiness to the exterior of the salmon, but the meat inside was tender with a delicate flavour. The teriyaki sauce also complemented the dish without overpowering it.

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One thing I noticed was the speed and efficiency at which food was served. Keeping in mind that every item was made-to-order in the kitchen, they were still delivered promptly. This is a welcome change from most a la carte buffet places where food can be cold and stale.

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Moving away from seafood, I tried some of the teppanyaki items on the menu. The Bifu Yakiniku was sweet, with tender and thin slices of beef which were fatty and flavourful.

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However, the dish would have been perfect if it weren’t so salty.

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The Smoked Duck Sushi was also another favourite for me. The smoky, savoury taste of the duck paired well with the lightly vinegared sushi rice, and the meat was also tender and slightly fatty. The dish came with a sauce that was subtly sweet and slightly salty, pairing nicely with the dish.

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I tried some of the rice dishes on the menu too. I enjoyed the Unagi Yakimeshi, which came with soft and tender unagi. Although it didn’t have that characteristic charcoal-grilled aroma, it was still flavourful.

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The Japanese fried rice was extremely aromatic and garlicky. With fluffy rice and diced vegetables, each bite tasted slightly different.

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The Katsu Don wasn’t disappointing either. The meat laid on a bed of soft and fluffy rice, with every pearl of rice being lightly vinegared which was a nice touch. The pork cutlet was well-cooked and had a deep, sweet flavour. It remained crispy despite the moisture from the cooked egg in the dish.

Speaking of the eggs, its mellow sweetness complemented that of the pork cutlet.

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I also tried some of the desserts available here. I had the Hokkaido Crepe Cake (additional S$6) which layered green tea crepes between matcha-flavoured cream.

Although I appreciated the layer of red beans that broke the monotony of the cake, I was slightly disappointed as the crepe cake wasn’t as airy or light as those from other Japanese crepe shops.


Almost no compromises were made when it came to the quality of the food at Mitsuba, despite the variety of items to choose from. I believe that coming here would be exceedingly value-for-money, simply due to the freshness of ingredients used and standard of food prepared.

To make eating here a little easier on the wallet, Mitsuba also runs promotions such as 15% off the bill for ladies on Mondays and NSMen on Tuesdays. One person can dine free for every three paying adults during the buffet lunch, so I’d want to come back here in a group to make my meal extra worth it.

I would travel to Clarke Quay to have a meal at Mitsuba again. Definitely drop by at least once, and don’t be surprised if you want to come back for more!

Chope Reservations

Expected Damage: S$45-S$50 per pax

Price: $ $

Our Rating: 5 / 5

Mitsuba

6 Eu Tong Sen Street, Clarke Quay Central #03-88, Singapore 059817

Price
Our Rating 5/5

Mitsuba

6 Eu Tong Sen Street, Clarke Quay Central #03-88, Singapore 059817

Telephone: +65 6227 0388
Operating Hours: 11.30am - 3pm & 6pm - 10pm (Mon - Thurs), 11.30am - 3pm & 5.30pm - 7.55pm & 8pm - 10.30pm (Fri - Sun)
Telephone: +65 6227 0388

Operating Hours: 11.30am - 3pm & 6pm - 10pm (Mon - Thurs), 11.30am - 3pm & 5.30pm - 7.55pm & 8pm - 10.30pm (Fri - Sun)
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