Mare Hachikyo Singapore 八饗

Seasonal omakase ($228): Signature Hokkaido temaki (kegani, ikura, uni) - Excellent. Fresh and a good combination. Hokkaido awabi katsu and eringi mushroom - Good. 540 days Kutchan potato gratin with Osietra caviar - Good. Seasonal sashimi - Fresh and fatty toro. Cold Inaniwa udon with scallops and Kishu plums - Good. Hokkaido Kuroge wagyu tenderloin with Chef’s special onion sauce and Kutchan 540 days aged potato - Good. Hokkaido toki shirazu shabu shabu - Good soup for the salmon. Zuwaigani, dried scallop, and ikura donabe with katsuo dashi - Excellent. Overflowing large and fresh ikura. Dessert platter (monaka, mille crepes, warabi mochi) - Good. Good service.

They offer an excellent dining experience with great service—attentive and warm throughout the meal. The food is flavorful and clearly prepared with care and attention to detail. Their signature ikura don is a highlight, not just delicious but also entertaining to watch as it’s prepared. The lunch set menus offer interesting options and variety. The restaurant's location is very central, making it easy to visit whether for business or leisure.

A restaurant that lacks finesse in flavour, but tries to make up for it in generosity and value. Not quite sure how to feel about it. Emblematic of this restaurant is the smoked kinki. Kinki is an expensive statement fish — much like nodoguro — with a beautiful texture and fatty flavour. Yet here it’s so heavily smoked beyond all recognition, devoid of its characteristic moistness. Almost becoming some bacalhau-bacon hybrid. I could go on and on: the uni cream harumaki with too little uni flavour but somehow having unnecessary dollops of ikura on the side, the shark’s fin in ankake that was a bit too heavily battered such that it distracted from the texture of the fin itself, etc. One almost feels bad levelling these criticisms, because you get so much expensive ingredients for the money. The chef is also an affable fella. But at the end of the day, I feel like fine Japanese cuisine is characterised by its finesse. I just didn’t find what I was looking for here, but I can imagine folks who would love this place.

Always enjoyed the Hachikyo izakayas in Sapporo, so I was thrilled to see Mare Hachikyo open in Singapore. The kappo-style omakase here was excellent, with a few real standouts. The 540-day aged Kutchan potatoes were incredible and something I’d highly recommend trying. The Donabe with tsukko meshi was also a highlight, and it was a nice surprise that they brought the same lively Hachikyo routine to Singapore too! The atmosphere is another big plus. It’s relaxed and welcoming, without the stiffness that some omakase spots can have. Great food, fun vibe, and an overall memorable experience. I’ll definitely be back.

Newly opened. Excellent dinner omakase. All incredients were fresh. Not too much quantity but just nice. Flavours were very nicely balanced. Rest of the rice I was able to takeaway. Ikura “show” was very entertaining. Will come again once the new menu comes out.