The Gyu Bar 9-Course Wagyu-Focused Omakase Menu

Published - 06 May 2021, Thursday
  • The Gyu Bar

The Gyu Bar is a haven for gourmets in search of a top-flight wagyu experience. Located in the Stevens Road dining enclave, this contemporary Japanese dining bar brings deep product knowledge; quality of provenance; versatility of preparation; and a dedication to omotenashi to the art of wagyu gastronomy.  - Image Credit: The Gyu Bar Facebook Page

The Gyu Bar has expanded its dining repertoire with the introduction of sukiyaki and shabu shabu. Drawing from an extensive network of suppliers that the founding team has built over the years, wagyu is sourced from prefectures all across Japan and regularly air-flown into Singapore.

Marrying technique to food is an art; and at The Gyu Bar every nuance of flavour and composition, texture and mouthfeel, is enhanced with the right cooking style to allow the wagyu to shine. The carefully conceived lunch sets and dinner a-la-carte dishes, as well as yakiniku-focused omakase menus, are also regularly refreshed based on supplier’s choice cuts of wagyu and the season’s produce to heighten the eating pleasure

The Gyu Bar

Intimate interiors and complimentary sake welcome you at the 35 seater restaurant The Gyu Bar as the place is wafting with invigorating smoky aromas. It is going to be a meat marathon at this place, so get your cutlery out and get ready to tuck in. A staggering 9 course menu involving various premium Japanese beef cuts awaits famished customers who wait eagerly to cook slices on the grill. However, if you’re not in the mood for a meaty slice, feel free to order the Ishiyaki garlic egg rice- definitely a treat for the eyes and the mouth for it is served not in a regular plate but on a piece of searing stone!

To showcase wagyu at its most exquisite, The Gyu Bar also offers two different 8-course omakase menus, each with a highlight of quality beef prepared yakiniku-style. New to the line-up is a 9-course wagyu-focused omakase menu ($238++ per person; 24-hour advance notice required for reservations) highlighting various regional livestock.

The Gyu Bar​​​​​​​

Image Credit: 9-course wagyu-focused omakase menu ($238++ per person; 24-hour advance notice required for reservations)

Diners are taken on a wagyu journey through seven different prefectures of Japan, from Furano in the north to Kagoshima in the south. Featuring 7 wagyu breeds prepared in the style that displays the beef to its best advantage, it is an unforgettable gastronomic education, especially for the beef-lover craving variety.

Beyond wagyu, The Gyu Bar serves delicious offerings of pork, chicken, seafood and vegetables. Seasonal specials such as hotaru ika (firefly squid) and shirauo (ice fish), and rare cuts such as chateaubriand and tri tip are on the menu whenever they are available.

Service is deeply rooted in omotenashi – a cornerstone of Japanese hospitality. Guests arriving for dinner are invited to choose their preferred sake glass from the owners’ prized 150-piece personal collection; and the first drink is on the house. Then, with consummate care and expertise, the team guides diners through the various cooking styles – yakiniku, shabu shabu, sukiyaki – advising them on the best method for their particular order. Diners may also request for personal cooking assistance at the table. No detail is spared: yakiniku is served with no less than five house-made condiments; shabu shabu with six; and diners are welcome to choose their way of enjoying sukiyaki – Kanto or Kansai style.

a. 30, #01-08 Stevens Rd, Singapore 257840

e. [email protected]

t. +65 6732 0702

w. www.thegyubar.com.sg

s. www.facebook.com/thegyubar

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Sylvia Fernandes

  • 384 comments
  • ELITE
RATED 7.5 / 8

Tucked in to an enclave of restaurants on Stevens Road is The Gyu Bar, a specialist in premium beef. Known for yakiniku since opening in 2018, it has extended its offering to include shabu-shabu and sukiyaki.

If you are a Wagyu lover then come on down to experience the ever-so-specialised marbled meat from a variety of prefectures across Japan. The new nine course Wagyu omakase showcases these delicate and superior selections, all of which are amazing in their own right.

For $238++ per pax and 24-hour advanced notice, The Gyu Bar will blow your mind away. Diners will taste seven Wagyu breeds, every single one a melt-in-the-mouth experience.

Hard to match anything I had ever had before in terms of taste and presentation, the nine-course fare was served in beautiful Japanese crockery that boasted stunning colour and design.

Being an art lover, my attention to detail like this made my experience even more enjoyable. The Gyu Bar styled in a modern interior of clean lines, seats 35 people in this intimate restaurant.

Not much of a Japanese curry lover, I devoured the steak katsu curry (surprisingly) with Tankaku wagyu. Crusted on the outside and served on a bed of dry curry this turned out to be one of my favourite dishes.

An interesting story for the night was the Sanuki Olive brand of meat that hails from the Kagawa Prefecture. Pressed olives are added to cattle feed which lends a rich umami flavor to the marbled meat.

As the courses were consumed I noticed the difference between one Wagyu and another. The Satsuma from Kagoshima Prefecture had an intense buttery flavor, different to the one I had in the dish before.

This meat won the 2017 Wagyu Olympics, another bit of trivia I learnt through the night. If you are planning to visit The Gyu Bar, do challenge yourself to observe the different flavours in each type of Wagyu served.

Now I know that Wagyu is not just Wagyu, especially in specialist restaurants like The Gyu Bar, where fine meats are distinguished and a discerning palette helps.

The omakase meal includes different styles of cooking - yakiniku, sukiyaki, shabu-shabu and more. With smokeless grills at each table you don’t have to worry about smelling like meat by the end of the night.

To end this most exquisite meal I was offered a Furano Wagyu from Hokkaido with a choice of rice or udon. I had the rice option as my preference is always for a warm meal. Other diners at my table raved about the cold udon that presented a refreshing end.

Feeling completely satiated at the end of this most refined meal, I could not resist the macaroon and cheesecake that completed this elegant fare. From numerous condiments that accompanied every dish to presentation and quality of food, The Gyu Bar certainly trumped the night.

If you have but a petite appetite, then consider a quick lunch with main, soup and salad, though the five-course Executive lunch omakase menu is also a fine choice.

Other meats, seafood and vegetables are also on offer for those who steer away from red meat. Personally I feel it would be a shame to miss out on the superior Wagyu varieties on offer at The Gyu Bar.

It is obvious that there are culinary masters behind the scenes, one in particular being Chef Tomoo Kimura of the one Michelin starred restaurant at Palais Renaissance.

This meal was an ode to Wagyu gastronomy and I thoroughly enjoyed it!