In our mission to discover the best Japanese restaurant in Singapore, we decided to check out Aoki Japanese Sushi Restaurant. Having heard that ‘Aoki’ meant ‘Blue Tree’ in Japanese, we were eager to discover for ourselves what kind of cuisine and ambience this sushi restaurant in Singapore would offer us.

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The First Impression: This sushi restaurant in Singapore didn’t leave a very favorable first impression. With its inconspicuous entrance, one would never guess that this sushi restaurant in Singapore specialized in great sushi.

Décor and Ambience: The décor and ambience of this sushi restaurant in Singapore definitely epitomized minimalistic. The place was extremely small and seated 14 people at the sushi bar. With their low ceiling almost touching everyone’s crown, it felt packed and loud once all the seats were filled in. Make sure to get reservations before you head in for a meal as this sushi restaurant in Singapore was not for those with an inclining to stroll in for dinner. There were two small rooms near the entrance of the restaurant which could seat four people each.

The restaurant oozed an ambience that spoke of being very traditionally Japanese. The chairs and the table-tops were all done in light toned wood. The best seats to go for are the ones around the sushi counter as it gave a good view of the chef preparing your meal which was quite interesting to watch.

The Food: The prices did not justify the quality and the quantity of food served at this sushi restaurant in Singapore. The Sashimi platter for instance cost a whopping $65 and the fish served were tiny portions and of very average quality.

The spicy tuna roll and the shrimp tempura were both just adequate and didn’t do any wonders to our palate. There were few items on the menu that were Americanized like the shrimp and vegetable tempura, but the rest stuck to being strictly Japanese except for the quality of the food that is. For dessert we had the homemade ice cream; green tea, cherry blossom, black sesame and corn. The corn ice cream was a neat surprise, almost worth a trip to Aoki to try it.

The low-point of the dinner was dished out right at the start; a small bowl of green beans which proved to be not ‘complementary’ as most restaurants would have us believe, but ‘compulsory’ according to this sushi restaurant in Singapore. Of course we took a stance and did not agree to pay for a dish that we hadn’t even ordered and they finally removed it after a few hesitant inquires made with the chef. The after-taste of the experience wasn’t favorable in any way.

The Service: The service was average and not top-notch at this sushi restaurant in Singapore. The waitresses were dressed in very traditional kimonos. The chef who was responsible for creating out dishes did his preparation right in front of us, but it was more like watching a silent move. Never once was there any communication or anecdotes of his experience, an explanation on the dish and more. It was a silent performance that lacked warmth and made us feel as though we were disturbing a process rather than being a part of it. Very different than what we’ve experience at the best sushi restaurants in Tokyo.

The Calculated Impression: The overall experience at this sushi restaurant in Singapore wasn’t remarkable. This was our fourth Japanese sushi restaurant that we had visited in Singapore and we rate it third on the list.

What I liked: The traditional dishes that this sushi restaurant in Singapore offered.

What I didn’t like: The average quality of food and service and the restrictive ambience of this sushi restaurant in Singapore. The prices did not sit well with us either as the food failed to justify it.

Rating: Between Bombastic and Not.

Address and Telephone Number
Aoki Restaurant
1 Scotts Road
#02-17 Shaw Centre
Singapore 228208
(Opposite HSBC Bank, Tanglin Branch)
Tel: +65-6333-8015

*****After visiting four different Japanese Sushi Restaurants in Singapore, we did not find any that we rated Bombastic, so we decided to list them in order from the one with the highest score (and our favorite) to the one with the lowest score.

Follow the links below to read the complete restaurant reviews for each of the Japanese Sushi restaurants in Singapore.
1. Keyaki Japanese Sushi Restaurant - Singapore
2. Hide Yamamoto Japanese Sushi Restaurant - Singapore
3. Aoki Japanese Sushi Restaurant - Singapore
4. Nadaman Japanese Sushi Restaurant - Singapore
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