Tsuta opened a year ago to much fanfare and snaking queues. Everyone wanted to get a taste of the world’s first Michelin-starred ramen eatery. Tsuta also went on to win the Bib Gourmand award for the 2017 Michelin Guide here in Singapore. Since then the waiting time has subsided somewhat, though on certain days you’ll still find a meandering line of people. I have tried to order a bowl of their award-winning ramen on a few occasions, only to be turned off by the number of people in the restaurant.
Chef Yuki Onishi noticed the popularity of the duck here in Singapore and wanted to incorporate the poultry into his ramen. It took a year of research, development, recipe experimentations and trial and error to come up with the anniversary special of Kamo Paitan Soba (Soup, $11) and Kamo Abura Soba (Dry, $10). These two dishes were painstakingly created with the Singaporean palate in mind.
I haven’t had the pleasure of trying their famous Shoyu Soba (S$15.00) or Shio Soba (S$15.00), so I had no basis of comparison when I started on their newest offerings; I didn’t know what to expect. Honestly, I felt underwhelmed when I tasted the Kamo Paitan Soba. It was okay, yes, but is okay worth queuing up for? The poached duck breast was sliced thickly yet still remained tender while the creamy broth was slow cooked for five hours for the flavours to fully develop. The handmade minced duck wontons were a nice touch too. On paper, all these things sound lovely but it just didn’t translate that way when they came together in reality. Sure, the broth was tasty enough and I found myself slurping it up, but I left more than half my noodles untouched. It just wasn’t appetising enough for me to want to finish every last bite. Perhaps you have to love duck to enjoy this. The distinctive gaminess came through rather strongly and that just isn’t my cup of tea.
The poached duck breast was sliced thickly yet still remained tender while the creamy broth was slow cooked for five hours for the flavours to fully develop. The handmade minced duck wontons were a nice touch too. On paper, all these things sound lovely but it just didn’t translate that way when they came together in reality. Sure, the broth was tasty enough and I found myself slurping it up, but I left more than half my noodles untouched. It just wasn’t appetising enough for me to want to finish every last bite. Perhaps you have to love duck to enjoy this. The distinctive gaminess came through rather strongly and that just isn’t my cup of tea.
On the other hand, I absolutely loved their Kamo Abura Soba. After trying the Kamo Paitan Soba, I was a bit wary about digging into this, but it was truly a delight to eat. This is the dish I would come back for. The noodles were marinated with premium shoyu and duck oil; the latter was personally prepared by the chef. It was paired with a light clear chicken soup with just a touch of shio. Sip the soup on its own or pour some in to have with the noodles. It’s fantastic either way. In order to balance out the richness, both dishes came with baby leaves, crushed roasted cashews and diced yellow onions.
The quality of the ingredients is exceedingly important to the chef so he makes sure to use only fresh, premium ingredients with no added MSG. These two dishes are available from 4 November 2017.
Watch this video to find out more about the dishes.
Tsuta Singapore
Pacific Plaza #01-01
9 Scotts Road Singapore 228210
Tel: +65 6734 4886
Opening hours: Daily 11am to 10pm; last order: 9.30pm
