Best Omakase Restaurants in Singapore: Sushi, Tempura And Modern Japanese Dining

Michelin-starred Chef Ryujiro Nakamura brings his Tokyo sushiya back to Singapore with an intimate 10-seat counter at The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore. The opening marks a new chapter for Sushi Ryujiro following its earlier outpost at Shaw Centre, which built a loyal following among local omakase diners. This new restaurant has been conceived under Chef Nakamura’s direct guidance, from its ingredient sourcing and menu progression to its interiors and style of hospitality.

Chef Nakamura opened Sushi Ryujiro Tokyo in 2019 and earned its first Michelin star in 2021 at the age of 35. In Singapore, Head Chef Naruki Ikeda, who trained under Chef Nakamura in Tokyo, leads the experience. Fluent in English, he explains the provenance and preparation of the ingredients, along with the best way to enjoy each piece. This guidance adds warmth to the experience and makes the meal engaging rather than overly formal.

We tried the Lunch Omakase ($298++), which moves through seasonal appetisers, cooked dishes and sushi before ending with soup, tamago and dessert. The rich, juicy awabi from Chiba was an early highlight, while the delicately flavoured somen from Nara was our favourite appetiser. Served with shrimp and finely sliced green onions, it had a light crunch that made the seemingly simple dish immensely enjoyable.

The sushi progression is carefully paced, beginning with lighter pieces such as madai and botan ebi before moving towards nodoguro and a trio of akami, chutoro and otoro cut from a 161.3kg tuna sourced from Oma. Chef Ikeda guides diners on how to eat each piece while drawing attention to particular flavours and textures. The gradual increase in richness gives the meal a natural rhythm, finishing with creamy Hokkaido uni that should not be missed.

Much of the seafood is sourced directly from independent fishermen and specialist producers across Japan, rather than relying solely on wholesale markets. Ingredients are flown to Singapore four times a week, allowing the menus to change with the season and the day’s best catch. The shari is made using selected Japanese rice, mineral-rich Japanese water and the restaurant’s proprietary vinegar blend, while its tuna is sourced through long-standing suppliers that include respected tuna specialist Yamayuki.

Diners can also choose the Nigiri Lunch ($228++), featuring 13 pieces of seasonal nigiri, a signature maki and dessert, or the fuller Dinner Omakase ($428++). Wine and sake pairings are available for guests who want drinks selected around the changing flavours of the meal.

Best for: Michelin-starred Edomae sushi, an engaging chef-guided omakase and special-occasion dining.

Sushi Ryujiro Singapore is located at 15 Stamford Road, #01-88, The Capitol Kempinski Hotel Singapore, Singapore 178906. It opens Tuesday to Sunday, from 12pm to 2.30pm and 7pm to 10pm. Call 8099 1777 or email [email protected] to reserve a seat.

This Kyoto-style omakase restaurant, though located in the rather hectic Ngee Ann City, is calm and absolutely relaxing. Every detail at Hazuki is designed to enhance your dining experience– Gucci homeware, Kagami crystalware used by the Japanese Imperial Household Agency, 1000-year old yakusugi/cedar wood place settings, and carefully crafted menus create an impeccable, Kyoto-style omakase experience that’s a true expression of the finer things in life. The restaurant is helmed by kappo chef Kenta Yamauchi, formerly of the Michelin-starred Gion Fukushi in Kyoto, and supported by Hirohito Tanaka. sushi specialist from the (also) Michelin-starred Ginza Onodera in New York, who together create culinary delights from rare and delicate Japanese ingredients like shiro miso.

There are currently five omakase menus to choose from. Lunch offers Kumo at S$180, Hare at S$280 and Tsuki at S$380, while dinner features Hare at S$280 and Tsuki at S$380. Rather than following a sushi-heavy progression, the experience reflects kappo dining more broadly, moving through seasonal ingredients prepared with a mix of raw and cooked techniques according to what is at its best.

Best for: Kyoto-style kappo omakase, refined Japanese craftsmanship and a quiet Orchard Road dining experience.

Hazuki is located at 391 Orchard Road, unit 04-18A, Singapore, postal code 238872. You can make a reservation online at their website. 

Specialty Omakase-style tempura restaurant Tentsuru was established in 2022, helmed by Master Chef Daiki Kawaguchi and presenting tempura at its finest. Chef Kawaguchi’s culinary journey, which began in his father’s restaurant kitchen in Osaka, has led him through 18 years of experience in famous Japanese restaurants Tankuma and Hinokizaka, to co-found Bangkok’s acclaimed Tenharu, and finally to Singapore with his signature tempura creations. 

At Tentsuru, Chef Kawaguchi blends the traditional with the unexpected, pairing delicate textures with bold flavour: the Hokkaido Sea Urchin Roll, wrapped with a sea urchin sheet, Wild King Crab with Japanese Sudachi, Miyazaki A5 Wagyu Beef topped with Black Truffle Shavings and Homemade Komi Sauce, and Kagoshima Sweet Potato, among others. 

Complementing these dishes is a premium selection of sakes and fine wines, including rare finds like the La Isojiman sake (made with ultra-premium AAA Yamadanishiki rice), and the MV18 Henri Giraud champagne with fine bubbles and clean flavours.

Tentsuru’s menu is created from prized seasonal produce like the Japanese Tiger Prawn and Japanese Whiting, air flown from various prefectures in Japan and delicately cooked to bring out its distinctive flavours.

Echoing the art of tempura-making, Tentsuru’s décor is simple but highly detailed– as a nod to the restaurant’s name, meaning “ten (tempura)-tsuru (crane)”, crane motifs adorn the walls. The restaurant provides an elegant, relaxing dining experience: guests are able to enjoy an open kitchen experience from a 15-seat main dining room or a 7-seat private room.

Best for: Tempura omakase, premium Japanese produce and special-occasion dining.

Tentsuru is located in the St. Regis Singapore, at 29 Tanglin Road, Singapore 247911. You can make a reservation online via their website.

Meaning “aristocratic craftsmanship”, Ki-sho brings its philosophy of precision and artistry into both the dining room and the food. Housed in a black-and-white colonial-style property along Scotts Road, the restaurant centres on intimate kappo-style dining, where guests can watch each dish being prepared at the counter.

Now led by Chef Taro Takayama, Ki-sho’s omakase is rooted in classical Japanese technique, seasonality and respect for the natural character of each ingredient. Rather than focusing solely on sushi, the meal unfolds as a multi-course kappo progression, allowing the chef to move between raw and cooked dishes according to the best produce available.

The current Chef Kappo Omakase is offered in two formats at both lunch and dinner. Lunch is available as a six-course menu at S$168++ or seven courses at S$280++, while dinner is priced at S$280++ for seven courses or S$360++ for nine courses. All menus change with the seasons.

Best for: Kappo-style omakase, sake pairings and intimate Japanese fine dining.

Ki-sho is located at 29 Scotts Road, Singapore, postal code 228224. Visit their website to book.

For diners who think omakase begins and ends with sushi, Tenshima offers a very different interpretation. The intimate tempura restaurant centres the experience around Chef Shima, who fries each piece à la minute at the counter using seasonal ingredients sourced from across Japan. Rather than simply aiming for crispness, the batter thickness and oil temperature are adjusted according to the ingredient and even its moisture content on the day.

The result is tempura that feels remarkably light, with a thin golden crust designed to bring the ingredient itself into focus. Seafood, vegetables and other seasonal produce arrive throughout the meal one at a time, allowing diners to appreciate the change in texture, sweetness and umami from one course to the next. Specially selected salts are served alongside for those who want to bring out different nuances in each piece.

There are only 10 seats per lunch and dinner service, keeping the experience personal and giving Chef Shima room to tailor the progression to individual diners. The setting follows the same understated approach, combining a Japanese cypress counter, mikageishi granite and washi-inspired details with materials chosen specifically to minimise lingering cooking aromas.

The Omakase Lunch starts at S$198, with a S$280 option adding on the signature tempura, while the S$450 Omakase Dinner moves through seasonal appetisers, six tempura pieces, three speciality tempura and a signature piece before ending with a choice of tendon, tencha or anagodon and dessert.

Best for: Tempura omakase, seasonal Japanese produce and an intimate chef-counter experience.

Tenshima is located at 9 Raffles Boulevard, #01-09/10 Millenia Walk. Lunch is served Tuesday to Wednesday and Friday to Sunday from 12.30pm to 3pm, while dinner runs Tuesday to Sunday from 6.30pm to 10pm.

After closing the original Sushi Kimura in 2024, Chef Tomoo Kimura returned to Singapore’s dining scene with a more intimate version of his restaurant. Sushi Kimura Plus seats just nine diners at the counter, allowing Chef Kimura to personally prepare and serve each piece throughout the meal. The restaurant was awarded a MICHELIN star in the 2026 Singapore Guide, marking a successful new chapter for the chef.

The omakase is available for both lunch and dinner, with each menu moving through a series of seasonal appetisers and cooked dishes before nine pieces of sushi. Lunch is priced at S$250++, while the S$380++ dinner adds dishes such as tender cooked Japanese black abalone and features a slightly different sushi progression, including both chutoro and otoro alongside aka uni. 

What makes the new format particularly appealing is the amount of attention Chef Kimura can give each diner. With only eight seats and no second sushi chef sharing the counter, the pacing and preparation remain entirely in his hands, making the experience feel personal without becoming overly ceremonial.

The lunch omakase is S$250++, while dinner is S$380++. Seasonal additions such as premium black abalone, monkfish liver and additional uni may also be available at an extra charge.

Best for: Michelin-starred Edomae sushi, an ultra-intimate eight-seat counter and experiencing Chef Tomoo Kimura’s cooking firsthand.

Sushi Kimura Plus is located at 1 Cuscaden Road, #01-03, Conrad Singapore Orchard, Singapore 249715.

For diners looking for an omakase experience that extends well beyond sushi, Waku Ghin by Tetsuya Wakuda offers one of Singapore’s most polished interpretations. The one-Michelin-starred restaurant brings together Japanese culinary precision, French technique and premium seasonal produce in an intimate Chef’s Table setting at Marina Bay Sands.

The current S$550 Chef’s Table Omakase is a multi-course progression that moves fluidly between seafood, wagyu and seasonal dishes. A sample menu includes Marinated Botan Shrimp with Sea Urchin and Oscietra Caviar, Chutoro Tuna set on rice, Amadai Uroko, pan-seared abalone, Ohmi Wagyu sushi, Canadian lobster and Japanese Ohmi Wagyu sukiyaki before finishing with somen and a series of desserts.

What sets Waku Ghin apart is the way the meal balances Japanese ingredients and presentation with a broader fine-dining sensibility. Rather than focusing purely on nigiri, the experience moves through raw, cooked and composed dishes, allowing the chefs to showcase different techniques and textures while responding to seasonality and availability.

The Chef’s Table has two seatings daily, at 5pm and 7.30pm, and the restaurant notes that its menus may change according to the season and the produce available on the day.

Best for: A luxurious chef’s table experience, Japanese-French fine dining and diners who want an omakase that goes beyond sushi.

Waku Ghin by Tetsuya Wakuda is located at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, #02-03, 10 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore 018956. The Chef’s Table operates daily with seatings at 5pm and 7.30pm.

Many diners may have passed Sushi Zen’s unassuming door on Teck Lim Road without ever noticing that it was there– and what a waste, since this intimate eight-seater restaurant displays the talents of one of Beijing’s top sushi chefs. Chef-owner E Ran, who has practiced and mastered the art of Edo-mae sushi-making since he was 17, owns and runs the restaurant, whose following includes discerning diners, executives and celebrities like Tim Cook and Zhang Ziyi. The restaurant offers only omakase set menus for lunch and dinner, which are created from ingredients flown in four times a week from the famous Toyosu Fish Market in Tokyo– and to complement the seafood, a special shari formula of top-grade Nanatsuboshi rice, red and white vinegar and a touch of salt is used.

Each menu consists of ten pieces of nigiri, accompanied by various seasonal appetisers, soups and desserts, all crafted from premium seafood: expect novel pairings of Japanese and Chinese tastes, like uni marinated in tangerine peel and Shaoxing wine, delicately seasoned and grilled hotate and fish, and perfected classics like ika, chuutoro and ootoro nigiri. Various diners have complimented the creamy uni dishes, light and fluffy tamago, and the ending “dessert” of a single, excellent Japanese melon slice. To pair with your meal, consider a Aramasa Ama Neko sake from Akita, or a rare Juyonda sake from northern Yamagata.

Best for: Edo-mae sushi omakase, premium seafood and chef-counter dining.

Sushi Zen is located at 1 Teck Lim Road, Singapore, postal code  088379. To reserve a table, visit their website.

Perched on the rooftop of CapitaSpring, Oumi combines modern Japanese kappo dining with panoramic views over Marina Bay. The open-kitchen restaurant works with seasonal produce from Japan and Australia alongside herbs, vegetables and mushrooms grown at the neighbouring 1-Arden Food Forest, bringing a farm-to-table element to the experience. Sustainability also shapes the kitchen’s approach, including whole-fish cooking designed to make fuller use of each ingredient.

For dinner, diners can choose between a seven-course Omakase at S$180++ and a more extensive nine-course menu at S$230++. The longer experience begins with a chef’s selection of five types of sashimi, followed by Hassun — an assortment of small seasonal dishes presented together — before moving into a series of contemporary kappo creations.

Current highlights include Foie Gras Monaka with salmon roe, shiso and pickled daikon, as well as Kani Chawanmushi with spanner crab, Japanese white corn and locally grown yanagi matsutake mushrooms. The nine-course menu also features Tempura Crepe with golden trout roe, Australian avocado and sakura ebi, alongside an Ise Ebi Bouillabaisse bringing together spiny lobster, Hokkaido scallops, Japanese chestnut, Gruyère and locally grown king trumpet mushrooms.

For the main course, diners can choose between dishes such as Kohitsuji Yaki, pairing grilled Australian lamb with satsumaimo, house-grown lemon balm and calamansi, or Gindara Somen, where cod and wheat noodles are accompanied by house-grown komatsuna and Japanese chestnut. A Satsuma A5 Wagyu tenderloin is also available as a supplement.

Best for: Contemporary Japanese kappo, farm-to-table dining and panoramic Marina Bay views.

Oumi is located at 88 Market Street, unit 51-01, Singapore, postal code 048948. You can make a reservation online at their website.

Now located at CHIJMES, Sushi Hare brings Chef Angus Chang’s omakase experience into a more tranquil new setting while retaining the philosophy that has defined the restaurant from the start. The Taiwanese chef combines the disciplined Japanese spirit of Shokunin with Ren qing wei, or the warmth of Taiwanese hospitality, creating a sushi experience that feels precise without becoming overly formal.

The new dining room continues Sushi Hare’s emphasis on atmosphere and craftsmanship. Guests enter through a space framed by Kumiko detailing and a sun-inspired installation before settling at the restaurant’s striking seven-metre Hinoki counter, custom-crafted in Japan. Floor-level windows overlook a private Tsuboniwa garden, giving the room a calm, contemplative quality that complements the measured pace of the meal.

There are currently four omakase experiences to choose from. The Hikari menu at S$160 includes an appetiser, chawanmushi, nine pieces of nigiri, a hand roll, soup and dessert, while the Hi menu at S$250 adds five seasonal appetisers and 10 pieces of nigiri. The more extensive Ao menu at S$380 includes six seasonal appetisers, 10 pieces of nigiri, tamagoyaki, soup and Japanese fruit, while the bespoke Hare menu starts from S$500 and must be ordered at least one week in advance.

Chef Angus also holds a sake certification, and the restaurant’s beverage programme includes a carefully curated selection of premium alcohols. Rather than following a rigid pairing format, he can recommend sake to complement the progression of the meal and individual preferences.

Best for: Sushi omakase, intimate counter dining and sake recommendations.

Sushi Hare is located at CHIJMES, #01-23, 30 Victoria Street, Singapore 187996. To reserve a table, visit the website.

The Omakase @ The Lobby Lounge at Grand Copthorne Waterfront offers a chef-led Japanese dining experience in a relaxed riverside setting. Curated by Michelin-trained Chef Elson Lee, the counter-style menu brings together seasonal produce, precise technique and contemporary Japanese flavours in a setting that feels personal and easy to enjoy.

Guests can choose between two thoughtful journeys: a 7-course menu at S$98++ and an 8-course menu at S$138++. Highlights of the menu include dishes such as pressed foie gras sushi with citrus notes, kombu-aged sashimi, chilled shiso somen, chawanmushi with dried scallop ankake, smoky grilled eggplant in dashi and charcoal-grilled selections. The meal rounds off with a selection of expertly crafted nigiri, where carefully aged fish is paired with house-blended Niigata rice, before ending on a delicate dessert.

Omakase @ The Lobby Lounge makes a good pick for date nights, small gatherings or anyone looking to enjoy accessible omakase in Singapore within a hotel setting. Reservations must be made at least three days in advance.

Best for: Accessible riverside omakase in a relaxed hotel setting.

Omakase @ The Lobby Lounge, Grand Copthorne Waterfront, 392 Havelock Road, Singapore 169663, Phone (+65) 8168 1553 / (+65) 6233 1338 . Reserve your table here.

Big Wine Freaks is not a traditional Japanese omakase restaurant, and that is precisely what makes its Thursday counter experience worth including. Better known as one of Singapore’s most distinctive wine-led dining destinations, the Chinatown restaurant draws from both European wine-bar culture and the ingredient-led philosophy of Japanese omakase.

Held every Thursday and limited to just eight guests, its S$188++ Omakase is led by Head Chef Lim Wei Kiat together with Japanese Chef Kenyoshi Ryohei. There is no rigid menu to expect each week. Instead, the courses respond to the best market arrivals, with premium seafood and carefully sourced produce prepared and served directly across the chef’s counter.

The restaurant’s strong Japanese raw-bar programme naturally plays an important part. Depending on the week’s catch, this can include bluefin tuna, hamachi, scallops and uni alongside less commonly encountered fish such as amadai, kinmedai or kinki. The meal then has room to move beyond raw seafood into the produce-led, contemporary cooking that defines Big Wine Freaks more broadly.

The wine programme adds another layer to the experience. The cellar spans more than 500 labels, with particular strength in Champagne, Burgundy and low-intervention producers, while more than 40 wines rotate through the by-the-glass list. White there is no fixed wine pairing for the omakase, the in-house sommelier can recommend wines by the glass or bottle based on what you enjoy and how you want to drink through the meal. 

Best for: Modern omakase, adventurous wine pairings and diners looking for something beyond the traditional sushi counter.

Big Wine Freaks is located at 44 Bukit Pasoh Road, Singapore 089857. . It opens Monday to Saturday from 5.30pm until late, with the eight-seat Omakase available every Thursday at S$188++ per person.

*This article contains some paid partnership content.