Barashi Tei is at Middle Road and is strategically next to the famous LE Cafe Confectionery which most Singaporean knows about. As such, it is easy to locate the Japanese restaurant. Even though they started only about a month of so, the restaurant 100% filled on Friday night. Good news for the night owl, Barashi Tei opened till 4am daily.
Before trying out the first attempt I read at one of the blog indicating that they aren’t using Japanese Rice but normal white rice and my heart sank. But it turned out to be false alarm which I was glad. The owner of the restaurant was Chef Zhen Feng who loves Japanese food.
As we entered Barashi Tei, except for the bar counter featuring the various fresh catch from the sea and the shelves filled with Sake, there is nothing else that was too Japanese.
Salad
We started our dinner with the recommended salads, Avocado Salmon Salad ($13.80) and Sashimi Salad ($13.80). The greens in both salad were similar. Somehow the dressing seems the same too. It is only the toppings that differ.
The 2 other salad that were on the menu are Salmon Kapachio ($11.80) and Sesame Tofu Salad ($7.80).
Don
11 choices of Don on the menu with Chirashi ($23) and Bara Chirashi ($13.80) as the recommended items. Among the 2, we tried only the former.
If diner enjoy sashimi but need some rice to go along, Chirashi Don ($23) is a fanatistic choice. 1cm thick sashimi covered the rice. On it were salmon, tuna, mekajiki, mackerel and tamago slices. The tamago at Barashi were made in house.
In case diners like only Salmon, can opt for Sake Jyu Don ($16.80).
On the day of our visit, there was a Special Chirashi ($25) on the menu and we tried this fabulous choice. This dish consist of 6 sashimi. In addition to the sashimi found on the Chirashi, Scallop, Uni and Sweet Prawns were on this special don.
Maki
15 selections of Maki. We tried only the recommended Maki comprises of 3.
First was the Avocado Ebi Maki ($12.80). Creamy avocado with the ebi and sushi rice enhances the flavour.
For diners who like some spice have the option of Spicy Salmon Maki ($12.80). It is rolled with Ebi in this maki.
Lastly, the creation is inspired by the Vietnamese Summer Roll. Replaced Sushi Rice with Rice paper to roll the Ebi and vegetables. It resulted as the healthy Rice Paper Ebi Maki ($10.80).
Yakimono
10 items are on this section. A good selection of various fishes. But a pity, we only managed to try 2 of them. One being the Ika Teriyaki ($13.80)
Most find the Terayaki sauce too sweet and the squid was a little over grilled as such it was a little too chewy.
The other is the Iwashi Mentai ($8.80). The mentai was stuffed into the belly of the fish. The texture is similar to Sardine. It has lots of fine bones which we didn’t think it was fine enough for consumption. Due to this reason, personally, NAHMJ would avoid ordering this dish.
Nimono
Barashi Tei only offered 3 selection of Nimono. Gindara Nabe ($24.00) being the recommended dish was what we tried. This is certainly great for sharing between as little as 2 pax to maximum of 6 pax.
The soup was absolutely flavourful and sweet. Fish slices were fresh and we savour the goodness of the sea and the land ingredients in this bowl. It is such a comfort food.
Side Dish
14 side dishes to choose from. Sirloin Steak Foie Gras ($19.80) is such a pleasing combination. It seems like the same teriyaki sauce from the Ika Teriyaki was used for this dish too.
Diners could choose either Kurama Ebi ($7.80) that comes with a bean sauce paste over grilled pranws. They scattered lots of garlic bites over the dish, as such strong garlicky flavour emitted in this dish. Great for diners who love these pungent flavour.
Alternatively, go for the commonly found Wasabi Ebi ($7.80). All dinners of the evening prefer the latter.
A pity we didn’t manage to try any of the Agemono and Yakitori.
Dessert
Dessert at Japanese restaurant are very much ice cream. Likewise at Barashi Tei, 3 flavours were on the menu; Matcha, Yuzu and Goma. Each scoop is priced at $5 for all flavours. We tried none, instead, we were offered Pudding of the day ($3.80).
The texture was nonetheless smooth but the flavour was not on par since I savour artificial flavourings in the pudding. Hence I didn’t enjoy the pudding. I left the entire pudding untouch after the first spoon.
NAHMJ Verdict
In a nutshell, the quality versus the affordable price range was more than reasonable. Hence, NAHMJ feels that this is a great find. In addition, it has a wide variety of selection and we like it.
Finally, the conclusion is, we will return to Barashi Tei.
Barashi Tei
266 Middle Rd, Singapore 188991
Tel: +65 6837 0506
FB: https://www.facebook.com/BarashiTei/
Opening Hours
Daily 1100 to 1500, 1800 to 0400
Getting There
By Bus:
- alight at Peace Centre along Selegie Road 64, 65, 131, 139, 147, 166, 857
- alight opp Prime Centre along Middle Road 56, 64, 65, 131, 139, 147, 166, 857
By MRT:
- Circle line – Bras Basah station
Rating: 8/10
Disclaimer: This is an invite.