Ootoya - 01 Sep 2009

Ootoya was recommended by a colleague. Everytime we walk past the restaurant, it is always bustling with patrons, so we thought it must be good! Indeed it was, even their green tea...


Grated yam with tuna and Japanese style topping basically came with natto (fermented soy beans), okra (lady's fingers), egg yolk and negi (spring onion). The dish was nice, but to those who fear slimy food, may pass on this.

Cold tofu was homemade, as it was coarser and gave a thicker feel than the usual ones we buy at supermarket (those silken tofu). The tofu came with nori (thin dried seaweed shreds), spring onion and grated ginger eaten with a dash of soy sauce. It was good but not the best I've tried.

Deep fried chicken and potatoes with leek sauce and vegetables set was really yums... The chicken pieces were well marinated, fried to a crispy chunk with potatoes.... juicy and tender.

Next, grilled Atka mackerel was really good. It's a slightly fatty fish, lightly salted and grilled to perfection. The flesh was firm and juicy, slightly oily but that made the flesh real smooth but not gelak (bored or sick of it). This fish has a lot of tiny bones, so for those who dislike bones, please note. I'm one who does not fancy alot of tiny bones in fishes, however I still enjoyed the dish very much.

This next dish, mixed-grain soy milk porridge with chicken was really healthy. It had unpolished rice and short grains, green leafy vegetables, carrot shreds, and chicken pieces. Sounds boring?? Nah, it was actually very tasty. The soy based dashi stock was great. It was such a light dish, it was only 335kcal... healthy and tasty!

This next one was called Ootoya special dish. It was a combination of homemade croquette, deep fried chicken, sunny side up, pasta with basil pesto, shredded cabbage with special sauce. It was very good, but I preferred the other version of deep fried chicken and potato dish. Side dishes for the sets we ordered were the same. Pickled cucumber, pumpkin cooked in soy and mirin, rice for most dishes, and miso soup with radish, yam and carrot combo (nice!).

As for the side dish, hijiki with black beans and beancurd skin, I think I will pass on it in future.

Banana parfait with banana ice cream was delicious. It came with small pieces of cakes, and berry coulis kind of sauce. There was a pudding on top of the dessert, may be the soymilk blancmange.

Soymilk blancmange with matcha green tea parfait was heavenly. Though one must note that every monthful should contain everything.... so push the spoon all the way down and scoop upwards, so you'll get some brown sugar sauce, blancmange, fresh cream, green tea ice cream and azuki beans. Note those 2 pieces of white stuff were actually mochi. The 2nd time I ordered it, the waiter told us that it was not supposed to be in the dessert.... oh well!

Overall, Ootoya is a must try! It is located at Orchard Central, level 8. Enjoy!