10 Affordable Bara Chirashi & Kaisendon In Singapore, All Below $20

3:18 AM | Labels: asian cuisine, asian food Recipes, asian recipes, DanielFoodDiary.com, eating in singapore, Singapore Food, singapore Food recipes, singapre Recipes

Bara Chirashi ばらちらし means “scattered seafood, vegetables and ingredients on top of a bowl of rice”.

The sashimi is usually diced and marinated with soy sauce and mirin, compared to the Chirashi Don which has sashimi in the more unadulterated, sliced form.

Its price is generally a lot more affordable than the usual Chirashi, making it a favourite among Singaporeans looking for a quick, oishii and filling one-bowl Japanese meal.

For the purpose of this guide, I tried to find those that fall below $20. Here are 10 places in Singapore to get your inexpensive Bara Chirashi and Kaisendon fix:

Kuro Maguro
Guoco Tower, 7 Wallich Street #01-04 Singapore 078884 (Tanjong Pagar MRT)
Tel: +65 6386 8561
Opening Hours: 11.30am – 2:00pm, 5.30pm – 10:00pm (Mon – Sun)
Last Order 10:00pm (Mon – Sat) Last order 9:00pm (Sun)

Kuro Maguro is able to ship the freshest maguro from the trawler directly, and can keep its prices competitive and affordable.

The restaurant imports the fish directly from Misaki Port to Singapore via ANA air freight. It uses meat culled from blue fins that weigh a minimum of 280kg, as these fishes have a good amount of fat as well as lean meat.

The brand uses the technique called ‘super frozen’ to freeze its maguro at minus 60 degrees Celsius, so as to achieve absolute freshness.

The classic Barachirashi ($18.80 for lunch, $19.80 for dinner) came with an assortment of cubed sashimi.

Compared to the other brands in Singapore, I find that this bowl had a cleaner, somewhat more delicate taste without going too heavy on the marinate.

Ingredients wise, the bowl had proportionally more maguro pieces, complemented with fluffy Japanese rice which was tasty on its own.

Omote
301 Upper Thomson Road, Thomson Plaza #03-24A, Singapore 574408
Tel: +65 9450 1020
Opening Hours: 11:45am – 2pm, 5:45pm – 9pm (Mon, Wed – Sun), Closed Tues

$12.80 for a bowl of bara chirashi don in a restaurant would be a steal. Especially when it comes with so much “liao” (sashimi toppings) that the rice almost takes on a lesser proportion.

Omote which was previously known as Sushiro, has become quite popular for its inexpensive donburi.

The Bara-Chirashi Don ($12.80) is definitely the highlight with salmon, tuna, octopus, prawn and salmon roe in a palm-sized sushi rice bowl.

Fresh sashimi cut into small bite- sized cubes for easy consumption, fragrant sesame oil, umami-ness, and tinge of sweetness, made this a comforting bowl.

If you are up to it, go for the Mount Omote Chirashi Don ($28.80) which comes with a mini hill of assorted marinated diced seafood on sushi rice.

The Sushi Bar (Ngee Ann City)
391B Orchard Rd, #05-34/35 Ngee Ann City, Singapore 238874
Tel: +65 8818 3535
Opening Hours: 11:30am – 9:45pm (Mon – Sun)

The Sushi Bar calls itself the “best affordable sushi place in Singapore”. While “best” is always debatable, it is no doubt very popular among office workers and youths.

Its Bara Chirashi Don ($19.90) of assorted cube sized sashimi over sushi rice includes salmon, tune, yellowtail, swordfish, ikura, and tamago.

It was a colourful variety of fresh cuts in a single bowl, good for those who likes a bit of everything.

All in all, I liked this bowl – thick cubes pieces, some melted in the mouth, and tasty sushi rice. There is a particular freshness about the sashimi here.

Teppei Syukudo
2 Orchard Turn, #B4 -57, Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 6509 9882
Opening Hours: 10am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)

Teppei Syokudo needs little introduction, created by Chef Teppei Yamashita, known for its signature Kaisendon.

Their Kaisendon is a hit among office workers, for sashimi rice bowls included with colourful cubes of fleshy raw seafood mixed with a secret-recipe sauce, fresh vegetables, on a bed of fragrant sushi rice.

Do you know: Teppei’s Kaisendon was originally meant to be a meal for his employees. Cutting up fish into cubes from fish that was not used up during dinner, Chef Teppei would serve it with a home-made sauce at the side.

The off-the-menu special item became popular among regular diners, and has now even found fame beyond our shores with a store in Hong Kong.

Teppei Syokudo’s Kaisendon ($16 Nett) includes 6 different types of raw seafood (Salmon, Tuna, Swordfish, Whelk, Scallop and Ikura), Teppei’s special secret sauce, on top of a bowl of fluffy Japanese rice complemented with freshly grated wasabi.

Kogane Yama
Bugis Junction #02-50, 200 Victoria Street, Singapore 188021
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm Last Order 9pm (Sun – Thurs), 11am – 11pm Last Order 10pm (Fri, Sat)
Another outlet at JEM #01-15

The Kogane Yama Bara Chirashi don ($16.90) comes with diced raw salmon, tuna, swordfish, surf clam, steamed prawn, ikura (salmon roe), tobiko (flying fish roe), cucumber and tamago (Japanese omelette) on a bed of sushi rice.

The base used is of premium Koshihikari short-grain rice, fluffy and has a natural sweet taste.

Compared to some of the other brands which are more heavily seasoned, Kogane Yama’s version allows the natural-taste of the sashimi and other ingredients to come through. Depends on what you prefer.

If you like all things truffle, choose to add on truffle oil (+$2) for that added aroma as you mix the cubed fish throughout. Kogane Yama (Bugis Junction)

Sora Boru
313@somerset #B3-19/20, 313 Orchard Road, Singapore 238895
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Fri), 11am – 11pm (Sat – Sun)

Sora Boru is a casual Japanese dining concept serving a variety of wholesome one-bowl meals to hungry diners at 313@somerset.

It is also Halal-certified.

Operating as a quick-service restaurant, it allows you to order and quick pay for your meal over the counter fast-food style, or via its self-service ordering kiosk.

The Bara Chirashi Ebimayo Aburi Don ($9.50 for mini, $13.50 for regular, $16.50 for large) is a rice bowl topped with assorted fish and seafood cubes of salmon, tuna and baby scallops; tamagoyaki and cucumber blanketed in blow-torched shrimp roe mayonnaise.

And it comes in 3 sizes, good for those who just want a light meal in between shopping. Sora Boru (313@somerset)

Kei Kaisendon
Paya Lebar Square #01-84, Paya Lebar Road, Singapore 409051
Tel: +65 68449915
Opening Hours: 11:30am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)

Kei Kaisendon is a Kaisendon specialty restaurant serving rice bowls topped with fresh sashimi imported straight from the seas of Japan. You may see more outlets peppered across the island, so quality may not be that consistent from outlet to outlet.

Each bowl of Japanese white rice is brimming with a wide variety of sashimi, and a mixture of toppings and seasonings.

Recommended is the Kei Signature Kaisendon ($12.90, $16.90, $19.90) which comes with salad or rice or a mixture of both.

Maximise your Kei Kaisendon dining experience by exploring the 4 different ways of eating the Kei Kaisendon Signature Bowl.

First, savour the taste of signature Kaisendon with fresh sashimi and a little bit of shoyu and wasabi. Next, you can combine a dollop of mayonnaise and chili powder on a sauce and blend the mixture into the rice bowl. Enjoy the spicy creamy rice.

Once you finish your Kaisendon halfway, pour the special Sakura chicken soup into the remaining ingredients and enjoy the mixture as a porridge – this is the 3rd way.

Finally, the fourth way is to take some nori seaweed to wrap a spoonful of rice and sashimi into hand rolls. Four ways to Kaisendon bliss.

Yuzutei
100G Pasir Panjang Road #01-01, Singapore 118523
Tel: +65 9689 4092
Opening Hours: Opening hours: 11.30am – 3pm, 4pm – 10pm (Mon – Fri), 12.30pm – 10pm (Sat), Closed Sun

Yuzutei, 柚子亭 which means Yuzu Pavilion in Japanese, offers a yuzu-centric menu which would attract yuzu fans.

It is located at level 1 of the Interlocal Centre – a development in the heart of the rejuvenated Alexandra Pasir Panjang region, and of approximately 8 minutes’ walk from the nearest Pasir Panjang MRT station.

If you are thinking of head during lunch, more casual Japanese food items of Classic Donburi such as Salmon Mentai Don ($14), Chirashi Kaisen Don ($14.90), Unagi Don ($16), Teriyaki Chicken Don ($10); and Yuzu & Mentai Pasta are available.

The Chirashi Kaisen Don ($14.90) comes with an assortment of diced sashimi such as salmon, tuna and swordfish belly marinated with homemade vinaigrette dressing.

Something unique is the addition of tomatoes, corns, edamame, pumpkin slices, spring onions on top of fluffy, white Japanese rice with a light, citrusy and refreshing dressing, adding texture and flavours as a whole. Yuzutei (Pasir Panjang)

Niigata Bento
Our Tampines Hub #01-86, 1 Tampines Walk, #01-86, Singapore 528523
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm, last order 9.30pm (Mon – Sun)

Niigata Bento derives its name from Niigata Prefecture which is considered the rice capital of Japan. It also marks the origin of Koshihikari, which is the world famous Japanese short grain rice with a rich sweet and nutty taste and a firm bite.

Featuring a wide-ranging variety of bento, donburi, chirashi and udon, this is where you can find Japanese meals at affordable pricing.

All of their Bento Boxes served with 2 sides are priced below $10 nett, with offerings of Teriyaki Chicken ($7.50), Tempura ($8.00), Tonkatsu ($8.00), Gyu ($8.50), Salmon Katsu ($7.00), and Chicken Katsu ($7.50) boxes.

The Bara Chirashi ($15.50) is an enjoyable concoction of assorted salmon and tuna sashimi along flavourful Japanese sweet egg roll cubes served atop the soft and fluffy Koshihikari Rice.

Umi Nami
8 Lorong Mambong, Holland Village, Singapore 277674
Opening Hours: 12pm – 3pm, 6pm – 12am (Mon – Sun)

What foodies are loving at Umi Nami is its affordability. This no-frills Jap place is located at the Holland Village area, a place convenient for after-work dinners.

If you want affordable donburis that doesn’t hurt the wallet priced between $10 – $25.

First up, it offers the popular Bara Chirashi Don ($10) with fresh chunks of tuna, salmon, tamago and squid atop traditional sushi rice.

Those who prefer their sashimi torched should get the Aburi Salmon Don, offering the same Japanese rice laden with chunks of aburi salmon.

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