Teppan by Chef Yonemura: Franco-Japanese Cuisine With Plenty of Theatrics

Michelin-starred chef Masayasu Yonemura is well known for his innovative Franco-Japanese teppanyaki back home in Kyoto and Tokyo. Now, the celebrated chef has finally ventured beyond Japanese shores to carve a new home on our very own island resort of Resorts World Sentosa with Teppan by Chef Yonemura.

With over 30 years of experience under his belt, Chef Yonemura brings visitors an experience like no other. Teppan promises a culinary affair that brings together both showmanship and delicious fusion food with theatrical hotplate grilling that will literally have your hair standing on end with the thrilling flambes and flaming cocktails served.

Stepping into Teppan, our immersive dining experience has already begun as we feel the calm ambience of a private room, with sleek decor and gorgeous surroundings. We were about to experience Teppan’s 8 Course Menu (S$228++), which we were told would last about two hours. Service here is impeccable, where guests are even welcomed with a hot towel, which refreshed us before we were introduced to Chef de Partie Catherine, who would be our host for most of the night. We started off with a welcome aperitif consisting of a mix of yuzu, Grey Goose vodka, and a Barcardi 151 soaked Mikan orange slice, giving us a true taste of Japan. We even got a chance to set the cocktail on fire (perfectly safe), preparing us for the rest of the fiery entertainment we were going to experience throughout the night.

The meal then began with the amuse bouche – some well marinated mussels served atop a toasted baguette, and a delicious Konbu Seaweed flavoured Flounder and Persimmon Spring Roll, a well made dish where the persimmon’s sweetness complemented the fishier cod perfectly. We were also served some exclusive Fuji Marumo Green Tea throughout the night, a cold green tea surprisingly enough, bursting with flavour from the foothills of Mount Fuji.

Next up, we started on the appetizers. The first dish was a Mushroom Croquette with Beef Stew Sauce. A croquette of course, is typical fare for a Japanese snack, and the thin, crispy skin came apart easily once we bit into it, with the bechamel gruyere cheese centre with mushrooms bursting out, full of flavour and melting in our mouths. Topped with a beef stew sauce and a nice piece of fatty beef on top, these elements brought the entire dish together.

The next appetizer of the night was the Steamed Crab Meat with Rice. Almost like a giant sushi, the crab meat, we learnt, was handpicked from fresh Hokkaido crabs, steamed to perfection – still retaining all its moisture and sweetness. If the ratio of glutinous rice to crab was tweaked a little, it would have helped the crab’s taste pop even more instead of overwhelming it.

Following that, we had the Live Prawn and Abalone stuffed tomato. A single juicy, cold tomato, blanched for a few second and bisected into half, served as the base for this dish. Each half was topped with either pieces of abalone from South Africa or live prawn, and garnished with a kiwi-orange-grapefruit mustard, was a tantalizing, refreshing break in the otherwise heavy meal.

Interestingly, it was only here that the soup dish came into play, and we knew that our main course would be served before long. Teppan’s Clam and Lobster Bouillabaisse uses the meat of fresh Indonesian lobsters fished straight from their tank, and along with big succulent slices of Japanese clams, gave the soup a chunky sweetness amidst its saltier, seafood flavours.

At long last, we arrived at the highlight of the night and the moment we’d been waiting for. Sous Chef Lamley took over from Catherine here, and gave us the show we’d heard so much about. With demon flames that licked and flared, it was an experience to be captured on camera as we watched the perfectly marbled slab of A4 Kagoshima Ribeye get grilled on the spot.

This was quality beef, and it showed in its taste, bursting with flavour while the complementary condiments of Peanut Butter Garlic and Ponzu Sauce with Grated Radish elevated the dish. The dish also came with some ice cold ‘Samurai Tea’, so named because its leaves historically originated from a plantation run by Japanese samurai, and helped break the heaviness of the tastes in between bites.

The next dish was an interesting one. Making up our carbohydrates for the night was a bowl of Garlic Rice and Pasta.

Pasta seems like a strange dish in a Japanese restaurant, but actually, the dish originates from the idea of leftovers, and how Japanese housewives would toss these together and fry them to make sure no food ever went to waste. This was topped with the very best grade of Japanese bacon – Kagoshima pork bacon, giving it an even richer flavour profile and elevating its taste further.

We ended off the meal with a Crepe Suzette, which Chef Catherine returned to perform, grilling the crepe topped with a pineapple reduction with orange liquor.

The tartness of the sauce complemented the quenelle of vanilla ice cream served alongside it, before ending off with a selection of sweets.

Fun to dine at and a cosy location to simply sit and enjoy a luxurious meal of the freshest ingredients and most fascinating fusion dishes, Teppan will no doubt have you whipping out your camera to eat before you do, with plenty of photo-worthy moments to capture, after which you’d be more than happy to tuck into this fantastic kaiseki for our modern times.

Part of a series where Bakchormeeboy pairs great food with theatre venues to ensure you never go hungry before or after a show. 

Teppan by Chef Yonemura
Where: The Forum Level 1, Resorts World Sentosa, 8 Sentosa Gateway, 098269
When: Tue – Sat, Dinner only: 6pm – 10.30pm (last order 9.30pm)
To reserve, call +65 6577 6688, email dining@rwsentosa.com, or visit the website 

 

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