Treats

Butahage: Charcoal Grilled Japanese Pork Bowls In Suntec City With Thick Cut Pork Loin

3 min read

Making a great return to Singapore is Butahage, a Japanese restaurant specialising in charcoal-grilled butadon – pork rice bowls. They have opened an outlet in Suntec City serving up a menu of butadon and tempura!

Clean & Comfortable Interior

Butahage previously held a store in Liang Court (now defunct). They are now returning with a modern, fast-casual dining concept.

The restaurant is decked in a vibrant red and wood interior, complete with traditional Japanese motifs. There’s counter seating at the front where you can watch the chefs grill the meat.

Butahage Menu

The menu features butadon with two types of pork from Japan and Canada.

There’s the Obihiro Meibutsu Japanese Pork Loin Don (Regular for $19.80, Large for $24.80) and Obihiro Meibutsu Pork Loin Don (Regular for $11.80, Large for $14.80). You can also opt for pork loin or pork belly cuts!

The Chef-Owner Hitoshi Yano and his family also helm a tempura business which they are also featuring in the menu. Options include Hokkaido Special Tendon ($16.80) and Ebi Tempura & Noodle Set ($18.80).

There’s even a Salmon & Ikura Don ($17.80) plus a number of sides like Tori Karaage ($4.80) and Chawanmushi ($3.20).

Obihiro Meibutsu Japanese Pork Loin Don

The Large Obihiro Meibutsu Japanese Pork Loin Don ($24.80) had 6 thick pieces of meat, served in a set with miso soup and pickles. A Regular bowl comes with 4 pieces of pork instead.

Each piece was charcoal grilled and basted in their 80-year-old housemade umami sauce, creating an appetizing golden brown. The meat was tender and had a clean porky flavour, with a smoky caramelisation from the sauce.

We also really liked the rice – the Nanatsuboshi variety from Hokkaido. It had a firm bite and slight sweetness which carried the sauce well!

Tendon

The Tendon ($9.50) had prawns, squid, crab stick and Japanese mountain yam on top of rice. Each item was perfectly fried to a light crisp and enough to satisfy, but we think it could definitely do with more tempura sauce!

Hokkaido Special & Noodle Set

Another way to enjoy their tempura is the Hokkaido Special & Noodle Set ($19.80). The Hokkaido special featured more premium seafood like tiger prawns, salmon and scallop.

The seafood tasted fresh and snappy with the same light batter, but we found the salmon to be a tad overcooked. Regardless, the selection is quite generous!

We opted for a side of hot udon which is slightly thinner than regular udon, providing a pleasant chew. There is also hot or cold soba as an alternative.

Salmon Mentai Avocado Don

The Salmon Mentai Avocado Don ($17.80) is a Singapore-exclusive menu item and is perfect for mentaiko lovers.

Almost half the bowl is covered in torched mentaiko sauce! The base is rice, salmon slices and avocado chunks. The sauce was creamy and salty, pairing perfectly with the thick-cut salmon and warm rice.

Sides

The Butahage Bun ($4.60) features the same grilled pork in a soft bun with lettuce and a mustard sauce. The soft bun complemented the flavourful fatty meat, contrasted by the slight kick from the mustard.

Another side dish is the Agedashi Imo Tempura ($3.80), fried sweet potato. Despite its unassuming looks, this was quite good! We liked the combination of the sweet potato and savoury dashi sauce.

Hokkaido Milk Strawberry Cheesecake

A simple and sweet end to the meal is the Hokkaido Milk Strawberry Cheesecake ($5.80), with a soft and creamy filling.

Pork Don In Singapore

Butahage’s speciality in Hokkaido pork shines in its signature menu which is sure to satisfy, and we recommend it as a fuss-free lunch option in the area!