Hifumi Japanese Restaurant (Marina Square)

Image: Hifumi Facebook

Yeah~~~ Hifumi Japanese Restaurant has opened its second branch at Marina Square. This popular semi-buffet restaurant was really packed on a Sunday afternoon. I saw couples, groups of friends, family with children, grandparents.. Waah.. See how well-received Hifumi is!

Upon entering, I could see that the seats are really spacious and there is ample space to move around (getting to the all-u-can-eat appetizer bar). I was cheering already. (^O^)

Please refer to my post on Hifumi Japanese Restaurant (Plaza Singapura) for the full menu.

Image: Hifumi Facebook

It seems like their (June) monthly special menu - Japanese Rice Box - is still available. I'm not sure when it would end so be sure to try before it's gone!

Let's talk about the main first~~

Grilled Salmon Rice Box Set ($16.99) - "Maccha sushi rice with semi-grilled salmon" sounds delicious already!

Look at my pinkish delicious-looking salmon waiting for me to dig in... *drools* I like how the salmon slices were so thick and grilled on the side.. Don't hold too high expectations on the quality of the salmon.. The salmon was just average quality but well, since it's under $20 set.. I think it was worth every cent~

Maccha sushi rice!! My first time.. heh heh~~ Sadly, the maccha taste was not distinctive.. It could be easily passed off as seaweed rice..

Baked Chicken with Japanese Pepper Sauce Set ($11.99) was under Healthy Meal category. The chicken was rather bland (haha.. maybe because it was supposed to be healthy?). It seemed as though the chicken was not marinated at all. The biggest disappointment was that even though it was baked, the chicken was not fragrant. Fortunately, it was still quite juicy and the pepper sauce on the outside helped to add some flavour.

Not to forget, the set is not even $12! Look at the generous chunks of the chicken!

Saba Shioyaki Set ($12.99) was really worth it!! It's about the same price as what you can get at food courts but look at how big and fat the saba is! Besides, it was really juicy and tasty! Good!

Below are some snapshots of the unlimited refillable all-you-can-take-and-eat appetizers~~ oops! I forgot about my chawanmushi! I had three of that.. *guilty*

Verdict: Of course I will be back! It seems like they introduce new appetizers (such as dumpling, tapioca chips and lotus roots chips) every now and then.. Good!

The environment is casual and spacious too.. I can leisurely spend my time munching the appetizers.. Walking up and down to refill my drinks multiple times then end my meal with a hot beverage (fave: mocha!).. And at the end of my meal, I'm paying less than $20 per pax! O.M.G.

Small note: The staff use disinfectant when cleaning the tables! Previously I mentioned in my post on its branch at Plaza Singapura where the staff just wipes off the food shreds to the floor and chair. This new branch at Marina Square is so much more hygienic and the staff are more pleasant and more at your service. Deserves a thumbs up!


Hifumi Japanese Restaurant (Marina Square)
Address: Marina Square, 6 Raffles Boulevard, #02-106A/106B
Tel: 63374721
Opening hours: (Daily) 11:30 - 15:00 / 17:00 - 22:30
Website: https://www.facebook.com/hifumi.sg

Hifumi Japanese Restaurant

"Welcome to Hifumi Japanese Restaurant!"
... was what I wanted to hear but instead it was..

"How many?"
"You can only eat for 90 minutes, you okay?"

Hifumi is a wallet-friendly Japanese Restaurants that offers all-you-can-eat appetizer bar when you order any of their set menu.. (kinda reminds me of Ponderosa and Sizzler which have ceased their operations in Singapore..)

Also, you can just pay an additional $2 for free flow of drinks that ranges from soft drinks such as Gingle Ale and Mirinda, to hot beverages such as Mocha, Latte and Green Tea. (See more in the menu below.)

First.. Let's go through the menu, shall we?

(Note: Click on image to enlarge)





(Note: This menu is from Hifumi's Facebook. However, it is not up to date. The prices had increased slightly when I visited on 9 June 2013.)

Itadakimasu! Let's eat!



Salmon Oyako-jyu Set ($17.99) was pleasant visually.. the generous portion of salmon and salmon roe had totally covered the box of rice.. I took the first mouthful without any wasabi and soy sauce to find that.. (-_-) the salmon was of room temperature.. the rice does not taste like what I usually have in Japanese restaurants..

by right, the chilled raw salmon should be taken out for cut when they prepare the dish.. hence, if the salmon was of room temperature.. either they did not chill the raw salmon or they had prepared the dish beforehand and served it up when someone ordered it.. it was the first time I ate my favorite salmon so slowly..



Saba Shioyaki Set ($12.99) looked good.. apologies for not having any comments on how it tastes cos' I'm not a fan of saba..



The appetizer bar was definitely more star-worthy than the main sets.. Takoyaki and Onion Steak were the latest items introduced about 5 weeks ago.. I don't eat onions so you won't see that on my plate..

Takoyaki (center) was passable.. alternative meaning that you can really pass on it..

I really wanted to tabao (take away) Sweet Potato Fries (left) soooo much.. It was fried to crisp and then stirred in sugar syrup and glazed with brown sugar powder.. This dish was super powerful! I could snack on this for 90 minutes..

Rice Cracker (right) was to be eaten with vegetable gravy.. but the vegetable gravy is not in the picture.. the gravy was cooked with onions, cabbage and carrots.. thickened with starch.. good to have with a bowl of rice.. (^o^)

Vegetable with Cheese Fondue (back) has vegetables such as broccoli and potatoes.. as you can see from the picture above.. I took potatoes only.. hahaha.. I'm not an "avid" vegetable lover.. but as all of us know.. anything with cheese just won't go wrong (most of the time)..



Chawanmushi was nicely done.. to the extent that it surprised me a little.. the silken egg was soft and smooth.. it was so nice that I had 3 of this! besides a cube of mushroom and crabstick.. there was..



a SHRIMP!



My number one dish: Pumpkin with Walnut Salad.. This was super delicious! The mayonnaise / salad sauce was not too creamy and thick.. so it was just nice.. This was another dish that I want to tabao too!!



Soba with Sesame dipping sauce was a pretty generous dish to have on an appetiser bar.. especially if it's all-you-can-eat.. this was not mine but I heard that it was refreshing and nice.. and of course filling too..



Radish with Minced Chicken tasted healthy.. hahahahaa.. in other words, bland.. like hospital food.. gosh..



While rubbing the full full tummy, finish the meal with something sweet like Fruit Cocktail!

Service: BAD! No greetings, no smiles, no courtesy.. The first Japanese restaurant that does not say "Irasshaimase" (Welcome/Please come in).. When I went to pay.. the staff did not talk to me at all.. she was talking to the waiter.. pointed at the amount I had to pay and put her hand out, asking for my payment.. after I handed her my credit card, she left! and asked the other staff to print out the receipt for my signature.. Omg..

Ambience: Spacious.. which was really an important point because there were a lot of space for you to move around to get your food and drinks!

Hygiene: FAIL BIG TIME! They do not use disinfectant spray to wipe the table.. I saw the waiter wiped the table with a cloth and swept the bits of food to the floor and some flew onto the chair.. he did not bother to clean the chair.. it was like that when I was there watching him clearing the tables..

Verdict: Though the service was bad, the hygiene was not up to standard.. I will be back for second visit! because I only spent about $20 per pax and I felt like I had eaten an ala-carte buffet.. Worth it!

Hifumi Japanese Restaurant
68 Orchard Road
#04-68 Plaza Singapura
Tel: 63384712
Operating Hours: (Daily) 11:30 - 22:00