Fast-casual Japanese eatery Yuba Hut ユバ屋 which serves up sushi rolls, donburi rice bowls and sashimi, has been making its entrance in many parts of the heartlands.
Other than its newest outlet at Potong Pasir’s The Poiz Centre, you can find the modern Japanese restaurant at Heartland Mall, Hillion Mall, Bishan Junction 8, Northpoint City and White Sands.
Yuba Hut is best known for its sushi rolls aka aburi-ed maki sensations zhnged up with a number of toppings, from its signature Champion Floss Maki, Cream Cheese Mentaiko Salmon to Salmon Aburi Maki.
The concept has also launched its “Singapore’s first-ever Rainbow Soba Protein Bowl”. Rainbow?
The fancy caption aside, the bowls are called “rainbow” due to the colourful vegetables and ingredients toppings, ranging from crabstick (red), tobiko (orange), onsen egg, corn (yellow), edamam, seaweed and spring onions (green).
If only there was a touch of edible flowers to complete the blue and indigo.
These ingredients go on top of chewy green tea soba noodles, and customers can further customise with preferred protein base and sauces.
You can choose from four types of protein including unagi ($13.90), beef ($13.90), chicken ($9.90), and salmon ($13.90); and sauces of mala, Japanese sesame, yuzu and kimchi. This is proof that mala has started to penetrate in every other dish you can find.
Here are some of my recommended pairings:
Yuba Hut Unagi Bowl ($13.90)
This is my favourite combination, with a sizable slab of succulent unagi (Japanese sea eel) on a bed of soba and greens.
The eel is first pan-fried then glazed with tare sauce which provides that sweetish-savoury taste; the texture thick and sufficiently moist.
It is best paired with soba tossed with goma sauce (Japanese sesame) which has a nutty and rich-earthy flavour which doesn’t over-shadow the eel.
Yuba Hut Beef Bowl ($13.90)
Protein lovers won’t want to miss out on this steak bowl cooked with quality Australian beef – pan- seared till caramelised on the outside while remaining tender in the middle.
The steak slices were slightly on the lean side, with just the right among of fats.
If you are more ‘adventurous’, pair this with mala sauce which is a concoction made with eight kind of spices including peppercorn, chilli powder, chilli oil, and pepper powder.
To be honest, soba and mala together can be disjointing; and so if you prefer something safer, stick to the goma.
Yuba Hut Chicken Bowl ($9.90)
Brazilian chicken thigh pieces pan-fried with in-house sauce till tender and succulent, then topped on soba noodles.
K-food lovers can pair this with “kimchi” sauce. While this is called “kimchi”, there aren’t actual fermented cabbages to be found.
Instead, the sauce is a medley of Korean chilli paste (gochujang), Korean chilli powder (gochugaru), sesame oil, salt and sugar which gives a blend of spicy, sour and slightly-sweet savour.
Yuba Hut Salmon Bowl ($13.90)
Norwegian (or Chilean) salmon which has a velvety-firm texture and buttery-ness, served on the hearty bowl of rainbow soba.
For seafood, the yuzu sauce included with fresh yuzu pulps gives a fruity-refreshing aftertaste.
As a suggestion, Yuba Hut can consider offering similar “Rainbow Rice Protein Bowl” with customisable sauces, such as steak, black pepper or teriyaki in the future.
Salmon Aburi Don ($14.90)
Talking about Donburi, Yuba Hut is still best known for its Japanese rice bowls, with offerings of Salmon Aburi, Salmon Sashimi, Saba, Teriyaki Chicken, Ebi Tempura, Katsu, Salmon and Una Don.
All the bowls are priced between $7.80 and $14.90.
Its best-seller is the Salmon Aburi Don neat-fully arranged with torched salmon slices around a ‘hill’ of Japanese rice, topped with ikuru and tobiko then drizzled with sauce.
Champion Floss Maki ($9.90 for 4 pieces, $16.90 for 8 pieces)
The main highlight of Yuba Hut to me is the Champion Floss Maki, so-named because the sushi roll is piled with ingredients.
Here’s what goes into the maki: sushi rice rolled with cucumber and aburi
In terms of appearance, it just looked like it was over-flowing with mayo, floss and roe.
The shiok-ness comes from the creaminess of the sauce sliding with the fluffy flossy and crunchy ikura. The thick slices of salmon also added that buttery richness that kind of melted in the mouth.
Cream Cheese Mentaiko Salmon ($9.90 for 4 pieces, $16.90 for 8 pieces)
The Cream Cheese Mentaiko Salmon with smoky aburi salmon drizzled with a spicy-mentaiko creamy cheesy sauce, sprinkled over with crunchy tempura bits.
This is even richer, I thought that the cream cheese was slightly overpowering but there is always the option of sweeping it away.
Samurai Unagi Aburi Maki ($8.90 for 4 pieces, $15.90 for 8 pieces)
A trio of tamago, crabstick and cucumber in the middle, topped with unagi, cheese slices and mentaiko sauce then torched with first.
The aburi melts the cheese slightly, so you get a touch of the caramelisation with soft-gooey mouth-feel.
While I won’t say that all the items are hits (for example, I am still not too sure about mala with soba), there are quite a number of interesting fare that are good for quick take-aways and a fuss-free Japanese meal.
The next time you spot a Yuba Hut, try heading for the donburi with thick and fresh sashimi offerings, or over-the-top sushi rolls.
Yuba Hut Rainbow Soba Protein Bowl Promotion
Yuba Hut will be offering 50% OFF second bowl of Rainbow Soba Protein Bowl ordered. Till end Dec 2019.
If you fancy more protein, upsize your bowl additional half a portion of salmon, beef, unagi (add on $2), or chicken (add on $1). Top up $1 for a drink of hot or cold green tea.
The Poiz Centre
51 Upper Serangoon Rd, #01-03, The Poiz Centre, Singapore 347697
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
Heartland Mall
#01-19/20, Block 205, Hougang Street 21,Singapore 530205
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
Hillion Mall
17 Petir Rd, #01-05/06, Hillion Mall, Singapore 678270
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
Bishan Junction 8
9 Bishan Place, #B1-K15, Bishan Junction 8, Singapore 579837
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
Northpoint City
930 Yishun Ave 2, #B1-186, Northpoint City South Wing, Singapore 769098
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
White Sands
1 Pasir Ris Central Street 3, #01-26/27, White Sands, Singapore 518459
Opening Hours: 11am – 10pm (Mon – Sun)
* This entry is brought to you in partnership with Yuba Hut.