To describe Takumi a restaurant specialising in three forms of Japanese cuisine would be to sell this popular dining destination short. In addition to the standard table-and-chair dining area, there are also two specialty counters. One offers you front row seats to the chefs practicing the dynamic craft of teppanyaki, or food cooked on a large hotplate, the other allows you to watch over your seafood selections slowly grilled over a high-grade charcoal hearth.

The menu at Takumi is extensive, and the even before you taste anything, the sheer variety is already going to leave you impressed. What honestly impressed us however, was the sheer quality of everything on offer! The tempura conger eel was delightfully light, crisp, and the eel flakily fresh! It one was of the best tempuras we’ve have had! The sashimi was excellent value and very fresh.

We’ll leave you to discover what’s best on the teppanyaki and robatayaki menus, but trust us when we say that you can’t go wrong leaving it up to the chefs. They’ll be the ones that know what’s freshest that particular evening or what flavours would work best together. Also think about coming for lunch! Takumi offers excellently valued set lunches with prices ranges as low as $15++, $25++ and $35++, which to us are unbeatable prices! (Aug 2012)

" The food is amazing, the service of high Japanese standards and the setting overlooking the harborfront area is lovely." -I-S Asia-City

To us, the best moment to step into Takumi isn’t when the restaurant’s empty and you get all the service staff to yourself. It’s when there are already guests who have ordered, and there’s plenty already going on behind the teppanyaki and robatayaki counters, because that’s when there’re all these absolutely enchanting smells wafting through the restaurant. If you weren’t “that hungry” when you arrived, after a few minutes of being exposed to those delectable scents, you will be!

We also love seating at either of the counters! Though we’re big fans of the ala carte menu, there’s just something intangibly authentic about Takumi’s speciality counters! While there are other restaurants with teppanyaki counters in Singapore, few offer as authentic a robatayaki counter. Sit back, watch your seafood colour and crisp right next to the charcoal, and feel your mouth salivate in anticipation as you wait for that tasty morsel to go from skewer to plate right in front of you!

Don’t miss out on the house speciality of grilled black throat sea perch; we absolutely loved it. The fish had a robust meaty flavour with just a hint of the grill’s smokiness, the flesh firm and perfectly cooked. The skin was just barely crisp, not overly charred and it was served with a wedge of lemon that really brought out the flavour of the fish.

The Marina at Keppel Bay may be a little out of the way, but really we find it sets the scene for a holistic dining experience at Takumi. The slow drive across the iconic bridge, the curved towers in the distance, and the bobbing of the yachts in the harbour, they all fall into place, visible as you sit before a charcoal hearth, the smoky sweetness of grilled seafood whetting your appetite. Savour the moment. We certainly did.(Aug 2012)

"Known for being the first robatayaki restaurant in Singapore to use Binchō-tan charcoal and for serving up top-grade teppanyaki for almost three years, Takumi has a new (executive) chef in town.

Shigeru Shiraishi has travelled to our shores from Japan via New York, where he spent time rolling up sushi for hot celebs in the Hamptons. He is now the one standing behind a newly installed sushi bar set up with views of yachts floating in the harbour. Tip: ignore the boats, and focus on the chef as he crafts his magic.

He keeps things perfectly traditional, paying strict attention to detail – things like allocating wasabi depending on the fish, and moulding each ball of rice with a tiny fold on the bottom, are priorities. And fear not, the original offerings are still on the menu." -Time Out Singapore