Brian Kennett
Amateur Chef and Foodie Extraordinaire
Katsuya @ Tanjong Katong - Wagyu Katsu
Kodawari Wagyu Katsu 2022 Review
Back we go again, and so begins Kodawari Katsuya @ Tanjong Katong | Wagyu Katsu 2022 Review. I just cannot resist breaded and deep-fried Japanese A5 Wagyu. In fact, I challenge anyone on the planet not to want to try this…
Of course, vegetarians and vegans, and pescatarians only are excluded from any normal food conversation about eating real stuff, including this one.
So, back we come for more pork and Wagyu. It’s so addictive and this place is the dealer of the drug. It is just incredible good food.
Plain and simple Edamame. A must with any Japanese meal.
@ $4
Minimalist it is. Bare walls and floors and pretty sparse everything. You can see Chef beavering away in there, but that’s about it. The food is the WOW not the interior decor.
A little bit of Tuna Belly Sashimi for the lovely Wife. This was incredibly fresh and intensely tender.
@ $15
Super-savoury Miso Soup and Rice come as part of each Katsu Set.
The classic Pork Rosu Tonkatsu. Rosu means ‘fatty’ as you can see from that cut piece there is the fat cap at the bottom. I find this the more flavourful cut.
@ $25
The Holy Grail of Katsu. This doesn’t get much better than this folks. The Wagyu Katsu Set. It looks incredible, doesn’t it? That meat melts like butter in your mouth, and then you get that crunch from the breadcrumbs. It is such a wonderful umami experience.
Just a very special plate of food.
@ $65 (worth every cent)
Back to our first review of Kodawari Katsuya @ Katong | Wagyu Katsu
Wow, this was one punchy $$$ lunch. But the food was just superb and we ordered it so no complaints from us as it clearly states the $$$ cost per item on the menu.
We were ordering some of the very best JAPANESE wagyu beef on the planet today. Let’s just say it was reassuringly expensive haha.
The last time we came here we went very traditional ordering Pork Tonkatsu, but today Jude Jude and I set the scene for the girls as we decided we were going hard on Wagyu Katsu & Wagyu Sirloin.
Yes, these guys do a slab of beautiful buttery Wagyu beef coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried. Yes, Deep-Fried, it is true as you will see.
This is how they roll at Kadawari Katsuya @ Katong & Wagyu Katsualso known as Kodawari Katsuya which translates as Commitment Katsuya!
Just having those words Deep Fried Wagyu Beef together makes my blood rush to my head – Wagyu & deep-fried…
It started as a boy’s morning for haircuts and beard trims. Just a haircut for me, but a haircut and beard trim for Jude Jude. Where for lunch? We’re in Katong. He decides Japanese and we try a place over Roxy Plaza but 99% of the lunch menu is fish so scratch that. But then I remembered this place and happy days commenced…
Wifey and Amy were running late, as always, so Jude Jude, and I ordered some Edamame and this delicious Mushroom Katsu. These were just brilliant, especially when consumed with a wee dab of that homemade tartare sauce. Oh my goodness yeah!!!
They pride themselves here on using a certain type of oil and having zero oiliness to the Katsu. And 1000% that is what you get, just super intense crunch to the breadcrumb and flavour explosion. No greasy shit running down your beard. It is truly quality.
Let's hear from Kodawari Katsuya @ Katong
"We are specializing in Tonkatsu (breaded deep fry pork). Also bringing lots of different varieties to your palate. Since 2011 we been consistently selling Lamb Katsu as our signature dish. Recent years we introduced Wagyu katsu too from different prefecture. Hope to see you around soon."
I want to call out another thing I read in the restaurant too. There was a sign which I loved. It went along the lines of;
“Dear patron, due to Covid-19 we are not operating at full staffing levels so service might be slower than normal. WE WILL NOT RUSH YOUR FOOD PREPARATION AND COOKING THOUGH.”
Kodawari Katsuya @ Katong had another little surprise that makes the restaurant, even more, wow, the following; The Chef/Owner is Singaporean. Local Chef Kervin Tay graduated & attained a Japanese Chef License in 2009 issued by the Japanese Governor.
We had three of these. THREE haha. Wagyu Katsu. Just how beautiful does that look? Holy cow, literally. Perfect medium-rare. The meat was as soft as butter, it really was.
An intense beefy whack of flavour, but then that double-intense CRUNCH from the breadcrumb. What a combo, what a dish. A stunner. And never-ending thousand-cut cabbage to accompany, miso soup, rice, pickles, and even watermelon to finish.
Truly a stunning lunch dish. This is on the die-die must-try list folks… I had this dish once before in a Japanese restaurant in Malaysia and was giddy from that experience, now I find it one suburb down from where we live.
Be proud of this one Chef.
And to augment that, as if it needed augmenting we get stuck into this cracker too. 200g of the very best beef in my humble reckoning.
Hokkaido Snow Beef is off-the-charts and this is that. It also comes with salt from Hokkaido, as is the quality of the Chef and crew here. How dare he serve this with normal salt haha.
@ $105-125 per 100g
Did you know in Japan you can go to salt shops and they will have a quasi sommelier there advising on the different types and which goes with salads, stews, meats, fish etc… Yes, they love their salt.
And this salt was one hell of a bed-fellow for this stunner of a steak. Talk about Katsuya accentuating the flavour.
WOW!!! Jude and I didn’t speak for about 30 minutes as we munched on this (OK yes we did share some with the girls too, how could we not?) Again perfect medium-rare. Melt-in-your-mouth. Words escape me. A perfect Wagyu steak!!!
And then to finish another quirky and amazing little dessert. Wasabi ice-cream. Yep, horseradish ice cream. Who’d have thought it? Seriously good finish to an amazing Katsuya lunch.
Kadawari Katsuya @ Katong 2022 Menu
Our conclusions of Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant
There you go, folks, our truly wonderful experience for lunch today at Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant. Some of the best wagyu beef to ever cross these lips of mine was consumed today.
This is absolutely one to try, just save some money up 1st if you are going hard as we did. Every single part of the lunch at Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant was quality and fresh and prepped and cooked to absolute perfection.
We’ll be back for more Katsuya that is for certain Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant. Be proud of what you have going there, my friends. Just brilliant. You have to go and try the Wagyu Katsu – it’s a foodie OMG moment. Angels were indeed singing!
ENJOY!!!
Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant Menu (2022)
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What are the opening times of Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant?
| Saturday | 12–2:30pm, 6–9:30pm |
| Sunday | 12–2:30pm, 6–9:30pm |
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | Closed |
| Wednesday | 6–9:30pm |
| Thursday | 6–9:30pm |
| Friday | 6–9:30pm |
How to book and make a Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant reservation?
What's the address of Kodawari Katsuya Japanese Restaurant?
Address: 258 Tanjing Katong Road, Singapore 437046
