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Kushikatsu Tanaka HOW TO EAT
KUSHIKATSU:
#01-01B MERCHANT COURT CLARKE QUAY BLK A, 3A RIVER VALLEY The pile of roughly
RD, S179020. TEL: 6258-3789. cut raw cabbage
Open daily except Mon & Tues. Wed, Thurs & Sun 5pm-midnight. Fri on your table is
& Sat 5pm-2am. Last orders 30 mins before closing. www.facebook. not a salad; it’s
com/pg/Kushikatsu-Tanaka-SG-143093659656016
for you to use as a
If you’ve been to Japan, chances are you’d have come ‘spoon’ to scoop out
across a Kushikatsu Tanaka outlet — the decade-old dipping sauce from
biz boasts 171 branches in its motherland and an a communal tin for
outpost in Hawaii. Hailing from Osaka, the casual chain your kushikatsu (so
specialises in kushikatsu, a popular Osaka street no double-dipping,
snack consisting of fried skewered meat and veggies okay?). You’d likely
coated with panko (Japanese bread crumbs). It’s owned want more of the
by two Japanese entrepreneurs, one of whom adapted tangy brown sauce,
her late father’s kushikatsu recipe to great F&B made with vinegar,
success. The local franchised 60-seat shop is brought bonito flakes and
in by Suntory Food & Beverage International (also the veggies like onions
folks behind the Pepper Lunch chain and Japanese and tomatoes.
restaurant Sun with Moon). The head chef here is an
Osaka native, while the kitchen team flew to the city’s THE LOOK: The al fresco seats here are right opposite
Kushikatsu Tanaka flagship for training. Ordering your a noisy club; we say go for the cosy indoor seating
kushikatsu here is very simple: pick your skewers from instead. It provides a better dining experience in an
a neatly categorised menu and the food will be freshly authentic Japanese izakaya setting, with beer posters
deep-fried in a corn oil and beef fat blend before being and vintage-looking photos of other Kushikatsu Tanaka
served to you on a platter. outlets on the wall.

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