Ki-sho

For anyone who has done the sushi circuit, kappo is the next step, and it starts at this front door.

Ki-sho is where to go once you have done Singapore's sushi counters and want more range. Kappo is the Japanese counter format where the chef cooks across techniques in front of you – some simmering, some grilling, some raw fish, depending on the season – and this black-and-white bungalow on Scotts Road is one of the few places here doing it seriously. The compromise is the drinks: a short list and no pairing. If you are curious but cautious, book lunch; it is the cheapest way in.

Chef Taro Takayama took over in September 2025, bringing a background in Kansai, where kappo began, a stint as chef to the Japanese Ambassador to Singapore and time in Michelin-starred kitchens in Osaka. He previously ran his own restaurant, Takayama, which has since closed. The kitchen has pedigree in both directions: Kazuhiro Hamamoto, now of the Michelin-starred Hamamoto, was once head chef here.

The building does half the work before you sit down. It is a historic black-and-white bungalow once home to colonial-era civil servants, revamped inside into a sleek, dark room, with an L-shaped hinoki counter for 11 and private rooms upstairs. Eleven seats puts everyone within talking distance of the chef, which is the whole point of kappo; take the counter over a private room unless you need the privacy.

The meal shows the range: a peanut-shaped monaka filled with foie gras, a chawanmushi topped with king crab, a "Zen Garden" platter that has included monkfish liver and uni, and aged sashimi such as bluefin tuna belly with cured egg yolk. The main is a choice of charcoal-grilled amadai or Tottori wagyu, followed by donabe rice with ikura, a dish Takayama was known for at his old place. If you are choosing, the amadai is the more kappo answer; the wagyu is the one you can find elsewhere.

The drinks are kept simple: exclusive sakes, including Eiheiji Hakuryu from Yoshida Brewery, and wines by the glass from the cellar it shares with sister restaurant Buono Terra in the same building. Pairing people will find it thin; everyone else can let the chef suggest a sake.

How to do it well: there is one seating per meal, so arrive on time. Lunch runs Monday to Friday only and closes on public holidays, Saturday is dinner only, and Sunday is closed. The menus and prices are in the facts box. Go with someone who likes to ask the chef what he is doing and why; kappo rewards questions.

Good to know Book directly; there is one seating per meal. Lunch Mon–Fri only (not on public holidays), dinner Mon–Sat, closed Sunday. Scotts Road is a short walk from Orchard and Newton MRT.

Ki-sho | 29 Scotts Road, Singapore 228224 | Nearest MRT: Orchard, Newton