A glimpse of Barrel, the all-new Hibiki-led restaurant concept in Singapore

The Vault and its other elements

But before you dive right into its fare, you might want to grab a drink and explore the space. Owing to its beginnings as a bank, there lies an actual vault, now named The Vault, under the restaurant. 

The Vault’s look is rustic, yet contemporary, and is one of the most beautiful private dining spaces we’ve seen in Singapore. 

If you pick up a light woody scent when you enter, it’s thanks to the cask wood-lined walls, made from barrels that have been used in Suntory’s distilleries in Japan, no less. The Vault sits up to eight diners, and is open for private bookings, with a minimum spend.

Beyond the private room, its main space is just as impressive, with its high ceilinged, warm-toned finishings, which effortlessly combines various elements — clean lines, hexagons, and even weave patterns — as well as its spacious seating. 

There are counter seats that encircle the chef’s wood-fire working space, bar seats at its small, on-premise bar, or tucked-away booth seating if you want some privacy, but still desire the buzz of the dining hall.  

Exploring Barrel’s menu, with touches of Hibiki

Prior to its opening this weekend, we got a glimpse of Barrel’s menu. Its approach to food combines the aspects of wood, flame, and time — key elements that Hibiki whisky is also shaped by. 

With chef Naganuma at the helm, Barrel’s offerings are unapologetically Japanese, but given the chef’s long tenure on our sunny island, local flavours peek through. (He’s been here since 2010, when he was tasked to lead Hide Yamamoto at Marina Bay Sands.) 

Though it is a Hibiki-led concept, Hibiki whisky appears only in a select number of dishes, namely the Barrel chicken rice (S$30), soft-serve “Barrel” (S$12), and the Hibiki drunken prawn tartare (S$16).  

But that’s fine by us, because there’re whisky flights you can order from S$38 to S$988 (for a flight of 30-year Hibiki, 25-year Yamazaki and 25-year Hakushu), as well as signature Hibiki cocktails, all made with Suntory’s recipes. 

Barrel’s menu comprises various sections: Sashimi, charcuterie, chinmi (small stronger-tasting bites), grilled items (this segment is predictably massive, with small and large plates), otsumami (small dishes meant to be had with drinks), carbs, and desserts.

For the food, we recommend getting the Barrel chicken rice, because it’s really quite special. The dish features a poached GG French poulet cooked in chicken fat, drizzled with a Hibiki-infused oyster sauce. 

While the Hibiki isn’t as prominent, it definitely adds depth — so much so that the chicken is drowning in sauce, yet it isn’t too salty, but is instead bursting with flavour. 

Everything tastes local, but elevated, from the pearls of Japanese rice, to the tangy shiro negi sauce, and the fiery garlic chilli sauce – at 30 bucks, it’s a pretty penny, yes, but one I’d be willing to fork out.

The other standout for us was the sashimi moriawase (from S$38 for three types of fish), the chef’s selection of the freshest catch. If chef Naganuma hadn’t kept talking about it, I would have written it off as just slabs of raw fish on a plate. 

Instead, the fish, imported from the Tokyo islands exclusively for Barrel, are embellished lightly with elements to bring out the best of each catch.

For example, the shima aji maki (S$32 for six pieces) sees striped jack wrapped maki-style, with the squid as the “rice”, sandwiched with chives, smoked-preserved daikon (radish), and ohba (shiso leaf).

There’s also the kinmedai & ika (S$32 for two), a nigiri-style sushi with chopped up ika (cuttlefish) masquerading as rice, and a sudachi (Japanese citrus) finish.

My favourite of the lot was the honmaguro akami (S$21 for three slices), which is soy-cured tuna with pickled fresh black pepper, sea grapes, and yolked soy sauce. I don’t usually eat tuna, but whatever chef Naganuma did with it — he definitely did it right. 

Other flavour-packed contenders include the tonsoku harumaki (S$12), a deep-fried braised pig-trotter spring roll that’s the right balance of crispy and fork-tender elements, uni-corn croquette (S$24 for two pieces), with creamed corn, uni, and uni butter sauce, and mochi cheese nuggets (S$15 for five).

Have the last item piping-hot. I first had it after it sat around and found it had become a tad rubbery, but when I had the dish again at the newly opened Pop City bar above Barrel (they share the same kitchen), it tasted so much fluffier and moreish.

The miso curry dip is a McDonald’s dupe that is “same same, but different”. 

Lastly, if you still have space, order the aburi wagyu donabe (S$68), a huge pot of rice, topped with flame-torched A5 wagyu, cured egg yolk, and lots of green onion and seaweed. 

It’s a tasty finisher that’ll fill you right up with warm vibes as you make your way home. 

Its dessert offerings are a bit more forgettable. Take for example the soft-serve “Barrel”, which apparently comes with Hibiki-infused honey — it’s delicious, yes, but you barely pick up on the whisky. (Or maybe I’m desensitised to the taste of alcohol.)

If we were you, we’d save the alcohol consumption for the tasting flights or its cocktails, with prices starting from S$18 for a Hibiki mizuwari, where whisky is cut with soft, still water, and Hibiki highball, to S$32 for a Hibiki と ice cream, or Hibiki and ice cream. 

For the latter, the Hibiki-imbued dessert cocktail comes with white chocolate, orange peel, cocoa, and vanilla ice cream. 

That said, the cocktails are mainly classics with nothing too inventive — but it just means the Hibiki and the food have a whole lot of room to shine.

But hey, if you find yourself craving a bit more booze, or a continued Japanese-inspired cocktail experience, there’s also the all-new Pop City by the Jigger & Pony Group which sits right above, opening the same weekend. 

This was a hosted tasting.

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