Japan’s Yakiniku Gyubei opens first Singapore outlet, known for its head-to-tail philosophy

When asking about someone’s favourite yakiniku beef cuts, the answer will probably be short ribs, skirt or sometimes, even tongue.

Sure, certain cuts may be really popular with a vast majority of yakiniku lovers, but what if you wanted to try some more unique parts of the cow — say, the inner thigh?

If so, you need to head down to Yakiniku Gyubei’s at Tanjong Pagar’s 100AM Mall, which specialises in head-to-tail yakiniku!

Just “specialises” may be an understatement, though.

Yakiniku Gyubei was first founded in 1999 and is touted as a pioneer of head-to-tail yakiniku in Japan, which means that the restaurant uses as many parts as possible to reduce food wastage.

While the brand has 22 outlets in Japan, this will be the Japanese brand’s debut in Singapore.

Head-to-tail yakiniku

Yakiniku Gyubei’s Singapore outlet features carefully sourced beef, including wagyu from a breed of cow from Kyushu, and offers a diverse range of 24 cuts on its menu, so nothing goes to waste as per its head-to-tail philosophy.

These cuts are available a la carte, with more unique cuts such as tomosankaku (S$49), which is meat from the thigh, and ichibo (S$45), also known as the rump cap.

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Of course, there are still all your classics, including short rib (S$24), tenderloin (S$24), chuck eye roll (S$35), and tongue (S$25.90), which has become increasingly popular in recent years.

Nonetheless, guests are probably best suited to ordering their meat in sets — for instance, Yakiniku Gyubei’s lunch sets (from S$13.90), which come with a meat, salad, side dish, soup and rice.

The US beef rib lunch (S$13.90) is the most wallet-friendly, but there are more premium sets, such as the yakiniku three-kinds lunch (S$25.90), which includes tenderloin, skirt and wagyu beef rib, and the signature Gyubei lunch (S$33.90) comprising akami beef, wagyu beef rib and a recommended wagyu beef of the day.

If you enjoy your meat extra decadent, the high marbling of the wagyu ensures that the beef comes off the grill spectacularly juicy and oozing with beefy richness.

Non-beef options, such as Hokkaido pork and chicken thigh — or a combination of both — are also available at S$15.90!

Yakiniku Gyubei’s omakase

If you’re in the mood for something fancier, you can grab a friend to enjoy Yakiniku Gyubei’s omakase. 

There’s an affordable lunch omakase for two (S$100) that features six different kinds of wagyu from one cow, which means you get plenty of variety!

For example, we were served uchimomo (inner thigh), flank, brisket, kamenoko (lower thigh), filet and kata (shoulder).

The fattiness differs depending on the cut, which also gives you different mouthfeel and richness levels. Our personal favourites were the buttery brisket and the lean, but tender, kamenoko!

You can also enjoy omakase for dinner, with options for four kinds of yakiniku at S$48, six-kinds at S$98 and eight-kinds at S$148.

To make things even better, Yakiniku Gyubei has also put forth an alluring opening promotion, which runs from Jan 10 to 26, where you can get S$30 off the six-kinds omakase — bringing it down to a pretty reasonable $68!

Do note that the promotion is applicable for walk-ins only.

Shabu Shabu Sumire-An

While Yakinku Gyubei focuses on yakiniku, it’s also connected to a sister concept that specialises in shabu shabu — Shabu Shabu Sumire-An, which is located just next door.

This restaurant offers an all-you-can-eat concept, where diners get 90 minutes to indulge in a slew of free-flow meats and fresh vegetables.

Prices start from S$35 for an adult diner with the light course, which gives you pork belly or chicken thigh options, and go up to S$88 with the Sumire-An course.

The Sumire-An course lets you take your pick from five different varieties of meat: Wagyu beef, Hokkaido silky pork, US beef chuck roll, pork belly and chicken thigh.

So if you’re not in the mood for yakiniku, you can skip Yakiniku Gyubei and head over to Sumire, for its wagyu beef shabu shabu, as well as its succulent Hokkaido silky pork.

Eating is simple: You just dip the meat into the soup, give it a few swishes and you can choose to eat it as-is, or dip it into the fragrant tsuyu sauce to add a bit more flavour. 

You also get to choose two of your favourite soups, with six options of dashi to dip your meat in: Kelp, spicy miso, tomato, soy milk, chicken broth and Sumire-An, which is a black sesame-based concoction.

So next time you’re in the Tanjong Pagar area and hankering for some meat, consider checking out either Yakiniku Gyubei or Shabu Shabu Sumire-An to treat yourself to a feast!

This was an invited tasting.

For more ideas on what to eat, read our stories on all the vibey cafes to check out at the buzzy new Kanda at Maxwell and the best restaurants to indulge in hearty Chinese food!

Enjoy up to 50% off when you dine with GrabFood Dine Out.

You can also book a ride to Yakiniku Gyubei’s first Singapore outlet or check out Shabu Shabu Sumire-An!