Tucked within one of the black and white houses along Scotts Road and hidden behind an unsuspecting wooden door, you’ll find a cosy restaurant that looks like it could well be someone’s living room. The 31-seater space is bathed in a warm, inviting glow, while textured walls and dark wooden furnishing complete the look.
This is Iru Den, and we’re here for a taste of Taiwanese fine dining – something that’s rare to come by in Singapore. Taiwanese cuisine is quite the niche in our food scene, let alone a tasting menu that spotlights and elevates ingredients and flavours from the region. But this was not always the case at Iru Den. Even up to early this year, chef-owner Javier Low was still plating up a predominantly Japanese-focused menu, thanks to his background in Kyoto-Italian cuisine.
But after some time, and wedding bells – Chef Javier is married to his Taiwanese wife Emily – the spirited 32-year-old decided to shift his focus from a strong Japanese culinary approach, to fully embrace Taiwanese flavours and ingredients. He explains that produce from Taiwan, especially seafood like maguro, ama ebi and the like, are often priced more competitively, and can taste as good or even better than Japan’s.
Our experience
We sit down for the restaurant’s 10-course seasonal Autumn menu ($258). There are also six and seven-course options priced at $128 and $188 respectively. A wine pairing option is also available (from $60 for three glasses). Emily heads the beverage programme with sound picks of classic Old World wines, bottles from up-and-coming wine regions, experimental sake, and even vintages that date back to the 1980s.
Chef Javier and his team of young chefs buzz around the restaurant’s open kitchen while diners along the counter seats are privy to all the action. We start with a trio of snacks featuring Taiwanese ama ebi, Hokkaido snow crab, and five-spice duck, before we’re introduced to the star ingredient of the evening – 10-year fermented cai pu, or preserved radish. Chef Javier passes around a jar of the holy grail, a gift from his Taiwanese mother-in-law. The cai pu is spun into a nourishing tonic with a sharp and slightly spicy profile from the fermentation. Its complexity is also brought when it’s mixed into a rich butter, to be served alongside fresh ciabatta. We hear there’s not much of it left, so the team plans to substitute it with five-year and eight-year-aged cai pu once it runs out.
It’s a predominantly seafood-forward menu, so we’re not surprised to see seasonal kampachi sashimi and amadai on the roster. The salted plum and kampachi course features a sauce that errs on the acidic side, while the amadai (tilefish) is more well-balanced thanks to the bonito broth that it comes with – though a larger dollop of green chilli paste would be appreciated.
Our favourites of the evening, however, are sandwiched between these two fish courses. First up, a piece of tender carabinero prawn from Yilan County in Taiwan, served with crunchy vegetables, XO sauce, and deep fried prawn head that retains all its flavour. Next, Iru Den’s crowning glory – uni somen. This dish has garnered quite a cult following, and we totally get why. Silky strands of wheat noodles are coated in a creamy sauce of uni, fermented wasabi, sake, and mirin. Prickly ash and diced tako (raw octopus) are tossed in for an added dimension of taste and texture. It’s creamy, slightly pungent, and divine when paired with the extra row of uni layered on top.
Following that, we are served thick slices of wagyu, which come with a medley of condiments – pumpkin purée, vegetables, garlic chips, and a unique braised mountain root with a nice crunch. With so many possible pairings, every mouthful tastes different. Yet the richness of the wagyu gets cloying after a while, and it’s ultimately this course that tips us over. But there’s still the claypot rice to go. Sanma (Pacific saury) is the main ingredient in the donabe, and the rice is mixed in with generous toppings of lard for a savoury yet incredibly moreish combination. The leftover rice is then taken back to the kitchen and rolled into rice balls for guests to take home – a thoughtful touch.
At this point, we are properly stuffed, but how can we resist dessert, especially when it’s muah chee? We are presented with a chunk of sticky muah chee with a scoop of homemade black sesame ice cream underneath. Black sesame ice cream, if not done right, can have a sandy and gritty mouthfeel with an overly sweet taste, but Chef Javier’s version is perfectly balanced and smooth, pairing well with the glutinous rice. A freshly baked financier ends the glorious meal.
And with that, the cat is officially out of the bag. As spaces are limited at Iru Den, reservations are highly encouraged. You can book a table here or find out more here.
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