Matsuya's first Singapore outlet serves up hearty beef bowls, cheesy curry rice, grilled eel and more

The 60-year-old Japanese chain opened on Saturday (Oct 31). 8days tried its gyudon and curry rice to see how they stack up against the competition.

Matsuya's first Singapore outlet is located at Suntec City Mall. (Photos: 8days and Instagram/matsuyafoods.sg)

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Popular Japanese beef bowl chain Matsuya just opened its first Singapore outlet at Suntec City on Saturday (Oct 31). Founded in Tokyo in 1966, the chain operates more than 1,000 outlets in Japan. It’s best known for its Gyumeshi (beef rice bowls), alongside Japanese curry and unagi dishes.

Located in the basement of Suntec City, the outlet uses a fully self-service kiosk system through which customers place their orders, collect a queue number and wait for their food after taking a seat.

SINGAPORE OUTLET NOT OPEN 24 HOURS LIKE IN JAPAN

While Matsuya's outlets in Japan operate 24 hours daily, its Singapore restaurant will only open from 9am to 10pm daily. Managing director Jun Hamano said: “If we end up expanding into the heartlands or areas where it's possible to have customers 24 hours, we'll definitely do it!”

HOW MATSUYA DIFFERS FROM SUKIYA AND YOSHINOYA

“With Matsuya being the third [Japanese beef rice bowl] brand to come in, we realised we had to differentiate ourselves from Sukiya and Yoshinoya,” Hamano said.

While the Singapore menu is largely the same as Japan's, there are a few additional items here, including Gyumeshi with Mentai Mayo (from S$8.50), which Hamano said was popular in Hong Kong.

Unlike Sukiya and Yoshinoya, which focus more heavily on beef bowls and their various toppings, Matsuya also offers a wider selection of other grilled meat bowls, including grilled pork, chicken and boneless short rib. Price-wise, Matsuya is fairly comparable to its competitors. Here's a look:

SIGNATURE GYUMESHI BOWL

Signature gyumeishi bowl. (Photo: 8days)

8days tried several dishes during a preview tasting. The Signature Gyumeshi Bowl (from S$5.50) comes with simmered sliced beef and onions over rice. “We import beef from America, specifically the short plate cut. The meat is sliced to 1.1mm, and it's important to manage its temperature and thickness,” explained Hamano.

The taster described the beef as “thin and delicately sliced, with a pleasant sweet and savoury flavour”. “The meat is marinated in soy but the taste wasn’t overpowering and went well with the onions.”

The verdict? “I would’ve liked the beef to be a little juicier but the ratio of fat to lean meat was pretty solid. Meanwhile, the accompanying rice was fluffy with a slight chewy bite," said the 8days taster.

Grilled eel bowl. (Photo: 8days)

The Grilled Eel Bowl (from S$12.50) was the taster's favourite among the dishes tried. “The smoky eel was soft and succulent, with a melt-in-your-mouth texture. The Gaban sansho pepper on it lent the dish a vibrant, citrusy aroma.”

CURRY AND RICE WITH CHEESE

Curry and rice with cheese. (Photo: 8days)

"An indulgent, heavy curry, with complex flavours and a bittersweet smoky aroma. The cheese coats the rice generously, adding another layer of umami," the 8days taster declared.

“It can get quite jelak (cloying) after a couple of bites, but there's pickled radish on the side to help balance out [the richness].”

So how do Matsuya’s offerings stack up against Yoshinoya and Sukiya’s?

“The quality of the beef here tasted similar to me among all three brands," said the taster. "The biggest difference was Matsuya’s fluffy, slightly chewy rice. Sukiya's rice can get a little soggy!” But if forced to choose only one of the three eateries? Sukiya for its wider range of rice bowl options.

Matsuya is at #B1-149/149A, Suntec City Mall, 3 Temasek Boulevard, Singapore 038983. Open daily 9am-10pm. More info via Instagram .

This story was originally published in 8days.

For more 8days stories, visit https://www.8days.sg/ .

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这家拥有60年历史的日本连锁餐厅于周六（10月31日）开业。《8days》杂志品尝了其牛肉盖饭和咖喱饭，看看它们与竞争对手相比如何。

Matsuya在新加坡的首家分店位于新达城购物中心。（图片来源：8days和Instagram/matsuyafoods.sg）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

人气日式牛肉饭连锁店松屋（Matsuya）于周六（10月31日）在新加坡新达城开设了其在新加坡的首家分店。该连锁店于1966年在东京创立，在日本拥有超过1000家分店。松屋以牛肉饭（Gyumeshi）而闻名，此外还提供日式咖喱和鳗鱼料理。

该店位于新达城地下一层，采用全自助点餐亭系统，顾客可以通过该系统下单、领取排队号码，然后入座等待取餐。

新加坡门店不像日本门店那样24小时营业。

虽然松屋在日本的门店每天24小时营业，但其新加坡餐厅每天只在早上9点至晚上10点营业。总经理滨野淳表示：“如果我们最终决定将业务拓展到居民区或能够24小时接待顾客的地区，我们一定会这样做！”

松屋与数寄屋和吉野屋有何不同？

“松屋是第三个进入市场的[日式牛肉饭]品牌，我们意识到我们必须与数寄屋和吉野家区分开来，”滨野说道。

虽然新加坡的菜单与日本的菜单大体相同，但这里也有一些额外的菜品，包括明太子蛋黄酱拌饭（8.50 新元起），滨野表示这道菜在香港很受欢迎。

与主打牛肉盖饭及其各种配料的Sukiya和Yoshinoya不同，Matsuya还提供更多种类的烤肉盖饭，包括烤猪肉、鸡肉和无骨牛小排。价格方面，Matsuya与竞争对手相当。以下是相关信息：

招牌饭碗

招牌牛尾饭。（图片来源：8days）

8days 在一次试吃活动中品尝了几道菜。招牌牛肉饭（5.50 新元起）是将慢炖的牛肉片和洋葱盖在米饭上。“我们从美国进口牛肉，特别是牛小排。牛肉切成 1.1 毫米厚的薄片，控制温度和厚度非常重要，”滨野解释道。

品尝者形容牛肉“切得很薄，口感细腻，味道鲜甜可口”。“肉用酱油腌制过，但味道并不浓烈，和洋葱搭配得很好。”

最终评价是？“我希望牛肉能再多汁一些，但肥瘦比例相当不错。同时，配菜的米饭蓬松柔软，略带嚼劲，”《8days》的试吃员说道。

烤鳗鱼饭。（图片来源：8days）

烤鳗鱼饭（12.50 新元起）是品尝者最喜欢的菜肴。“烟熏鳗鱼肉质软嫩多汁，入口即化。上面撒的加邦山椒为这道菜增添了浓郁的柑橘香气。”

咖喱芝士饭

咖喱芝士饭。（图片来源：8days）

“这道咖喱浓郁醇厚，味道层次丰富，带有苦甜交织的烟熏香气。奶酪厚厚地裹在米饭上，增添了另一层鲜味，”《8days》的品尝者评价道。

“吃了几口之后可能会觉得有点腻，不过旁边有腌萝卜可以平衡一下（这种腻味）。”

那么，松屋的菜品与吉野家和数寄屋的相比如何呢？

“这三家店的牛肉品质在我看来都差不多，”品尝者说道。“最大的区别在于松屋的米饭蓬松有嚼劲，而寿屋的米饭则有点软烂！”但如果非要三选一呢？我会选寿屋，因为它的盖饭种类更多。

Matsuya位于新加坡淡马锡大道3号新达城购物中心B1-149/149A，邮编038983。营业时间为每日上午9点至晚上10点。更多信息请关注Instagram。

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