Ask a good sushi chef what is best right now and you learn more about an omakase than any price list can tell you. The answer changes every few weeks, because the fish does. In August, Japan’s summer waters are at their fullest, and the counters in Singapore that buy to the season — rather than to a standing order — show it. Here is what is at its peak this month, and how we read it at MIYU on Dempsey Road.
The August table, read from Toyosu
Our ingredients are air-flown from Tokyo’s Toyosu Market through the week, so the menu follows shun — the short window in which an ingredient is genuinely at its best. If you want to understand how that journey works, we have written about it in full. These are the arrivals we watch for in late summer.
Shinko. The young gizzard shad is the most talked-about item of the Edomae summer — small, silver, and demanding. A single piece of nigiri can take several fish, each scaled, cured and cut by hand. It arrives in July and its price falls through August as the fish grows into kohada. To serve it well is a quiet test of a counter’s patience.
Summer uni. Hokkaido’s sea urchin is at its richest in the warm months. We look for a clean, sweet finish rather than sheer volume — uni that tastes of the sea it came from and does not linger heavily.
Anago. Summer conger eel is tender and light, simmered until it gives way at the touch of a chopstick. Where unagi is bold, anago is restrained — a study in gentleness that closes a course beautifully.
Shima-aji and aji. Striped jack and horse mackerel are both at their summer peak — firm, clean and faintly oily, the kind of silver-skinned fish that Edomae technique was built to flatter. A brief cure, a whisper of ginger and spring onion, and little else.
Why the season tells you more than the star
Singapore has a growing number of accomplished omakase counters, several of them Michelin-starred and priced accordingly. A star is a real signal, but it is silent on the one thing a diner actually tastes: whether the fish in front of them is at its moment. We set out how we think about that in our guide to choosing the best omakase in Singapore. The short version: sourcing rhythm, the treatment of the rice, and a chef who is present matter more than any badge or address.
This is also where Edomae technique earns its keep. Curing, ageing and marinating are not flourishes; they are how a summer fish is coaxed to its best on the day it is served. Freshness is the beginning of the work, not the end of it.
Tasting the season at MIYU
MIYU is a small counter in the calm of the Dempsey Hill enclave, ten minutes from Orchard and a world away from it. Executive Chef Owner Ng Kam Kwan composes each menu around what arrived that week, so no two August sittings are quite the same. Lunch begins at $128 and dinner at $228 — the sincerest prices we can offer for fish and craft of this kind.
If August is your first omakase, our lunch menu from $128 is the honest way in: the same delivery, the same chef, a shorter progression. When you are ready, reserve a seat and let the season decide the rest.
Frequently asked questions
What Japanese seafood is in season for omakase in August?
Late summer brings shinko (young gizzard shad), rich Hokkaido uni, tender summer anago, and silver-skinned fish such as shima-aji and aji at their peak. At MIYU these arrive weekly from Toyosu Market, so the menu shifts with the month.
How much does seasonal omakase cost at MIYU?
Lunch omakase begins at $128 and dinner at $228 per guest, before service charge and GST. Menus change with the season and market availability.
Where is MIYU, and how do I book?
MIYU is at 13A Dempsey Road, Singapore 247694, in the Dempsey Hill dining enclave near Orchard. Call or WhatsApp +65 8028 3168, or reserve online at miyu.sg/reserve.