The Modern Izakaya is a lively, casual restaurant serving contemporary, beer-friendly Japanese fare mostly grilled over bincho.

Cheekily touted as ‘bak kwa’, the air-dried grilled pufferfish with its smoky-sweet flavour, and crisp fried river shrimp are good starters.

Another good choice is aburi sushi, comprising fish such as toro, tai, hotate and salmon. Lightly torched, it offers a delicious combination of sweet and smoky flavours against the foil of mildly zingy sushi rice. The prawn topped with uni sushi, in particular, is nicely flavourful, and the salmon aburi maki topped with fish-roe and encasing a luscious cream cheese centre is a luxurious creamy treat.

Make room for juicy grilled skewers of chicken heart, beef, pork belly, and exceptional quail eggs which have been soaked in a house-blended sauce before being grilled. The beautiful, velvety yolk is particularly enjoyable.

The restaurant serves house sake in a shot glass within a wooden masu cup as a sign of hospitality for diners. Cost conscious diners will be thrilled to see the sake overflowing generously from the glass into the masu, symbolising the establishment’s appreciation for their patronage.