Weekday set lunch at Akira Back Singapore, South Beach

Akira Back is a chef who was born in Korea and raised in Aspen, Colorado, USA. Akira Back Singapore is one of the many restaurants originated by him. It is located on the ground floor of the JW Marriott Hotel South Beach. He has a string of restaurants that stretches from Las Vegas, New Delhi, Jakarta, Toronto, Seoul, Dubai to Bangkok. We get tired just by reading through his list of accomplishments. Yet, it appears from the Akira Back website that he is not done expanding his empire. A new concept, ABar, will open in Singapore and Bangkok. Another outlet, Fish Pool by Akira Back, is scheduled to open at South Beach at the end of 2017.

Entrance to the hotel and carpark is from Nicoll Highway. The South Beach dining destination has an attractive spacious feel. Akira Back is next to a wide pedestrian walkway giving the diners a nice vantage point to watch people go by. The decor is contemporary and uncluttered. The long tables are suitable for large groups. The best seats are the sofa style seating along the wall – perfect for couples or small groups.

Akira Back Singapore Menu

The Akira Back Singapore Menu is a simple one. The ala carte takes up just two pages and the set lunch menu contains six items. The first item caught our eye – KFC Korean Fried Chicken ($28). The super crispy Korean chicken is something we cannot refuse. For contrast we selected a fully Japanese dish – the sushi moriawase ($38) to reflect the Korean Japanese cuisine that Akira Back is known for.

Our meal started off with a small salad. It was made up of some mixed vegetables. The thing that made this distinctive was a seaweed flavoured salad dressing, giving it a Japanese touch.

The sushi moriwase was well-presented. The taste was good. Not the best sushi we have tried but certainly above average.

The big surprise was the KFC. It was not the Korean fried chicken we were expecting. This was a plainer but more healthy version. Chunks of a cylindrical shaped chicken fillet had been cooked sous vide and then lightly fried to lend a golden finish at the edges. The chicken done this way was moist and tasty, but sadly not crisp at all. If we do not factor in our disappointment in not getting the traditional crispy Korean chicken, we can say this was a delicious chicken dish. We can’t say the same about the long beans accompanying the chicken. They were coarse and fibrous. Quite unlike the fineness of the other things we ate at Akira Back Singapore that day.

Our meal ended with a dessert that we enjoyed. The small cup of mango pudding had bits of pomelo and a yuzu flavoured foam. A pleasant sweet and sour way to end our lunch at Akira Back Singapore. It is a very pleasant place to dine at South Beach. The portions were rather small. People with big appetites may have to supplement the set lunch with some side orders. For an overview of dining options at South Beach, read our post South Beach Singapore – exciting restaurants, bars and cafes.