Kyujin - Kuching, Sarawak

Vasanth R.

Went here for our anniversary dinner. One of the rare fine dining spots in Kuching and the epicurean menu was really good! Not quite Michelin level since some dishes were a bit hit or miss. The snapper fish for example was a bit overcooked. But the duck, lamb and their starters were very interesting and well presented. Also, I'm a bit surprised they never asked for dietary restrictions if any when we booked or before we started dining which is a standard practice for fine dining.

Place is located inside a secure area and not a commercial area which makes it nice and quiet for a dinner on special occasions.

The C. T.

Contemporary fine dining in a bungalow setting, with a mission to bring to light little-known local ingredients and cooking techniques inspired by the multicultural peoples of Sarawak. This is aspirational stuff, beautifully plated, in sleekly-designed surroundings, and a real gem.

Flavours such as tart Dayak eggplant, dried fiddlehead fern, foo chow red wine lees and local scallops are used in forward-looking, adventurous ways. Some combinations work better than others, but nothing is safe or boring, and many you won’t have tried before.

We particularly enjoyed the poached local prawns with garlic chive and truffle sauce, the aged seared duck with “kueh chap” sauce, the duo of lamb with “Ang zhao” sauce, and the wild mango sorbet.

The menu consists of a 7 or 11 course degustation. Discreet and friendly service.

Aresy

Very decent fine dinning dedicated to local ingredients with twist in flavors.
To begin with four different bites, I prefer to start from the daikon wrap running anticlockwise instead of having the salmon roe crisp which saltiness already overwhelmed the subtle flavor of the radish and fish.
The oyster is outstanding which reminds me the ginger scallion braised oysters pot in Cantonese style. Very strong taste of fresh oyster sustains in long finish. This is one of my favorite among the others.
My plate of duck meat is tender however two of my companions didn't get a decent cut of the meat which was chewy.
The Australian waygu brisket is so tender and juicy thus some beef flavor which is surprising because Australian beef usually is lack of the flavor comparing to American beef.
Overall is good however still seeing more improvements for flavors coordination and wishing to use more local ingredients such as local seafood instead.
Recommended 👍

Simmonette T.

We shot a wedding here recently, this is a perfect location for a private event. Secluded, spacious, can easily accommodate up to 200 guests. Buffet was served at the wedding and it was delicious, staff were really polite and helpful. We will definitely come back for their omakase soon.

Xavier B.

Wonderful fine dining experience in a chef table set-up. Service is very attentive. The set dinner changes regularly while the cuisine is a fusion of Sarawak typical ingredients and international blockbusters. The dish presentation was excellent.

Gary C.

情人节配套真的很拉 ，价格不是问题 ，问题是你们把自己的定位在Fine Dine ，服务，环境就要符合。一，盘子脏了没有收 二，服务员还没收上一份菜的盘子就上菜，那边傻傻站着还要等我移走上一份菜的盘子 三，橙汁竟然是兑水的 四，Event Hall Extended seat 灯光亮没关系 ，但是桌子就真的是空空假蜡烛都不放 ，四周围也是空空 ，我刚进去以为我在大学展

Oliver W.

Outstanding establishment - I like how the chefs have decided to bring Borneo ingredients to fine dining. The island has so much to offer and the food here is very creative

Who J.

It's our first visit to Kyujin for a very special date night. It was our first outing since we had our precious daughter.

Stumbled on Kyujin's unique take of modernising Sarawakian cuisine. Wonderful concept overall however, they were some flaws and room for improvement. Here's the breakdown of the evening's dinner experience.

Atmosphere:
Beautiful minimalist take on the design. Nice and clean with only the necessities. Love the chairs, likely made of Belian wood judging from the density. Wonderful touch and a nod to Sarawak natural resources. Beautiful crockery.

Service:
Greeted at the door, attentive wait staff. Knowledgeable on the origin of the ingredients served.

Food:
Flavours are familiar where some really worked very well like the Aged duck with Pak lor sauce, tofu century egg ice cream, beef with Terung and the Apong. Very modern and well thought out flavours. Absolutely beautiful.

Areas for improvement:
The amuse bouche served to us was cold, the bread and the churro tasted a day old.
Prawn and Kuchai flavours were nice however, I only wish the prawns would be served freshly cooked and warm. I believed that would have elevated the dish from nice to Wow. However, the cardinal sin was the catch of the day, the snapper was overcooked to the point it was hard and fibrous. It might be worth noting that we were the only diners that evening. Which in a way would allow them to fully concentrate on our meals.

I feel that for a restaurant promoting this caliber it is very disappointing. I have reported this to the chef and all we got was a nod. In our experiences with dining of this calibre or even casual formal dinning, compensation would have been made to acknowledge this.

Value:
Wonderful concept, and I could see where they are going with. It would have been excellent value. Unfortunately, the execution on the dishes fell very short. Unless improvements are made I cannot fully recommend Kyujin. Although I really do want them to succeed and continue to come up with more wonderful modern flavours on classic Sarawakian dishes.