9 Best Sake Bars in Singapore (2026)
A guide to nine of the best sake bars in Singapore, from standing nihonshu specialists to izakaya with serious sake lists, flights and by-the-glass pours.
- Edited by
- Amir Wahab
- Published
- Reading time
- 5 min read
AI image by LocalRankSingapore's sake scene runs deeper than its sushi counters, and this guide gathers nine venues built around Japanese sake, or nihonshu. Some are dedicated sake bars and standing tachinomi spots; others are izakaya whose kitchens happen to sit behind a serious sake list, and we have flagged which is which. Each was checked against a current source. Treat it as a shortlist to explore rather than a strict ranking, and confirm opening hours and reservations before you go.
1. Orihara Shoten
Orihara Shoten is a wholly Japanese-owned jizake specialist that has been pouring sake in Singapore since 2009, and it styles itself as a stand-up, tachinomi-style bar. Wall-mounted fridges hold an extensive range of boutique sake from breweries across Japan, alongside shochu and umeshu, and the bar rotates a featured brewery through the year. Tasting flights let you compare several pours in a sitting, and a menu of otsumami snacks is built to sit beside the drinking rather than dominate it.
Mohamed Sultan Road
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2. Shukuu Izakaya & Sake Bar
Shukuu was opened by a group of friends with a shared love of Japan, and it pairs an izakaya kitchen with a genuinely serious sake programme run by certified sake sommeliers. The list rotates through seasonal, small-brewery and unpasteurised labels that rarely travel outside Japan, and staff will steer you through flights or single pours. Charcoal-grilled skewers, sashimi and sharing plates are built to match, which makes it an easy place to taste widely across a night rather than commit to one bottle.
Telok Ayer
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3. Shunjuu Izakaya
Shunjuu has grilled over charcoal on the Robertson Quay riverfront since 2003, and while its sumiyaki skewers draw the crowds, the sake list is the reason it lands on this page. The restaurant says it carries one of the widest ranges of sake in Singapore, and pours all of it by the glass, so you can taste your way across styles instead of settling on a single bottle for the table. Riverside alfresco seating makes it a comfortable spot for a long, unhurried session.
Robertson Quay
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4. Omu Nomu
Omu Nomu is an intimate craft sake and raw bar near Beach Road, seating only a small counter of guests at a time. It leans hard into nihonshu, and says it was the first place in Singapore to serve doburoku, the cloudy, unfiltered style that still carries rice grains. A free-flow 'sake viking' format lets curious drinkers sample broadly, while the kitchen sends out sashimi and modern Japanese plates to match. Its small size makes booking ahead sensible, especially later in the week.
5. Tanoke
Tanoke sits above a shophouse on Purvis Street and describes itself as a modern Japanese restaurant and sake bar. The draw is the pairing: curated sake matches and guided sake experiences set against binchotan-grilled wagyu and seasonal small plates. It is a more composed, sit-down proposition than a standing bar, better suited to a planned dinner than a quick pour, and the team builds tasting menus and à la carte options around the sake rather than treating it as an afterthought.
Purvis Street
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6. Sakemaru Artisan Sake Hideout
Sakemaru began as an artisan sake subscription boutique before opening this physical hideout on the fringe of Boat Quay. The counter says it pours more than 300 labels, weighted towards small and lesser-known breweries, curated by a head sommelier who can talk you through the range. Modern kappo-style cooking, including a multi-course omakase, is designed to sit alongside the sake rather than compete with it. Choose counter seats if you want the running commentary, or a table for a quieter tasting.
Boat Quay
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7. Sake Labo
Sake Labo is a chic basement sake bar off Stanley Street that pairs Japanese 'japas' small plates with a tightly chosen sake list. It says it works only with small-batch craft sake imported directly from breweries, and keeps its bottles at sub-zero temperatures to protect each one's aroma and flavour. The underground room is built for lingering over a flight or a few glasses rather than a big group dinner, and staff are happy to guide first-timers towards a style they will enjoy.
Telok Ayer
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8. Ippin Café Bar
Ippin is a homely Japanese café-bar on Mohamed Sultan Road, opened in 2014 by a founder who is a trained sake sommelier. It is more comfort-food kitchen than dedicated sake den, but the sake programme is real: a broad range that runs from traditional junmai to fruity and even yogurt sakes, plus tasting sets for people who want to compare a few. There is also a small concept-store corner of Japanese pantry goods, which makes it an easy, unfussy introduction to sake.
Mohamed Sultan Road
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9. Kamoshita
Kamoshita is a snug oden izakaya on Neil Road that has built a quiet following among Singapore's sake drinkers. The kitchen leans on fermentation, cooking with koji and miso, and the simmered oden and small izakaya plates are made to be eaten slowly over sake. It is an izakaya rather than a pure sake bar, so expect a warm, low-key room and a food-first rhythm, with the sake as the steady companion to a long evening rather than the sole headline act.
Neil Road
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How to choose
- Decide whether you want a dedicated sake specialist or an izakaya with a strong sake list: standing tachinomi-style bars and craft-sake counters put nihonshu front and centre, while izakaya pair a serious list with a full kitchen of skewers, oden or sashimi.
- Look for sake sold by the glass and for tasting flights if you are still learning what you like; they let you compare junmai, ginjo, daiginjo and unpasteurised nama styles without committing to a full bottle.
- Ask the staff or the resident sake sommelier for guidance; several of these venues are run by certified sommeliers who can match a pour to your taste and to what you are eating.
- Match the setting to the occasion: a standing bar suits a quick, exploratory session, while a sit-down restaurant-and-sake-bar is better for a planned dinner with pairings.
- Because sake is served at a range of temperatures and several of these rooms are small, check opening hours and book ahead, and say if you would like a specific serving style, whether chilled, room-temperature or gently warmed.
. No changes recorded since.
Founder and Editor
Amir Wahab is the founder and editor of LocalRank, an independent Singapore rankings and local guides publication.
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