Unatoto is a Japanese eel (unagi) rice restaurant in Singapore, built around the motto "Affordable, Fast and Tasty." Unagi has traditionally carried an expensive image, and Unatoto's aim is to make this well-loved Japanese dish accessible to everyone at a reasonable price, without cutting corners on how it's prepared.
The eel is grilled over charcoal, giving it a crispy coating and tender meat that fills the restaurant with aroma. Unatoto uses Binchotan charcoal specifically, which the restaurant says enhances the eel's fluffiness and fragrance, alongside a house sauce made from carefully selected brewed soy sauce balanced with sugar and rice vinegar for depth and a tight, powerful flavour. The rice served with the eel is specifically selected from rice farmers across the country to best complement the eel bowl.
Unatoto has two outlets in Singapore: one at Guoco Tower and one at Novena Square. The restaurant has been featured by local food and lifestyle publications including Eatbook, Sethlui, The Ranting Panda, HungryGoWhere, Stomp, Mothership and Daniel Food Diary.
Unagi has long carried an image of being an expensive treat, reserved for special occasions rather than a casual meal out. Unatoto set out to change that, building its Singapore restaurants around a simple motto: "Affordable, Fast and Tasty." The goal is straightforward — make well-prepared Japanese eel rice accessible to everyone, not just the occasion diner.
At Unatoto, the eel is grilled over charcoal, resulting in a crispy coating and tender meat that fills the restaurant with aroma the moment it comes off the grill. The restaurant specifically uses Binchotan charcoal, a traditional Japanese charcoal known for burning cleanly and evenly, which Unatoto says enhances the fluffiness and fragrance of the finished eel.
The sauce is just as considered. Unatoto uses a carefully selected brewed soy sauce as its base, balancing it with sugar and other components before adding rice vinegar to tighten the flavour and create what the restaurant calls a powerful sauce — the kind that ties the whole dish together rather than just sitting on top of it.
Even the rice gets specific attention: Unatoto sources rice chosen from farmers across the country, selected specifically for how well it complements the eel bowl. The result, according to the restaurant, is a wonderfully balanced rice that tastes even better once blended with the house sauce.
Beyond taste, Unatoto also points to the nutritional case for eel. It's a food with strong nutritional value, packed with proteins, vitamins and minerals, and compared to other seafood, eel carries far higher levels of DHA and EPA. The restaurant also notes that eel is associated with lowering blood pressure and cholesterol, reducing the risk of arthritis, helping prevent cardiovascular disease, and supporting healthy vision — reasons beyond simple indulgence to make it a regular part of a meal rotation.
Unatoto operates two outlets in Singapore. The Guoco Tower location, at 7 Wallich St, #B1-03, is open Monday to Friday from 11am to 10pm and Saturday to Sunday from 11am to 9pm. The Novena Square outlet, inside Velocity@Novena Square at 238 Thomson Rd, #01-84, keeps slightly different hours — Monday to Saturday from 11am to 10pm, but a shorter Sunday window from 9am to 3pm, worth noting if a Sunday visit is planned. Reservations for either location can be made online through Unatoto's booking system.
Unatoto's approach to affordable unagi has earned coverage from a number of Singapore's well-known food and lifestyle outlets, including Eatbook, Sethlui, The Ranting Panda, HungryGoWhere, Stomp (Straits Times), Mothership and Daniel Food Diary — a reflection of how the affordable positioning has resonated in a city where unagi is often seen as a splurge.
Whether it's the classic Unadon rice bowl or the premium Unajyu Tokujo served in a lacquered box, Unatoto's menu is built around the same core promise: proper charcoal-grilled unagi, without the premium price tag typically attached to it. For questions or larger group enquiries, the restaurant can be reached by email at [email protected], or by phone at either outlet directly.