Cheap and tasty tempura on Japanese rice — what’s not to like? But our biggest bugbear about most tendon joints (we're looking at you, Ginza Tendon Itsuki) in Singapore is that they are grease traps, and you leave smelling like you spent the last hour rolling on a bed of you char kway. That's why we stroll into month-old Tenjin, the Les Amis Group’s latest casual offering, with unwashed hair. Why bother when we’d have to shampoo again immediately after our meal? But, lo, there’s practically no pong of oil within the light-filled restaurant at Shaw Centre. Because the kitchen — visible through a small glass panel — is thoughtfully tucked within an enclosed space separate from the dining room.

While the majority of tendon joints in Singapore are no-frills, eat and get the hell outta there setups, Tenjin looks like it belongs in a Muji catalogue. The 44-seater is simply but tastefully clad in smooth blonde wood furniture and cement, and decorated with pretty bamboo lamps. It’s 2.30pm on a Saturday, the last call for lunch orders. And it’s still pretty busy, with mostly tai tai types and their families ploughing through bowls piled with deep-fried things. Since all the best tables by the tall windows overlooking Orchard Road are taken up, we drift towards the narrow window-side counter that provides a glimpse into the kitchen, where chefs slog over a deep-fryer. Things must be pretty intense (and smelly) in there. But out here in the dining room, all is calm, lovely and mercifully sweet-smelling as quirky Japanese covers of Cantopop hits and English songs like the Beatles’ ‘Day Dream Believer’ drift across the space. We could almost be in a hip Tokyo eatery in Daikanyama… if we avert our gaze from Pacific Plaza's intense stare across the road.

We’d called up earlier on the way to lunch not knowing if we’d make it in time for last orders. The eloquent guy on the phone helpfully allows us to place our orders first. What, no smug/dismissive sorry, we're closing (even if last orders are like, 20 minutes away)? Colour us impressed. When we arrive, another treat awaits us: a cute, fresh-faced waiter/manager instantly recognises us as the caller and proceeds to seat us. As we silently ponder if the view of Orchard Road or his pretty mug is better, he interrupts our train of thought with our first course, which is the…

Despite the cliché truffle slant, this is one of the yummiest chawan mushis we’ve had. From the first silky spoonful, the depth of the konbu and fish stock that’s house-made and not the packet stuff is evident. The wobbly custard is a perfect canvas for the umami, earthy mushroom juices and dollop of truffle paste. A light, elegant and flavourful starter.

We skip the cheapest all-veggie Yasai bowl ($12.80). If we’re gonna eat a mound of deep-fried stuff and carbs, we’re gonna go to town. The Jo Bowl is the mid-priced option among the lean menu of 3 tendon options. The bowl arrives laden with a battered free-range egg, two medium sized prawns and assorted vegetable tempura. But it’s not piled dramatically high like the behemoths served by its rivals Tendon Kohaku or Ginza Tendon Itsuki. We pick a prawn: it’s reasonably sweet and springy. The standard tare sauce it’s drizzled with is a bit soy-forward and dark, but saved from being too salty by a touch of potato starch syrup. Quite tasty. The batter however, isn’t quite like the sturdier, crustier ones found in tendon joints like Kohaku — it’s a little light and more delicate, which is great if you’re eating tempura that’s not set on a bowl of steaming rice and smothered with sauce, but this gets limp pretty quickly. Speaking of rice, the Hoshi-Jirushi grains from Ibaraki Prefecture are as decent as to be expected, pearlescent and chewy. Among the veggies, we like the sweet, creamy pumpkin best, the juicy shiitake shroom (technically a fungus) second.

This priciest, more attractively stacked number also comes with two prawns, plus a crab leg, a slice each of anago (sea eel) and smelt tempura, and five pieces of veg and an egg. We got this with the spicy sauce, which has a jolt of chilli padi in it (unnecessary, we prefer the more balanced regular tare). We'd order this over the Jo, 'cos we'd rather sin on more deep-fried seafood than vegetables. The anago is thin but reasonably flaky and fresh, so too the smelt. Meanwhile, the crab leg is fun to eat, if a little puny. The eggs in both bowls ooze gratifyingly runny yolks when prodded. We also really like the accompaniments to each tendon: a super refreshing grated raw cabbage salad which you douse with as much nutty, tangy sesame sauce provided at every table as you like. Plus a miso soup that’s mellow and yummy.

3.5/5 stars Tenjin's tempura doesn’t stay crispy for long, and the oil it’s sizzled in should be refreshed more frequently (to be fair, we dropped by at the end of lunch service). However, the food is overall pretty tasty, the Kinfolk-worthy ambience chic and chill, the service good — all that for $20 or less per person, too.

Tenjin is at #03-08 Shaw Centre, 1 Scotts Rd, S228208. Open daily except Mon. 11.30am-3pm (last orders 2.30pm); 6pm-10pm (last orders 9.30pm). Tel: 6235-3312. www.tenjin.com.sg/

Florence Fong, Tenjin