I had the good fortune to get a spot last month (April 2026) at Na Oh, a Korean contemporary fine dining restaurant located at the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre Singapore building, located in the far west of Singapore (near Lakeside). It was really ulu. But the trip there was worth it because it felt we were overseas, being transported to a world of innovation and excellence in motoring and... food. Greeting any visitor were vats of jang (sauces) fermenting and ageing in a temperature controlled room just at the entrance of the restaurant on Level 2.
The space was elegant and minimal yet warm and traditional with the paper and wood accents.
Apparently the lamps were imported from Korea (of course) with handmade paper. Everything is thoughtful and intentional, from the intricate tableware to the furniture itself.
This was the Winter menu - it changes by the season and we were just at the tail end of it. For lunch was just $78++ per pax which I felt was an excellent deal for a 5-course menu! Of particular note was also the tableware and service - both of which were top notch! I will be surprised if they do not have a star sometime in the future, seeing that the restaurant's opened by a 3-Michelin-starred Korean chef based in San Fran, Corey Lee.
We started off with the homemade tofu with aged soy sauce, which was served cold but not lacking at all with flavours, with the earthiness of the soybean mingled with the umami lightness of the soy sauce.
Next was the a trio of Assorted Jeon featuring the sablefish, mountain yam and Korean squash. When I think jeon, a thick flour batter fried pancake with chopped bits comes to mind, but here it was completely not the case. It was more Korean style tempura, with the batter light and crispy and just thinly coating the ingredient to let the natural flavours shine. And shine they did. My favourite was the fish. So light! So ethereal!
The last of the starters was the acorn jelly and beef tendon salad in icy kimchi broth. This was my favourite I think because it reminds me of naengmyeon, and the beef tendon made its savoury gelatinousness presence known without overpowering the salad.
For mains, we all ordered something different. The friend sitting opposite me had the ground soybean stew with mangrove crab and Jeju pork collar suyuk with golden queen's rice. What a spread. The Jeju pork slices were thin and they were just clean-tasting pork flavour strips!
My other friend picked the Grilled Jeju Beltfish with Golden Queen's Rice which was served with a spicy winter seafood stew. For those who like eating saba type fish, I think this will be right up your alley.
For my main dish, I chose the Galbijjim finished over charcoal, where Hanbang-style beef short ribs were braised in aged soy sauce and served with a chestnut and thistle sotbap and maesil dongchimi (fermented radish with green plum syrup. This was amazing because of how soft the beef was but also how great the sides are. There was even ginseng in the stone pot.
Just look at how melt-in-mouth soft the beef was!
And we were treated to tableside service for the sotbap, where the rice was scooped meticulously into the bowl. Broth was then poured into the fluffy rice. It was light and fragrant - the perfect foil for the sweet and savoury beef. I had trouble finishing it, but my dining partners graciously helped.
I loved the 3 side dishes very much because they offer a quick break from the meat and rice.
Lastly for dessert we had the injeolmi cake with candied nuts and seeds, which reminds me a bit of the corn cake from Kenny Rogers. But I really like the sticky nutty bits with the warm cake.
We ended with a refreshing pear sorbet with fresh and preserved persimmon sujeongwa to cleanse our very satisfied palates.
After that very satisfying meal, we took a 2.5 hour tour of the facilities. We started with the robotic hydroponics farm. It was amazing looking at robot arms planting tiny seeds and extracting them from the soil.
There were several veggy varieties being grown this way. Apparently these were used in Na Oh as well, and some were donated to food charities. The robots and growing reminded me of Westworld for some reason.
We had our chance at harvesting some greens, and even had Omakase tasting of all the greens grown at HMGICS! It was sooo interesting to taste them on their own because the ice plant was actually slightly salty as it leeches salt from the soil when it grows. Nature is so wonderful.
We even had a VR experience to see how the cars are assembled at the Hyundai Motoring factory.
It was all very inspiring to see how innovation has been applied to different parts of life. What an experience! We left the place 4.5 hours later, fully satiated and happy.
To cap everything off, I must say that Na Oh exceeded my already high expectations for the food with its impeccable service and attention to detail. The food itself was a gastronomic treat, with ingredients and techniques respected as much as the experience. I would highly recommend reserving a lunch if you can (reservations released 30 days in advance at 10am)
🙅 Thank you, next
🤷 Try if you are in the area
💁 Bookmark this ✔️
Na Oh
2 Bulim Avenue, HMGICS, Level 3, Singapore 649674
Tuesdays to Saturdays: 11:30am to 3:30pm; 6pm to 7:30pm
Closed on Sundays and Mondays
Reserve a table
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