NeNe Neko signature dish NeNe Neko interior NeNe Neko dish NeNe Neko menu item NeNe Neko ambiance
Day-to-Night2024 Opening

NeNe Neko

📍 PLQ Plaza #01-K7 🐱 Café by Day · Izakaya by Night 💰 $$ · S$15–25 ⭐ 3.9 Google Rating
📍 Map
📷Photos coming soon — this restaurant has been verified but food photography is not yet available.

Highlights

Concept
Café by day (donburi, coffee) · izakaya by night (yakitori, sake)
Day menu
Yakiniku Gyu Don S$15.90 · Mentaiko Udon S$20.90 · shokupan · coffee
Night menu
Robatayaki · kushiyaki from S$3.60 · sake · happy hour till 7pm

About

NeNe Neko (the name references the popular Japanese character Kanahei's Small Animals) is PLQ's most versatile Japanese dining concept — a Japanese café that transforms into an izakaya bar as evening approaches. Launched in 2024 at PLQ Plaza #01-K7, the restaurant occupies a breezy, sheltered concourse structure with distinctly Japanese décor: paper lanterns, fabric dividers, white pebbles, and warm wood tones. During the day (10am-5pm), NeNe Neko operates as a café serving donburi, tempura, udon, shokupan (thick Japanese milk bread sandwiches), homemade desserts, and specialty coffee. The Yakiniku Gyu Don (S$15.90) and Mentaiko Udon with Salmon (S$20.90) are lunch favourites. Set meals (add S$3 for gyoza, soup, sencha) offer excellent value.

As night falls, NeNe Neko transitions into izakaya mode: the lighting softens, the sake menu opens, and the kitchen shifts to robatayaki (charcoal-grilled items) and otsumami (drinking snacks). Kushiyaki skewers start from just S$3.60 — Mentaiko Yakitori (S$3.60), Bacon Asparagus (S$3.80), Jidori Tsukune (S$3.60) — making this one of the most affordable izakaya-style experiences in the Paya Lebar area. Happy hours run 12pm-7pm with full pints of beer at S$10. The sake selection includes both premium and casual options. The dual identity works because the PLQ Plaza location attracts different crowds at different times: office workers for weekday lunch, young professionals for after-work drinks, and neighbourhood residents for casual weekend dining. For the Paya Lebar Japanese dining ecosystem, NeNe Neko fills the crucial 'evening social' niche that Yakiniku Like (fast solo lunch) and Donburi King (quick sashimi) do not cover.

Recommended For

After-Work Drinks Casual Japanese Date Night Late Night

Menu & Pricing

ItemPriceNotes
Yakiniku Gyu Don
Grilled beef rice bowl — lunch favourite
S$15.90Lunch pick
Mentaiko Udon w/ Salmon
Creamy mentaiko udon with salmon
S$20.90Popular
Mentaiko Yakitori
Grilled chicken with mentaiko
S$3.60Night pick
Jidori Tsukune
Chicken meatball skewer
S$3.60Classic
Set meal add-on
Add gyoza, soup, sencha to any main
+S$3Value
Beer (happy hour)
12pm-7pm happy hour
S$10/pintDrinks

* Prices subject to GST + svc. Menu may vary.

Practical Info

Location
PLQ Plaza #01-K7, 10 Paya Lebar Road
Hours
Mon-Tue 11am-11pm · Wed-Fri 11am-12am · Sat 10am-12am · Sun 10am-10pm
MRT
Paya Lebar MRT (EW8/CC9)
Payment
Cash, cards

Dietary Info

Not Halal Chicken, seafood, vegetable options

Your Visit

1

Day vs Night at NeNe Neko

Lunch (11am-5pm): Yakiniku Gyu Don or Mentaiko Udon + set meal add-on (S$3). Quick, satisfying, S$18-24. Evening (6pm onwards): switch to izakaya mode. Order 4-5 kushiyaki skewers (S$3.60-3.80 each), share plates, beer (S$10 happy hour) or sake. Total for 2: S$40-60 with drinks. Late night (after 9pm): casual drinks and light bites — the sheltered outdoor PLQ Plaza setting is pleasant.

Photos

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Map

Editor's Note

Our honest take

NeNe Neko is PLQ's most versatile Japanese option — café by day, izakaya by night. The kushiyaki at S$3.60 is some of the most affordable izakaya fare in eastern Singapore. The dual identity works brilliantly: lunch crowds get quick, satisfying Japanese meals; evening crowds get social, sake-fuelled izakaya vibes. For the PLQ ecosystem, it fills the crucial evening niche.

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Izakaya Culture: Japan's After-Work Social Hub

Izakaya (居酒屋, literally 'stay-drink-shop') is Japan's answer to the British pub — the social drinking establishment where colleagues, friends, and families gather after work for food, drinks, and conversation. Unlike formal Japanese restaurants where the food is the primary focus, izakaya prioritise the drinking experience: food is ordered as accompaniment to alcohol, dishes are designed for sharing, and the atmosphere encourages lingering conversation. The menu structure reflects this: small plates (otsumami), grilled skewers (kushiyaki/yakitori), fried items (karaage, tempura), and rice dishes or noodles to end the evening. Drinks range from beer and sake to shochu (distilled spirit), highball (whisky and soda), and increasingly, craft cocktails. The izakaya tradition is deeply embedded in Japanese corporate culture: the 'nomikai' (drinking party) is where business relationships are strengthened, team bonds are formed, and hierarchies temporarily flatten — your boss drinks with you as an equal. NeNe Neko brings this tradition to PLQ with affordable kushiyaki (S$3.60), happy hour beer (S$10/pint), and a relaxed atmosphere that encourages the kind of social bonding that izakaya are built for. The sheltered PLQ Plaza setting — open-air but covered — adds a distinctly Singaporean tropical element that Japanese izakaya (typically indoors) cannot offer.

Japanese Day-to-Night Dining: A Growing Singapore Trend

NeNe Neko's café-by-day, izakaya-by-night concept reflects a broader trend in Singapore's Japanese dining scene: the multi-modal restaurant that serves different purposes at different times of day. This format originated in Tokyo's Shimokitazawa and Daikanyama neighbourhoods, where space constraints and high rents forced restaurants to maximize revenue by serving different menus for different dayparts. In Singapore, the model works particularly well in commercial districts like Paya Lebar where the customer base shifts dramatically: weekday lunch brings office workers seeking quick, affordable meals; weekday evening brings the same workers wanting to decompress over drinks; and weekends bring neighbourhood residents and families seeking casual dining. NeNe Neko's menu reflects these shifts precisely: the day menu emphasizes speed and sustenance (donburi, udon, set meals), while the night menu emphasizes sharing and socializing (small plates, skewers, sake). The PLQ Plaza location amplifies this duality: the sheltered outdoor concourse feels like a bright, airy café during the day and transforms into an atmospheric, lantern-lit izakaya terrace at night. The happy hour (12pm-7pm, S$10/pint) bridges the transition, catching early-evening drinkers who are still in café mode but ready to shift to izakaya energy. For Paya Lebar's Japanese dining ecosystem, this dual identity is crucial: without NeNe Neko, the area would lack any Japanese evening social dining option — Yakiniku Like closes at 10pm and is designed for solo quick meals, while Donburi King is primarily a lunch destination. NeNe Neko stays open until midnight on weekends, filling the late-night gap that eastern Singapore's Japanese dining scene has historically lacked.

The PLQ Japanese Dining Ecosystem

PLQ Mall's four Japanese restaurants form a remarkably complete ecosystem that covers virtually every Japanese dining need. At the budget tier: Chen's Mapo Tofu (from S$12, Michelin Bib Gourmand) offers the best quality-to-price ratio, and Yakiniku Like (from S$9.80, halal) provides the fastest and most affordable option. At the mid-range: Donburi King (S$16-30) delivers premium sashimi over rice, and NeNe Neko (S$15-25) offers the most versatile menu with both casual meals and izakaya fare. At the premium end: Donburi King's Kaisen Don (S$58.80) provides a special-occasion option. Sorted by occasion: quick solo lunch goes to Yakiniku Like (15 min), group lunch goes to Chen's or NeNe Neko, after-work drinks goes to NeNe Neko (happy hour), sashimi craving goes to Donburi King, budget Michelin goes to Chen's. Sorted by dietary need: halal goes to Yakiniku Like, no-pork preference goes to Donburi King's seafood focus, spice lovers go to Chen's Mapo Tofu. This four-restaurant cluster means PLQ residents and office workers never need to leave the precinct for quality Japanese food — a convenience that most suburban Singapore neighbourhoods cannot match.

PLQ Plaza: The Outdoor Dining Hub

PLQ Plaza is the heart of Paya Lebar Quarter's outdoor dining scene. Unlike the air-conditioned interiors of PLQ Mall, PLQ Plaza (#01-K7 area) is a sheltered outdoor concourse that combines the comfort of covered dining with the freshness of open-air atmosphere. This makes it ideal for Singapore's tropical climate: fans and natural ventilation keep diners cool, while the shelter protects from rain. NeNe Neko occupies a prime position in this space, housed in a modern container-like structure that gives it a distinct visual identity. The Plaza format encourages a more relaxed, European-style dining culture: diners linger over coffee during the day and transition to evening drinks as the sun sets. The proximity to PLQ's parkside playground also makes it family-friendly during weekends. For Japanese dining, the outdoor izakaya atmosphere at NeNe Neko adds an element that indoor mall restaurants cannot replicate — the combination of paper lanterns, warm evening air, and cold sake creates an ambience that feels genuinely festive. This explains why NeNe Neko has quickly become one of the most popular evening spots at PLQ, drawing after-work crowds from the surrounding office towers who want to unwind in a setting that feels more organic than a mall food court. The opening hours reflect this positioning: while most PLQ Mall restaurants close at 9-10pm, NeNe Neko stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, serving the late-night crowd that eastern Singapore has historically underserved.

Additional Guide

NeNe Neko's name is a playful reference to Japanese pop culture. "Neko" (猫) means cat in Japanese, and "NeNe" echoes the popular character from Kanahei's Small Animals — cute, approachable digital stickers widely used on messaging platforms across Asia. This branding choice is deliberate: it signals a casual, friendly, youth-oriented dining concept rather than a formal Japanese restaurant. The décor follows through: paper lanterns provide warm ambient light, traditional fabric dividers (noren) create intimate sections, and white pebbles arranged along the entrance path evoke a Japanese garden pathway. These design elements are authentic Japanese — found in izakaya across Tokyo's Shinjuku and Shibuya districts — but combined with the PLQ Plaza's modern container architecture, they create a fusion aesthetic that feels both Japanese and contemporary Singaporean. The menu pricing also reflects the target demographic: students, young professionals, and casual diners who want quality Japanese food without the formality or expense of traditional Japanese restaurants. Kushiyaki skewers at S$3.60, donburi under S$20, and happy hour beer at S$10 are price points designed for frequency rather than occasion — the kind of restaurant you visit twice a week rather than once a month. This accessibility is NeNe Neko's greatest strength and the reason it has quickly become a neighbourhood favourite at Paya Lebar.