On top of the combo chicken set, we also ordered their seafood pancake, which came in a large plate and sliced into 4 pieces. The amount of seafood was pretty generous; one can find small prawns, squid pieces and crab stick. There were also some spring onion and chili slices but the pancake was not spicy. Overall, it was fragrant and flavorful but a crispier version would have been desired. The pancake served here was rather soft (like omelette) as compared to those served at other restaurants where the exterior would offer a delightful crunch.
Located a short walk away from Maxwell Hawker Centre, Kko Kko Na Ra is a popular Korean fried chicken place that also serves a variety of alcohols, army stews and other Korean dishes.
As we wanted to try different flavors or their fried chicken, we order a combo set to share. A variety of chicken parts were given such as wings and also chunks with smaller bones (not very sure which part it was) but there was quite a lot of meat in each piece. The chicken pieces were fried to perfection that gave a delightful crunch to every bite. As the dining partner did not have a high tolerance for spice, she found the yangnyum flavored ones to be too spicy for her liking. That said, as the sauce is also slightly sweet, its spice level was actually pretty mild in my opinion. I would personally still prefer the original or soy flavored ones that aren’t that sweet though but it’s nice that the wet sauce did not cause the chicken pieces to be soggy. The insides of the chicken pieces also remained juicy but were not overly greasy. We liked that the restaurant offered free flow water and also a box of tissue for you to wipe your hands after you’re done enjoying your chicken.
To add some fibre to our meal, we ordered stir-fried dou miao (without garlic), which was nicely fried to a neither too hard nor too soft texture. The base/gravy used to stir fry the vegetable was also fragrant but did not overpower the freshness of the vegetables. The serving was generous and definitely took many spoonfuls for 2 pax to finish. It was however a little oily for our liking.
As for the side dish, we also ordered an oriental salad that came with a vinegar dressing, as well as some chili oil to give the crunchy vegetables (mainly bean sprouts and kelp), glass noodles and thinly sliced tofu strips some hint of spice. A really refreshing side dish to nimble on as you wait for the main dishes to arrive at your table.
Located alongside other Japanese eateries serving tendon, ramen and unagi dons in Suntec, Menya Kokoro was expectedly filled on a Friday night. Thankfully, we didn’t have to wait very long to get our seats.
Despite being famed for their mazesoba, they offer way more than just their famous dry ramen, including soup based ramen, bento sets and katsu dons. It’s nice that they cater to smaller eaters who can request for less soba or rice, as well as big eater who can get large sized portions for the mains.
Their soft shell crab mazesoba is a summer special item, with a thick and spicy chili crab sauce coating their chewy thick noodles. Other than a nicely battered and fried soft shell crab on the side, one also gets an onsen egg (topped with fish roe), crab meat, seaweed and tempura bits to go with their noodles. Was attracted to this dish as one could top up a dollar for two pieces of deep-fried mantou that can be dipped with the rich chili crab sauce in this bowl.
If you’re famished, ordering the large portion for their mains will be sure to leave you satisfied (although food coma might hit you shortly after too). Their gyozas were nice as well. The partner ordered a karaage don, which was delicious too as the chicken pieces were fried really well.
Also as my mask snapped, one of the waitresses was really kind to offer me a new mask and service was great in general too. A highly recommended place if you’re in the Suntec area!
Visited Daehwa on a Sunday afternoon and it was filled despite the mall being relatively empty as most stalls were closed.
One of the first dishes to arrive at our table was the Kimbap. While vegetarian, the dish was not inferior to the ones you get at Korean restaurants. Purple rice grains were used instead of sushi rice. With savory mock meat, avocado, cheese, lettuce, yellow daikon and egg omelette being wrapped by the chewy rice grains, the Kimbap was an umami bomb that kept you going for seconds. A highly recommended dish if you’re at Daehwa!
Was at Vatos Urban Tacos on a Sunday night; it was pretty filled but we made a reservation on Google.
We were offered their tortilla with two dips (salsa) when we first arrived. Complimentary water was also given.
As usual, their tacos were delicious. The beer battered fish was well fried and offered a delightful crunch that went well with the soft corn tortillas to be wrapped around it. The tomato and cabbage slaw above the proteins were refreshing and introduced some acidity to their tacos, while preventing them from getting to dry. However, if you leave them the tacos there for too long, the sauces may make the tortillas rather wet so they break apart very easily. The prawn tacos were also really well executed, with their prawns nicely deep fried while retaining their juicy interior.
We ordered 3 sets of 3 tacos for 3 pax and they were really filling. We also tried their margaritas, which were stronger than average in terms of the alcohol content. They were refreshing and the salt on the rims went pretty well with the acidity from the lime juice. A pretty good accompaniment to their tacos, the margaritas help complete your Mexican cuisine experience in a nice cozy setting. It’s also a place where you can try some interesting fusion dishes and Korean alcohols too!
Housed in West Mall’s Koufu (Level 4), this noodle stall is one of the relatively popular stalls. Although the price is on the higher side for most of their items, they offer an interesting twist to the regular BCM and fishball noodles you get elsewhere, with some of the premium bowls offering Japanese ramen eggs and abalone pieces.
The Sanwan noodle comes with 3 balls - a pork meatball that was dense and savory, a fried fishball that had a firm exterior but soft fish meat upon biting into it, as well as a regular fishball that was bouncy and tender. The amount of meat (minced meat and lean pork slices) was also considerably generous. Their savory chili did pack a punch but might make your noodles rather oily.
On the side, you’d also get a bowl of steaming hot pork broth that’s nice to warm up your stomach before you start the meal! The food court was however a bit cold so that might cool your food down rather quickly but there are other popular options including koo kee YTF, pepper lunch and pao fan.
Opted for removal of green onions for this dish. It was fried nicely, with each grain chewy and nicely separated. The egg pieces found between the rice grains were soft and gave this dish its characteristic egginess. Was however a little on the oilier side but nonetheless a comforting dish to have.
Famed for their dumplings, DTF offers delicious vegetarian options like their vegetarian dumplings, buns and fried rice.
The dumplings pictured here feature a nice savory filling consisting of spinach, vermicelli, mushroom, crunchy bamboo shoots and braised tofu. The skin also has the right thickness. Each dumpling is folded perfectly such that it wouldn’t disintegrate upon biting.
Located behind SOTA, GR.iD is a mall that replaced what was previously known as POMO. A few restaurants can be found at the ground floor of the mall and they were all quite lively.
At Isshin Machi, one can find a great variety of Taiwanese dishes, ranging from egg fried rice to their noodles with protein options like chicken cutlets or wantons. I decided to go for one of their vegetarian options, the dry mushroom noodle, and upgraded my noodles for their thicker guan miao noodles. The guan Miao noodles were cooked Al dente, with each strand retaining the perfect bite, and reminded me of dao xiao mian served at Chinese restaurants. The noodles were also coated with a flavorful sauce that most likely had sesame oil added to it. The shimeiji mushrooms were fried well and biting into the mushroom pieces, one could enjoy both the juiciness of fresh mushrooms that went well with the slightly crisped outer surface. Crispy shallots and spring onions were garnishes that helped elevate the flavor profile of this dish. With a braised egg given at the side, this noodle dish is sure to fill your stomach despite being a vegetarian option.
Do try it out if you’re nearby!
Visited Victor’s Kitchen on a Saturday night for dinner and it was quite packed but we didn’t have to queue for seats. Was rather excited to try their HK milk tea (the unsweetened version) but these days, they serve them with sugar only as they are pre-made. While it still retains the tea fragrance characteristic of HK milk tea, I wish they would offer patrons a no sugar version instead.
For our dim sum, we had a bowl of fish with century egg porridge. It came in a larger than normal bowl and was pretty filling for two people to share when you’re ordering other dim sum dishes as well. They gave a few big chunks of century egg and fish slices as well. On top of that, ginger and spring onion strips were also added, likely to neutralize the fishiness of the porridge dish. It’s definitely comforting for the tummy but nothing exceptional.
The fried prawn dumpling was the first dish served to us and as the plate used was big, the dumplings appeared really small in comparison. That said, served alongside tartar sauce, the prawn dumplings did concern a substantial amount of prawn meat and the skin did offer a nice crunchy texture after being fried to a nice golden brown color.
Was personally most excited for the chee cheong fun - with a fried youtiao encasing prawn meat being stuffed between layers of the silky rice roll. It’s a really nice combination of soft and crunchy textures, with the soft cheong fun contrasting with the crunchy youtiao before you reach the innermost layer of fresh juicy prawn meat. At the side, the usual sweet sauce was given but it wasn’t a sauce that would complement well with the cheong fun in our opinion.
We also had a bowl of their XO sauce with steamed carrot cake, which featured strips of radish and lup cheong cubes embraced by soft carrot cake in a bowl. It’s rather unique compared to the usual fried carrot cake pieces at dim sum places. What we liked best about this dish was the XO sauce that came in a metal saucer that we also enjoyed with other dim sum (like the chee cheong fun).
Not pictured, we also ordered their glutinous rice that my partner found a bit too soft for his liking but I personally thought the pillowy soft rice grains were quite enjoyable when eating with tougher chicken meat served in the dish.
While prices are on the higher side, the quality is worth paying for and most dishes are quite authentic. As a bonus, you probably wouldn’t have to wait as long for a table compared to swee choon but the trade off is that you do have fewer options here.
Visited this Italian place on a Tuesday afternoon. As I had a rather substantial brunch earlier, I decided to order one of their salads.
Their salmon salad came with a generous serving of fresh smoked salmon slices, avocado cubes and shredded egg that would satisfy your tummy and keep you full till the next meal. For sources of fibre, the salad came with arugula, iceberg lettuce and baby tomatoes. For the dressing, olive oil and a wedge of lemon were served in a saucer. Perhaps just a personal preference but I would have liked their egg to be served sliced or while instead.
Overall, it’s a pretty decent salad with a generous serving to justify its higher price tag apart from its location. As we used our Burpple voucher here, this salad only came up to $11 including GST and service charge! The dining partner order a pasta and we also saw diners around us enjoying sandwiches. It’s a place worth considering for traditional Italian cuisine and for a quiet afternoon hangout where you can chat with friends without being rushed to leave when you’re done with your meal. We also saw some patrons doing their work at this spot. It might be a less convenient place if you’re coming by the MRT but for that you do get a really peaceful environment for your meal.
