Chef-owner Tan-San of @hajime_tonkatsu_ramen is an old hand in the Japanese food scene in Singapore with nearly 30 years of experience. Trained in Japan, he helmed the kitchen of Tonkichi, the grand dame of tonkatsu restaurants in Singapore before becoming the pioneer chef of Tampopo. It will probably be no understatement to say that a generation of Singaporeans grew up eating his tonkatsu.

Each order comes with free flow Niigata rice and shredded cabbage, and a bowl of tonjiru soup. As for their tonkatsu, you get to choose between pork loin or fillet. There is also a premium option which uses Japanese airflow sangenton pork loin.

Pork loin is wider and thicker with a sizeable fat cap running along the top. Pork fillet is taken from the rear of the loin --- it is narrower and thinner with little visible fat. Pork loin is juicy and tender. Pork fillet is one of the most tender pork cuts. It is much more flavourful but tends to be "dry" as there is little fat to keep it moist during the cooking process.

Both the fillet and loin were cooked to perfection at Hajime. I think its a matter of personal preference as to which cut is better. I love the fat cap in loin which gives the katsu a bit more bite and texture contrast whereas Miss K prefers the fillet which is super tender. I will however recommend getting the premium version as there is an obvious "upgrade" in terms of flavours and juiciness of the pork loin.

I am a big fan of Niigata rice because it is fragrant, fluffy and slightly sticky with a subtly sweet flavour. The rice served at Hajime though was rather disappointing as it tasted dry and rather bland. This was the case in both their Thomson Plaza and MyVillage outlets. It could be because the rice was too dry or overcooked but it was certainly disappointing.