Waa Cow! should not be an unfamiliar name to most whom have been following the hipster Japanese dining scene for quite a while; with its first outlet being situated in Stephen Riady Centre within NUS U Town (it is often been mistaken that their first outlet is within the Raffles Xchange at Raffles Place MRT Station), Waa Cow! has become quite a staple within the Central Business District. One can now easily find Waa Cow!’s presence within Marina One West Tower, as well as in the recently renamed CIMB Plaza (formerly known as Change Alley). Waa Cow! has always been a brand associated with their Signature Wagyu Beef Bowls — that being said, their latest concept situated within myVillage @ Serangoon Gardens hops on the Yakiniku bandwagon. Adopting a similar approach to other individual / personal Yakiniku concepts such as that of Yakiniku Like, Yakiniku Go etc., Waa Cow! Yakiniku serves up a variety of different cuts of meat, chicken and pork for the patrons to grill to their heart’s desire. Patrons can either opt for the meats in ala-carte or in the form of a set, whilst there is an extensive menu of sides (in both to-be-grilled, or ready-to-eat form) for patrons to go for as well.

For those whom are looking to try the various different meats that Waa Cow! Yakiniku has to offer, the Karubi, Pork Collar & Chicken platter would be the one to go for. Opting for the set, the set sees the meat platter being served with a bowl of Japanese Rice, as well as a standard side of Spicy Miso & Leek Relish and a canned drink of the patron’s choice. For those looking to switch up the the items offered in the set by going for options such as the Truffle Rice, or to add on sides such as the various different types of Chawanmushi and Sashimi available on the menu, there would be additional charges on top of the standard price of each set. For our order, we had opted for the Truffle Rice, as well as to add on the Wasabi Mayo, Truffle Sauce and Mentaiko Sauce as well; each table also comes with bottles of the Ponzu Negi and Garlic Butter Teriyaki, as well as black pepper for patrons to use for the meat as well. Whilst the flavours and textures of the grilled meat are pretty much up to how one grills them, we note that the cuts of the meat were pretty much on point; the Karubi and Pork Collar were both more towards the lean side but still were pretty tender for the most part. The highlight to us apart from the Karubi and the Pork Collar though were the Truffle Rice and the various sauces we opted for. It is no doubt that Waa Cow! is not the first establishment to have came up with truffle-infused rice, but their variant was just amazingly subtle and light without being overwhelming — didn’t disrupt that delicate texture and flavour of Japanese short-grain rice. We went a little crazy with the sauces here considering how the additional sauces weren’t that necessary — the reason so is because we just could not settle with the thought of going for either the Truffle Sauce or the Mentaiko Sauccw; it has indeed been a long time since the last time we had made a visit to Waa Cow! anyway. The Mentaiko Sauce and Truffle Sauce were as good as we remembered them to be — sufficiently rich and creamy whilst being umami or carrying a good hint of truffle aroma, but the Wasabi Mayo sauce carries that slight earthiness of wasabi without launching itself into an overwhelmingly numbing affair. The Ponzu Negi and Garlic Butter Teriyaki were also good; the former being that lightly savoury sauce with a hint of Yuzu for a refreshing kick that resets the tastebuds, while the latter is a immensely thick and rich teriyaki sauce that is sufficiently garlicky for a slight twist.

Waa Cow! has been through quite a fair bit over the years; the establishment having also survived through the nation’s Circuit Breaker period where eateries in the Central Business District felt a great impact on their sales due to the lack of office crowds returning to office. From being a totally new brand name, and then establishing themselves as one of the go-to places for fancy Wagyu Beef Bowls in the Central Business District, Waa Cow! seemed to have proved themselves as a pretty trusted brand over the years — their outlets in Marina One and CIMB Plaza being hit destinations for office workers to hang out for an after-work wind down. It is needless to say that the folks around Serangoon Gardens are a pretty lucky bunch to have them around their neighbourhood — a Yakiniku concept with a focus on personal Yakiniku grills that is reasonably priced; the lowest-priced sets being listed at $14.90 before prevailing charges. With meats of a decent quality at its price as well as great sauces and a delicious specialty of Truffle Rice to boast, Waa Cow! Yakiniku is definitely one of the spots that is worth making the trek to for those who are especially into barbecue meats and the personal Yakiniku grill experience; a destination that is likely to be an attraction for those living outside the area to make a visit into this unique neighbourhood in the island.