Was scrolling around social media and got to learn about the opening of the new Gepuk Guys — these folks are situated within the new JOFA Coffeeshop that is run by the same folks behind JOFA Mee Pok / JOFA Western which is situated at Blk 531 Bedok North Street 3. For those whom are not aware, Gepuk Guys is a concept by the same folks behind Berempah Bros; the latter being an establishment that is affiliated with Chef Derek Cheong whom was the winner of Masterchef Singapore Season 2. An establishment that targets the Muslim-friendly audience as compared to that of Berempah Bros, Gepuk Guys claims that they are a stall that does not serve lard nor pork on its signboard. One could perhaps think of Gepuk Guys as an extension of what Berempah Bros is — whilst Gepuk Guys does serve up Berempah Bro’s line-up of items under the “Lemak Series” section of the menu, the primary offering of Gepuk Guys would be the “Gepuk Series” that seems to be riding on the trendy Indonesian Ayam Gepuk that a lot of other establishments are currently offering as well.

Just like Berempah Bros, Gepuk Guys does serve up the line-up of “Gepuk Series” with a variety of different meat options; the Duck Confit Berempah Gepuk was the one that stood out to us the most (also the priciest at $16.50), though other interesting options include that of Unagi, Fish, and Grilled Squid. Gepuk Guys describe their “Gepuk Series” line-up of offerings to come with elements such as Coconut Rice, Bayam Goreng (i.e. stir-fried spinach), Mushroom Berempah, Signature Sambal Sauce, and Cashew Nut Butter. It also does come with a Fried Egg that is drizzled with Kecap Manis, though the Achar that was listed in the illustration was non-existent on our plate. We were told that our order required a waiting time of 10mins, though we only received our order near the 35min mark. It can be said that Gepuk Guys’ version of the Indonesian-style Ayam Gepuk is less traditional and is something that comes with their own twist; whilst it does come with the nutty, silky smooth and creamy Cashew Nut Butter, it is missing of the grilled cabbage that seems to be replaced by Mushroom Berempah and Bayam Goreng — the latter did provide a crispness to the dish, but the Mushroom Berempah felt like a fancy naming to Tempura Mushrooms that does provide a chunky bite like how the grilled cabbage would have done, though with a bit of bounciness and earthiness with nothing quite “Berempah” about it. The Coconut Rice suffers from the same blandness that doesn’t really quite suggest the infusion of coconut milk into the rice — quite consistent as that of Berempah Bros especially when we had first tried them out at Beauty World. We weren’t quite sure if opting for the Duck Confit Berempah was the wisest choice here especially given its hefty price point — the exterior was crisp though the duck leg wasn’t quite as juicy and succulent as we expected it to be; still decent however for those who aren’t too picky about their food in general. With that being said, we did feel that it was a little lacking of the usual brininess that duck meat tends to carry. Meanwhile the Signature Sambal Sauce was zippy and comes at level of spiciness that should be manageable for those whom are tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness — caters to the local audiences well especially given how spicy Indonesian-style sambals can get, while the Kecap Manis drizzled on the sunny side-up does come with an earthy sweetness that further adds on to the flavours of everything else on the plate.