KYŌ Kohee

Can definitely taste the umami, although the bitterness is quite mild(to begin with, but the sweet milk mixture suppressed that even more)

Ultimately it's quite a similar product to their okumidori, very mild very pleasant. Unfortunately it's ABIT powdery

The crab tofu impressed, crab was well salted which brought out intense umami, and the goma sauce worked as a whole

Miso soup was weird

Tamagoyaki was tasteless

Kimchi was mild as well, probably in line with what you expect given the dainty clientele

Rice was good, although not very grainy. I suspect the original one would have tasted similar

Salmon was quite good. The skin was crispy, although mike's better (parallel slashes would render the fats and crisp up the skin better). Good hearty chunk, and the meat was crisped up too(however it dissipates quite fast)

Unfortunately the salmon was served very hot

All in all pretty decent for the price

Serving more than just their signature beverages at their Robinson outlet, KYŌ KOHEE’s compact lunch menu really hit the spot for me. A classic and well-executed spread, the Shio Salmon Set Meal ($25) was (a tad pricey but) oh so yummy. The Grilled Salt Salmon was wonderfully done; it was well-seasoned, flakey, fresh tasting, and succulent. The skin was ugh so crispy too. Creamy and savoury, the chilled crab meat tofu with sesame sauce was also so good. The red miso soup, as well, was flavourful~

i love how there's like a sweet roasted lingering taste from the caramel! it is a little too milky for me tho i like my coffee with a kick

One of the pieces of news that had been going around the local cafe hopping scene in the last couple of weeks is the opening of KYŌ KOHEE’s relocated Robinson Road location. These folks had just opened a second outlet at Asia Square not too long ago; that outlet being a takeaway kiosk for their beverages much like their original location at 144 Robinson Road. Its current space is just a few buildings down from where they used to be located; now being at the lobby of 112 Robinson Road, KYŌ KOHEE boasts a bigger space than it has had before at 144 Robinson Road. The space is in fact so large that not only do they have a space for their espresso bar, but also a sprawling space filled with bench seating that allows patrons to now sit around outside of the store to enjoy their cuppa. That isn’t just it for their latest outlet — in fact, there are two dedicated dine-in areas for the shop unit itself; one situated outside of the cafe which is outdoors, while another is an air-conditioned space that is segregated away from the espresso bar itself — we quite liked the intimacy of the space where patrons dining in would not be disturbed by the folks performing their coffee runs, while the space exudes a minimalistic and zen vibe with the use of stone flooring matched against wooden furniture and fittings that is of a Japandi-style. KYŌ KOHEE hasn’t been known to be a spot for hot food; the only form of food which their 144 Robinson Road location used to serve would be croffles — this makes it rather surprising that they had ventured not only simply into serving up hot food, but rather, a small selection of Set Meals that feature a number of dishes on one platter much like a Teishoku. Apart from their Set Meals, KYŌ KOHEE also serves up a small list of Dessert (comprising of a croffle item and Affogatos). Beverages available at KYŌ KOHEE includes a line-up of espresso-based specialty coffee, teas and non-caffeinated beverages.

One of the items that seemingly gotten our attention whilst skimming through the menu before we made our visit to KYŌ KOHEE’s location at 112 Robinson Road was the Hambagu Steak Set Meal — this would be one of the four (4) Set Meals which KYŌ KOHEE has to offer; the other three being the Shio Zake, Yasai Oden and the Tori Hana that comes with Grilled Salt Salmon, Tomato, Carrot, Daikon with Mushroom Sauce, and Grilled Chicken with Cauliflower Sauce respectively. For the Hambagu Steak Set Meal, the set meal comprises of elements such as Beef & Pork Patty with Demi Glaze, Truffle Onsen Egg, Potato Salad, Pickles, Miso Soup and Rice. Food does take some time to arrive the table especially considering how the main elements are made-to-order; that being said, the service does feel relatively fast and still reasonable and especially so for an establishment in the Central Business District where its diners are office workers that are seemingly in a rush to eat. All the various elements came in its own bowl / plate / saucer in the wooden tray; the entire set meal coming in a neat and pretty presentation like how one would expect in a full-fledged Japanese restaurant. Digging into the bowl of short-grain rice, we liked how the rice has been executed just right here; pearly, yet slightly sticky — it comes with some truffle bits that helped to ante up the flavours of the rice without the use of Furikake. This went well against the Hambagu Steak; the Beef & Pork Patty with Demi Glaze coming slightly crusty on the exterior given how it has been grilled; all that while coming with crumbly minced beef and pork that was sufficiently meaty without being particularly gamey; a very clean savoury note that pair well with the tangy Demi Glaze sauce that came with a hint of beef stock that helped to put back some of the beefy flavours into the patty without the patty having taste too overwhelming for those whom are not particularly a fan of beef.

The Shiso Leaf added provides an aroma that cuts through all of that meat and sauce to refresh the tastebuds — a thoughtful pairing that somehow differentiates it from the other Japanese Hamburg dishes that we have come across thus far. The Truffle Onsen turns out to be a particularly good combination when poured into the bowl of rice; not only does it guarantees a silkier texture to the rice considering the creamy consistency of the molten egg yolk, but we also love how the scent of truffle was not particularly overwhelming as well since it exists as an element in both the rice and the Onsen Egg. The Miso Soup that comes on the side comes with kelp and tofu puffs; quite the comforting bowl of Miso Soup that one would expect with Japanese cuisine. The pickles were served cold and was refreshing whilst delivering a good crunch to provide a textural contrast, while the potato salad does feel like one that also carried a lingering note of egg mayo in its finish — soft, yet chunky whilst coming with shreds of carrots for a bit of variance in texture. We of course also would not give the espresso-based specialty coffee a go considering how already were at KYŌ KOHEE — we found ourselves settling for the Kyo Coffee which is their signature concoction comprising of Signature Caramel, Espresso, Milk.

The result is a cuppa that is fairly easy to drink with a medium body and a nutty and earthy flavour profile; the proportion of caramel being just about right since the level of sweetness is well-managed — one that only lingers at the back of the tongue to ease the harsh notes of caffeine in a standard cuppa that comes without the caramel. We weren’t really expecting much with KYŌ KOHEE’s food, but we were must mention that we were pretty much blown away by the Hambagu Steak Set Meal that we have had — definitely one that exceeded our expectations considering how they used to be a spot highly focused on their matcha beverage and espresso-based specialty coffee. The Hambagu Steak Set Meal does match up against that of what we would have expected to get out of a slightly more upmarket Japanese restaurant that emphasises on the produce that they use for their offerings — one that is not only just well-executed, but also had some thoughtful touches in the details as well. Prices of the Set Meals are a little bit on the higher side; the lowest-priced Set Meal being the Yasai Oden at $20, while the Hambagu Steak Set Meal that we have had is the priciest at $28 — that being said, we do feel that the food is definitely worth the splurge once in a while since one would likely be paying much more at an actual Japanese dining establishment for such fare. Looking forward to returning to KYŌ KOHEE again some day to give their Shio Zake Set Meal a go!

This is the least matcha good matcha ive tasted. No bitterness, a tad of grassiness, and hardly astringent at all. When you mix with the milk, its so smooth and easy to drink, and the taste is very fresh, and mild but not overly so, so it's almost refreshing.

Not bad, not for those who like extremely strong matcha