Na Oh

[BOON LAY, SINGAPORE] Trust me when I say that it took me 3 tries to book this place 😂 With slots snatched up within minutes at 10am every day, @naohrestaurant eluded elegance not only in their design, but their quality dishes and exceptional service as well. At $78 for a 4 course meal, you get dishes that are exceptionally executed by the team who works with the 3 Michelin starred Chef Corey Lee (if you know him you'll scream). Every dish had such a clean flavour, as they only use fermented paste to flavour their food. The vegetables are sourced from the smart farm within the building, which was the reason why it was so fresh and crisp.

My top favourite dish got to be the Spicy Beef Gomtang, as it was so comforting and full of high quality ingredients. Everything tasted decadent, and the Shiitake Gyeon Mari or Rolled Egg was so perfectly done with its silky texture.

Oh wait, did I not mention about their dessert? Even though I was stuffed by the end of the mains, I was starstruck by the Misugaru & Cherry Ice Cream Sandwich. How can black sesame dessert taste so addictive, especially with the slight zing you get from the cherry paste? I devoured this very quickly 😂

With a seasonal menu, I'm definitely coming back to try their other creations. Although it's in a pretty obscure location, you really need to at least try their food once! Thank you for the excellent service @naohrestaurant, you all have taken care of us so well 🥹

Lastly, the meal concluded with a makgeolli snow ice blanketed over strawberries, and served with a crunch rice cracker on the side. All good but slightly boozy from the pleasant fermented taste of the finely shaved bingsu.

The Young Chicken Stuffed with Glutinous Rice was tantalising. Refine in its execution yet surprisingly homely in taste, the hearty umami ginseng chicken soup (came with one refill only) was super slurp-worthy. The protein packed with soft glutinous rice, was succulent and fall-off-the-bone tender. The ginseng flavour was distinct but not at all overpowering. The Neungyi Mushrooms, Green Scallion Jang (sauce), and Chonggak (Ponytail Radish) Kimchi were lovely.

Then came the Jinjitsang, a traditional Korean meal setting that includes a variety of accompaniments. With 3 delicious-sounding options, we went with the Golden Queen Rice and Butterfish Gamasot (rice pot) as well as the Samgyetang.

The former was flakey fresh, clean-tasting and beautifully presented. I especially enjoyed it with the seasoned sauce and loved scraping up the nurungji (scorched rice) from the bottom of the pot with the well-executed protein. The Seasonal Gyeran Mari (rolled omelette), Nabak (water) Kimchi, and Dolgim (roasted seaweed) paired alongside were noteworthy too.

While the portion didn’t seem to be much initially with their starters, Na Oh’s summer prix fixe lunch ($78/pax) lineup was so satisfying! Appetisers were the simple yet silky housemade tofu with aged soya sauce; unassuming buckwheat pancakes with aged kimchi and leeks which act as wraps for the lettuces harvested from the in-house Smart Farm; and a refreshing tangy palate cleanser of sorts, Mulhwe - White Fish and Sea Cucumber in Icy Kimchi Broth.

Buckwheat and Mugunji Jeon 4/5
Golden Queen Rice and Butterfish Gamasot 4/5
Pyongyang-Style Cold Noodles 3/5