Romankan Yokohama

Romankan Yokohama is a tonkatsu joint at the revamped Basement Food Hall of Takashimaya that also houses Tsuru-koshi Udon and Baikohken. They boast of a handmade katsu sandwich, so I was interested to see how it stacks up against the sandwich made famous by Ginza Bairin.



At $3.20 a pop, the sandwich is not cheap. What it has over Ginza Bairin is the lettuce and tomato that they add to the sandwich. If you ever try the sandwich, make sure you get a fresh one, since they make their sandwiches in batches and the katsu can be cold and toast, soft, by the time you buy your sandwich.

Flavour is good for the sandwich, and I realize that Romankan Yokohama does not serve the lettuce and tomato in their katsu sandwich in other countries like Hong Kong. Is it better than at Ginza Bairin? I am not sure, but their sandwich is slightly healthier with the greens. Will return to try their tonkatsu one day.

Rating: 7/10
Website: none
Address: #B202-04, B2 Takashimaya Food Hall, Ngee Ann City Tower A, 391 Orchard Road
Phone: 6738 2505
Hours: 1000 hrs - 2100 hrs (Sunday to Thursday)
1000 hrs - 2130 hrs (Friday and Saturday)
Price: $1/2

Tomi Sushi @ Millenia Walk Revisited

Went back to Tomi Sushi to try the fattier cuts of tuna. So, this time, I ordered the Omakase Sashimi, which is $92++ for two.



The sashimi platter came shortly, and not only had maguro, but also chutoro and otoro, amongst the other cuts of fish. The fish was as fresh as fresh could be, and the cuts were generous and succulent. I guess that $92++ for dinner for two (not including starch and such) is not exactly cheap, but I will say that you pay for what you get. In this case, lovely fresh cuts of fish, served with pride and care. Will definitely be back.

Original Review for Tomi Sushi at Millenia Walk

Kazokutei @ Plaza Singapura Revisited

Was quite interested in what the Curry Udon at Kazokutei would turn out to be like after tasting the one at Tsuru-koshi Udon, so I trekked to Plaza Singapura to give it a try.



Also decided to try the kakiage and ebi tempura while I was at it. The curry at Kazokutei is definitely meatier than at Tsuru-koshi Udon, with slivers of meat in the sauce. It did have a slightly sour tang to it that took some getting used to, but the flavour was good.



The kakiage was done in a tower-like piece, resembling the tahu telur in Indonesian restaurants. There were shrimps on top, and the rest of the tower consisted on slivers of vegetables, including pumpkin, carrot and long beans. While there was a lot of vegetable for the money, there was too little tempura batter, and the overall product was not as crisp as one would expect from a tempura. The ebi tempura here is much better than at Tsuru-koshi Udon, with a light batter.

Overall, I rate Kazokutei better than Tsuru-koshi Udon, the other specialist udon eatery. It is cheaper, and in a proper sit-down restaurant environment, and produces better food too!

The Original Review for Kazokutei at Plaza Singapura

Daikokuya @ Paragon Revisited

It was kind of a last minute choice of ramen, Daikokuya at Paragon. Had the Kogashi Miso Ramen this time, as well as original gyoza.



The ramen was nice and firm, and the broth was rich (although there was a little too much pork fat for my liking). There was a slice of kamaboko, a slice of pork belly chasu, menma, black fungus and some beansprouts. The charred garlic oil certainly adds a dimension to the flavour.



The gyoza was the usual gyoza that most are familiar with. Nothing special, although some of the skins were already torn by the time they were served.

The Original Review for Daikokuya at Paragon

Tomi Sushi @ Millenia Walk

Was told that Tomi Sushi has quite a following in Japan. It hails from Niigata and has since opened 14 branches in Japan. For those who do not know, Niigata, on the northwest coast of Honshu is known to produce very good rice and sake. With that in mind, I had to give it a try.

I guess that the price point may put a lot of casual diners off. The location and decoration is more on the casual side, but many of their set meals run into a few tens of dollars. They had a dinner set that was $48++, but I decided to get a Sashimi Moriwase and a rice set.



The sashimi selection was good, with two pieces of each of the five different selections of fish and ark clam. It came with a dollop of real wasabi, which is rather rare in Singapore, even at that price point. The whole thing was nicely arranged and decorated, sitting over a bowl of ice. The pieces of sashimi were succulent and very fresh, and makes me realize why I love sashimi so much. None of the usual insipid slivers of fish masquerading as sashimi, this is true blue sashimi. The rice used comes from Niigata, which probably accounts for the $6 price for the rice set (which includes a bowl of rice, a miso soup and some Japanese pickles).

The restaurant has quite a bit of Japanese clientele, which attests to the authenticity of the food and the standard of sushi and sashimi. I will definitely return, and probably pluck of enough courage to order some chutoro (I find otoro a little too fatty).

Rating: 8/10
Website: http://www.tomisushi.asia/
Address: #P03-04, Millenia Walk, 9 Raffles Boulevard
Phone: 6333 4633
Hours: 1130 hrs - 1500 hrs and 1700 hrs - 2230 hrs
Price: $$$

Tsurukoshi Udon @ Takashimaya Basement Food Hall Revisited

I thought that I would make a return visit to Tsurukoshi Udon, since I first visited them when they first opened, and was wondering if standards would change.

Ordered the curry udon this time, and a piece of kakiage and two pieces of ebi tempura. Their order before getting seated puts quite a lot of people off, but I guess it has to do with their limited seating.



The curry udon was basically udon in their curry sauce, with a single piece of parsley for decoration. For $9, it may come across as a little steep, but the sauce was actually delicious.



Unfortunately, the ebi tempura was still as disappointing as before. The kakiage was delicious though. Quite a generous serve of vegetables topped with shrimp, coated in tempura batter and fried. Oishi!

Next time, I think I will stick to the kakiage and the udon. The curry udon is good. I wonder how it stacks up against curry udon at Kazokutei.

Original Review for Tsurukoshi Udon

Ippudo Tao @ UE Square

I mentioned that I have been wanting to try Ippudo Tao at UE Square, so I trekked down today. Arrived early in the evening, before any crowd could even build. The air-conditioned interior is quite small, although it is supplemented by quite a lot of outdoor seating. So, bear in mind if you want to sit inside, do arrive early.

Since it was the first time to Ippudo Tao, I decided to try a bit of everything. Ordered the Fried Young Corn, Tao Kuro Tamago (ramen) and a Tao Matsuri Menshi (rice bowl). I asked for the rice after the ramen, so that I could concentrate on the flavours presented.



First up, the fried young corn, which is deep fried and sprinkled with salt and a herb and spice mix. The corn was still crunchy, and the seasoning gave it a nice edge.



I realized during my last visit to Ippudo that the thickness of the ramen served varies with the broth you choose. The Tao Kuro version comes with a thick ramen, similar to the local mee-pok (or linguine). I guess it is similar to the ramen in Keisuke's Watarikani ramen. The broth is topped with the trendy black garlic oil and a dollop of miso. It comes with two slices of belly pork, cabbage, black fungus, minced pork and the ajituke tamago. I was surprised that the broth tasted quite different from the original broth in their Shiromaru ramen. The inclusion of both the black garlic oil and miso added another dimension to the broth. The flavour of the shitake was less apparent, but replaced by the depth of miso and garlic oil. The thicker noodle also gave it more bite. Quite satisfying. Would have gone kaedama if I had not ordered the rice bowl.



The rice bowl comes with come belly pork, shredded egg, seaweed, mentaiko and mayonnaise. Good thing the rice bowl is not too big, since it would be difficult to finish after the ramen and it is also quite rich. That said, it was a great mix of flavours, from the pork, mayonnaise to the mentaiko. And a good mix of textures, which included the seaweed, shredded egg and mentaiko.

I will definitely be back to this place. Will try their kushiyaki the next time, since I did not have any space left in my stomach this visit.

Rating: 7.5/10
Website: http://www.ippudo.com.sg/
Address: #01-55/56 UE Square, 207 River Valley Road
Phone: 6887 5315
Hours: 1100 hrs - 1500 hrs and 1700 hrs - 0000 hrs (Monday to Thursday)
1100 hrs - 1500 hrs and 1700 hrs - 0200 hrs (Friday and Saturday)
1100 hrs - 2300 hrs (Sunday)
Price: $$

Original Review for Ippudo at Mandarin Gallery
Subsequent Review for Ippudo at Mandarin Gallery