Noryangjin Fish Market

On the last day in Seoul, we visited the Noryangjin Fish Market. There were not many people but there were so much seafood from small fish to big fish, prawns to big hairy crabs, clams to abalones and baby squids to giant octopuses. However as we walked down the lane, every shop was actually similar in the seafood they were selling. Some of the sellers would try to talk to you persuading you to buy. There are also Chinese nationals there whom we could communicate with.

Finally, we settled for a flatfish sashimi. We chose the smallest in the tank and it cost us W20000. The stall tender sliced the fish swiftly and pieces of pink meat was laid neatly onto a styrofoam plate. We were then asked to go into the small stall to eat our sashimi. It was actually the space he used to kill and slice the fish. It was a bit gross so we paid and found a place to sit down to eat. The texture of the meat was tender. I especially liked the meat around its fins. As for taste, the meat was tasteless. It was a big plate for two of us and we got super cold eating in the cold weather. Hence we tried to find a restaurant to see if they could cook it for us.

We were lucky to enter this stall managed by an elderly couple. The stall is located by the staircase of the overhead bridge. We ordered kimchi stew and requested the ajuma to put the fish slices into the stew. She was very kind and didn’t grumble, scold or charge us extra. The kimchi stew was accompanied with Korean black rice (Heuk Mi Ssal 흑미쌀) and cost only W4000. We had a set each and the hot stew warmed our chilled bones.

Banner to Noryangjin Fish Market on the overheard bridge

Flatfish Sashimi

Kimchi stew with our fish

The friendly stall

Big Hairy Crabs

Many varieties of shellfish

Top view of stall

Overview of the market

다올식당 on Jeju Island

Our first proper meal in Korea on Jeju Island was at this restaurant. We were on our way to Manjanggul Cave and drove past this eatery. Immediately, we pulled over for lunch.

Here’s what we ordered:

Banchan

Bibimbab before mixing

Bibimbab after mixing

Pork Cutlet

Spicy Okdom fish

Menu

Shopfront

The banchan themselves were already very good! The kimchi was heavenly and very spicy. The bibimbab was really worth mentioning. I’ve never eaten such good bibimbab before! The vegetables were fresh and crunchy. Other than the usual spicy-sweet chilli pepper sauce (gochujang) used to mix in with the sticky rice and vegetables, the ajuma added in very very aromatic level 10 sesame oil! It was a taste of a lifetime!

The Okdom Gui (fish) was made sweet and spicy. The meat is a little soft but very sweet and tasty. Okdom is one of Jeju’s local products. The Jeju Okdom have reddish skin, translucent eyes and have four to five white tail fins. They are caught along the coast of Jeju and Japan. They are highly nutritious and flavourful due to the rich minerals present in Jeju waters.

The pork cutlet was surprisingly huge! It could easily be shared between 2-3 people!

One more specialty about the restaurant is that they used Korean black rice (Heuk Mi Ssal 흑미쌀) mixed with white rice! It became a pretty purple-ebony bowl of rice.

This restaurant is really worth visiting if you’re on Jeju island!

Restaurant: 다올식당
Address: On the way to Manjanggul Cave (5 minutes away from cave)
Tel: 064-784-7049

한밭식당 in Jeonju

In our adventure at Jeonju in Korea, we chanced upon this dull-looking eatery while looking for a place for lunch. It was so cold walking along the lifeless streets and we really wanted to eat something hot. Most shops were closed at the time of only 2pm! There were many shops which also seemed to have stopped their business. There were only a few souls driving on the road. It portrayed to be a dead town.

Hungry and cold, we tried our luck in this shop that was still open. We initially wanted to order only kimchi stew and bibimbab but the kind ajuma was saying we do not need to order as we won’t be able to finish. Not long after, we were served with 18 banchan, 3 hot stews, 2 grilled fish and 2 bowls of rice. We were truly shocked but yet at the same time amazed at what was laid before our eyes. One of the stews was piping hot steamed egg which was super delicious. The other was my favourite kimchi stew and the third was bean paste stew. The grilled fish was very fragrant and its meat sweet. The rest of the 18 banchan were equally tantalising. We really tried our very best to finish everything on the table and we succeeded. We paid W10 000 each for this very filling meal.

The eatery stall front

Our food

Restaurant: 한밭식당
Tel: 284-3367

Hello Kitty Town Restaurant and Amusement

I’m back from Korea and I had a good meal everyday! There’s so much to share with you here!

First of all, I would like to share on Hello Kitty Town Restaurant and Amusement in Seoul to all the Hello Kitty fanatics out there. The directions I had were a little complicated and we took quite a while to find the place. We tried asking some passerby but they had no idea about the place. So, here’s a video I made on how to get to the place:

 

Here’s a more detailed note on how to get to the place:
1. Seoul Metro Line 3 (Orange Line)  Madu station Exit #5
2. Walk straight after coming out of the exit for about 200m. You should see New Core Outlet on your right side.
3. Cross the big traffic intersection diagonally to Lotte Castle. (You may cut through the carpark to get to the pink building too.)
4. Walk straight down for about 100m until you see the statue in the video.
5. Make a left turn and walk straight for about 300m. You will pass by two mini marts (one on left and one on right).
6. Head towards the pink building and you will see Hello Kitty Town banners on the building.
7. Walk to Western Tower III lift lobby and take the lift to Level 3.

Here’s what we ordered:

cabonara

fried rice

seafood pasta

The portion is well-sufficient for one person. The food is so-so. When I requested for chilli flakes and cheese, they gave me some fragrant curry powder and said they didn’t have what I wanted.

Menu: Download

Child admission is 7000 Won for the use of play area. There is also a small area for purchasing Hello Kitty gifts. There is nothing much interesting for the adults. Neither are the food enticing.

The Hello Kitty Cafe in Hongdae (Hongik University station Exit #5) area is a more attractive place for Hello Kitty fans.

Restaurant: Hello Kitty Town Restaurant and Amusement (Seoul)
Address: 경기도 고양시 일산동구 장항동 868 웨스턴타워 B동 T3 3층
Tel: 031-904-1772
Opening Hours: 11 am to 9 pm
Website:  http://www.hellokittytown.co.kr/index.php

꼬꼬나치킨 & 호프 Chicken and Hof

Had authentic Korean Fried Chicken in Jeju near Seongsan Illchubong last night. We were exploring around our minbak and saw this small little shelter that was selling red bean paste fish-shaped pancake (붕어빵). It was selling 3 for ₩1000. It was piping hot that warmed us up in the super cold winter. The pancake was crispy and the red bean filling was aplenty.

After finishing the pancake, the adjacent shop was selling Korean Fried Chicken!! The wife was selling the pancake and the husband was frying chicken inside. Without much hesitation, we walked in and ordered a soy sauce flavored chicken.

A kind lady customer offered us 3 pieces of fried chicken while we were waiting for our soy sauce chicken. Koreans are so kind!!!

We ordered a glass of beer (₩3000) to go together with our chicken. I think it was a whole chicken that was served to us. Compared to the Korean Fried Chicken I ate in Singapore, this is so much cheaper. The taste is comparable to the one at Kko Kko Nara but at a much cheaper price.

Restaurant: 꼬꼬나치컨 Chicken and Hof
Address: near Sunrise Peak, Seongsan Illchubong, Jeju, South Korea

They offer delivery too.

횟집 (제주)

Blogging from Jeju, Korea!! Just finished a fantastic lovely meal near Hyeopjae (western Jeju-do). It’s our second day in Jeju and so far all our meals were really really awesome!

The restaurant was located by the bay and the setting was authentically Korean. You have to take off your shoes before entering the restaurant. The floor had a heating system and everybody spoke Korean. It was quite difficult telling the ajuma what we wanted.

Nevertheless, here’s what we had today:

Seafood soup (해물탕), fish stew in soy and spices (생선조림) and fish sashimi (회). The seafood soup was sweet with the seawater aroma. The fish in the fish stew was very sweet but it’s meat was a little soft. The spiced stew was very fragrant and it went so well with the warm white sticky rice. The fish sashimi was arranged in order of its texture. I guessed it was arranged according to the different parts of the fish.

The restaurant was very kind to deep fry some sweet potato tempura for our lovely 7-year old child as she didn’t eat sashimi. They were so kind!

We spent a total of ₩117000. On our way back to Travellers Hotel, it snowed. Lovely day!

Tel: 796-1608
(enter the tel number to search in GINI GPS)

Shimbashi Soba

I’m blogging from my iPhone now. Wanna see if the photos can be uploaded correctly and nicely.

Just before going for rehearsals today, I had dinner at Shimbashi. They specialize in soba and I always see a chef making soba behind the glass window whenever I walk by. So today I finally had the opportunity to give it a try!

Here’s what I ordered:

This is tempura seiro ($17.80). I found the buckwheat noodles not cold enough. However it had a very good chewy texture and I enjoyed it very much. The soba dip appeared to be a little salty but that’s still quite acceptable.

I also ordered a salmon sashimi ($9.80) which doesn’t impress me at all. It wasn’t a good cut from the salmon considering the hefty price and it lacked the sweet fishy salmon aroma when eaten. Disappointing.

Lastly, after I finished my noodles, the waitress came with this red little pot filled with soba-you (the broth used to cook soba). She poured the soba dip back into its container leaving just enough to flavour the hot broth she was going to pour in. It was nice!

The Houji cha ($1.20) I had was one of the best tea I ever had in a Japanese restaurant. The temperature was not too hot and the tea was rich in flavour, yet not bitter.

My dining experience was heightened as there was a Japanese man slurping his soba away. It was a joy to watch him eat his noodles so heartily. I would definitely be coming back for more soba!!!

Prices exclude 7% GST and 10% service charge.

Restaurant: Shimbashi Soba
Address: 23 Serangoon Central #B1-02 NEX Shopping Centre Singapore 556083
Tel: 6634 4786
Website: www.res.com.sg

Charcoal Thai

Situated in Kovan area, this Thai eatery is opened by my friend’s boyfriend. We finally had the opportunity to meet up for dinner today!

It was a clean place and the air-con was comfortable. The interior gave a cosy feeling. Here’s what we ordered:

chicken wings $6

clams $8

clear tom yum soup $8

crackers – complimentary

Beer $4.50, Thai Milk Tea $2.50

Fish $25

fried mixed vege $6

green curry chicken $8

minced pork with century egg $9

red ruby dessert

Toufu $5

The crackers tasted spicy! I was expecting some really normal-tasting crackers but these proved me otherwise!

The tom yum came in a mini ceramic furnace. It was POWERFUL! It was spicy enough yet not chocking to the throat (at least for me). The ingredients (fresh mushrooms, prawns, squids, fish) were generous. However, just to note, the fish in the soup is dory fish. So for non-dory lovers, you would have wasted big chunks of dory slices. I know of many people who cannot take the taste of dory. I’m a fish lover, so dory’s ok for me!

The minced pork with century egg was too full of the taste of basil leaves. I don’t really like basil leaves. Hence, I only took a piece of the century egg. The egg was tasteless compared to the traditional century egg porridge. So if you do not like the century egg taste, don’t be afraid to try this.

The fish was well-sliced and its presentation was good. The meat wasn’t overcooked and I loved the meat texture. The slices of fish made it easy to eat too.

The green curry chicken wasn’t the type of curry I was expecting. Probably I was too accustomed to the taste of the ready-cook pack by Dancing Chef. This green curry chicken was again too full of basil leaves’ flavour which I don’t fancy.

The toufu was average. Though toufu tasted plain and the same everywhere, the restaurant could have spent some time creating a special dip sauce to go with it. The peanut dip wasn’t that good to leave an impression in me.

Clams! Oh clams! Vongole! My favorite! The clams were considerably fat and juicy but lack a “wow” factor. I am always looking out for that “sea” aroma in shellfish – the kind of taste that makes you feel like you’re just by the sea eating freshly-harvested clams.

The stir-fried vegetables were good. I like the wok-hei it had and the various vegetables were evenly cooked – crunchy ones remaining crunchy and the soft ones juicy.

The Thai milk tea was refreshing and cools the throat after having much heaty food. The tea was aromatic.

Thank you boss for the red ruby dessert! It wasn’t reflected in the bill!  It was very nice and the red rubies were very crunchy and full of coconut flavour. However the red rubies were all stuck together and doesn’t give a good visual appeal or the ease to eat.

Bought home chicken wings and tom yum soup for my mum. She said the tom yum soup was good. However the chicken wings lacked of flavour. Probably it wasn’t well marinated as she said the wings were tasteless – not salty and neither were they spicy. She also commented the wings were small, but I thought they were normal in size? She probably expected more after drinking the aromatic tom yum soup.

The restaurant had a good flow of customers on a Friday night. So you may want to make reservations. The restaurant also serves steamboat and bbq (grill). Hence, if there are customers having bbq, you will walk out “fumed”. The boss may have to look into their fume hoods and ventilation.

Plain rice – $0.80
Towel – $0.30

There is no GST or service charge.

Restaurant: Charcoal Thai
Address: 7 Simon Road Singapore 545894
Tel: 6288 6260
Opening Hours:
Mon – Fri: 12pm – 2 pm; 530pm – 10pm
Sat – Sun: 12pm – 10pm
Email: charcoalthai@gmail.com 

Figos Grail

It was pure coincidence that my boss and I were here today for our work review session that I found out that my friend’s friend opened this restaurant with Mediacorp celebrity, Zhou Chong Qing (周崇庆, or otherwise more well-known for his Aunty Lucy “so embarrassing” character).

A well-thought designed counter and all interior decorations gave a cosy feel.

The interior is very cosy and clean. They are just newly opened for 4 months, so please do bear with them for any glitches. They are probably under-staff and hence we waited for quite long for our orders.

set lunch menu

Soup of The Day - Pumpkin Soup

The Pumpkin soup tasted healthy and it was smooth. The portion was just nice before the main course.

chicken chop

aglio olio with prawns

I had the aglio olio and I quite like it! The pasta was al dente and the prawns were succulent. Have I mentioned before that the quality of a western food  restaurant is to try how tasty their aglio olio is? I love it! It could have been better if they serve chilli flakes or Tabasco.

cream puffs

The cream puffs were a surprise as he brought out and place them on our table. They were bite size topped with a piece of fresh blueberry. The cream inside was chilled and it wasn’t too sweet! It was very very good!

Set lunch – $15.90+
The cream puffs were complimentary by my friend’s friend.
Full menu: http://www.figosgrail.com/menu/food/

I’ll definitely be going back to taste more of their food!

Restaurant: Figos Grail
Address: 308 Tanjong Katong Road Singapore 437091
Opening Hours: 11am – 3pm; 6pm – 11pm
Tel/Fax: 6344 4807
Website: http://www.figosgrail.com

Dian Xiao Er

A hearty meal for the family!! There are many set meals available for the family. Otherwise you may also a la carte. We tried all three types of duck – Ten Wonders, Wild Ginseng and Angelica Herbs.  We found the Ten Wonders and Angelica Herbs tastier. Groupon was having a deal on $20 for a duck and we frequented the restaurant during this few months. The restaurant is cosy but the waiters and waitresses can be quite passive.

Some of the prices:

One duck – $40
Soup of the day – $16.50
Hotplate Tofu – $10.80
Poached Spinach – $10.80
Kangkong Beancure (M) – $12
Sweet Celery $10.30
Cereal Prawn – $18
Additional duck heads – $1 each
Plain Rice – $0.90
Towel – $0.30

You may request for the gravy for the duck to be served separate with the duck. Do take note that if you like duck head and neck, you have to tell them you want them. Otherwise, they won’t give it to you when you order one whole duck.

Stir fried celery

Cereal Prawns

Roasted Duck with Ten Wonder Herbs

duck head and neck

Roasted Duck with Angelica Herb

Old-Style Steamed Fish Slices

Stir fried french beans

Sambal Kangkong

Soup of The Day

Poached Spinach

Hotplate Toufu

Prices exclude 10% service charge and 7% GST. Pay with UOB credit card to get a rebate voucher!

Long queue expected. Do be there early or make reservations.

Restaurant: Dian Xiao Er
Address: 10 Tampines Central 1, #04-07/08, Tampines 1, Singapore 529536
Te: 6783 6068
Website: http://www.dianxiaoer.net/