Pesto linguine with generous amounts of swordfish slices. We liked the swordfish as it was not fishy and quite flavorful but it can be a little on the drier side. While chili was added to the dish, it wasn’t too spicy if you leave those chili pieces out. The dish was also slightly sour due to the addition of lemon but the flavors came together rather well. On top of the pasta was also a generous serving of Parmesan cheese. Pasta was al dente and the serving is rather generous too.

The dish came with a huge piece of cod loin, fresh Japanese scallops, a scoop of crab meat on top of a mixture of brown and wild rice. The seafood tasted really fresh and we enjoyed the varying texture of the different ingredients. The bowl also came with some pickled cucumber, ginger and purple cabbage, which went rather well with the rice. The rice was also well-cooked, which was neither too mushy nor hard, and has the characteristic chewiness desired for those who enjoy brown rice. It can be a bit pricey (at $24++) but the quantity and quality of ingredients do justify the price tag. The Populus was really crowded when we visited on a Saturday afternoon (do reserve before heading down!) and we were given a dine-in time limit of 75 minutes. Food was served pretty quickly after ordering.

The dry Tantan Men was served with a generous serving of minced meat, a ramen egg, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts and some spinach. The chili sauce added gave the dish some kick but it wasn’t too spicy. The sauce also had a strong peanut taste to it and mixing everything together made the dish an umami bomb. The noodles were also really chewy. At $10.80++, which is inclusive of a complimentary bowl of white rice, this is pretty worth it! Water was also complimentary at this eatery.