JWS Grille Factory (Bukit Merah)

Had been heading to the area around Bukit Merah quite a fair bit recently; found out about the new 有记 by JWS Grille Factory – 好有记炭火烧腊 that is located at Blk 11 Jalan Bukit Merah whilst passing through the area one day. 有记 by JWS Grille Factory takes over the former premises of the now-defunct outlet of Kumamoto Ramen; not to be confused with the rather similar-sounding Yew Kee Duck Rice 友記家傳鴨飯, Yu Kee House Of Braised Duck 友記鹵鴨之家 or You Kee XO Singapore, 有记 by JWS Grille Factory is a different establishment from all of them run by JWS Grille Factory — a name that might sound very familiar to some whom have noticed its presence in coffeeshops. The location of 有记 by JWS Grille Factory can be said as rather odd, considering how JWS Grille Factory actually operates an outlet of JWS Grille Factory within the coffeeshop just a couple of steps away from 有记 by JWS Grille Factory. JWS Grille Factory also runs several concepts; this includes the Meet Meat by JWS Grille Factory that is also often found ar coffeeshops situated in the heartlands, as well as moments’ 木萌 that can be found at Clover Way, Serangoon and Tampines. 有记 by JWS Grille Factory whilst being a different concept, does replicate the formula of moments’ 木萌 in a similar way — the store is decked in a way that carries nostalgic elements; think tiled walls, metal awnings above the entrance on the facade, and wooden tables and stools for its dining furniture; the food menu also follows closely to that which is served up at their moments’ 木萌 concepts but with a twist. Essentially, 有记 by JWS Grille Factory focuses on its charcoal-roasted meat offerings though much like moments’ 木萌, the menu also comprises of local breakfast toasts, zichar items, as well as western food items that one can also find at JWS Grille Factory. Beverages available at 有记 by JWS Grille Factory includes Nanyang-style Kopi and Teh, as well as a series of sparkling fruit juices — just to name a few.

Given their two noodle dishes featuring their charcoal-roasted meats a go but felt those items were a tad average-y; thought that their toasts and bread options actually faired slightly better overall. The Volcano Polo Bun was an item which we had previously wanted to go for during our visit to moments’ 木萌 at Tampines — it was sadly unavailable during that visit that we had made. Much like the Kaya Butter Toast and other items that are inspired on the same, the Volcano Polo Bun is available in both ala-carte or in a set; the set would make it pretty similar to the Hainanese-style breakfast where it comes accompanied with two soft-boiled eggs, and a choice of beverage. Since we were not intending to have the soft-boiled eggs, we went for the ala-carte version instead. It turns out, the Volcano Bun does involve elements like a bun, melted cheese and Milo powder sprinkled over the top. We did have a glimpse of its preparation process while we made our way back to our seats — the staff behind the counter immediately pulled out a ready-made bun in a plastic wrapper to prepare the order; we didn’t really quite have a good feeling about the item though it was not too unexpected anyway. That being said, the end product wasn’t something that our tastebuds rejected — kinda something that does grow a little bit on one’s tastebuds after a while even. Sure, the bun itself didn’t feel particularly Polo-like; we didn’t feel as though the bun came with a crisp and buttery crust, while the bun itself was a bit too soft — one that was felt very commercially-made, but the inherent sweetness from the bun actually went well with the savouriness of the melted cheese here with a subtle cocoa-like sweetness that gave it another dimension of flavours. The melted cheese was also one for the ‘gram; there is that cheese pull involved that makes it similar to the trendy grilled cheese sandwiches back in those days — an item that is likely made for the ‘gram that did not seem too bad overall compared to what we had expected, though admittedly also based on a trend that seemed to have past.

We actually came to 有记 by JWS Grille Factory wanting to give their Ba Wang Curry Noodle a go — this item would be a twist to their charcoal-roasted meat curry noodles that comes with Char Siew, Roasted Pork, Wanton, Mussels, Prawns and Beancurd Puffs(?) which sounds like an upsize of their other curry noodle offerings that also features more premium ingredients. Sadly, we were unable to give their range of curry noodle offerings a go during our visit to 有记 by JWS Grille Factory as those items were all sold out when we made our trip there during a weekday lunch service. As with the various charcoal-roasted meats that we had tried alongside their dry noodle offerings, we found all of their charcoal-roasted meats offerings to be rather average — between the charcoal-roasted duck, charcoal-roasted roast pork and the Char Siew, we did feel that the Char Siew was the strongest offering of the three, though the Char Siew here does seem to be on the leaner side and is a wee bit dry as compared to notable hawkers that serves up an artisanal version of the same. The noodles itself were good though; springy with sufficient black sauce — flavours akin to the instant noodle-style Mee Goreng that we once loved to have. The Kaya Butter Toast was the item that left an impression; crisp, toasted bread with a thick slab of butter in between — some would wish that they are more generous with the Nyonya Kaya spread, though we found it to be one of the better ones we have had in recent times. Other notable mentions would also include Butter Kopi and its Iced Kopi; the latter being served with an overflow just like it would be at moments’ 木萌 which we had also tried when we went to the Tampines outlet when they had just opened their doors. We wouldn’t consider 有记 by JWS Grille Factory as a spot to make a visit that is out-of-the-way; the offerings can be described as a tad average and basic here, though it is an unfair comment considering the number of items we went for in its rather large menu. That being said, its opening hours till 2:00am daily does provide residents and workers around Jalan Bukit Merah and Jalan Kilang a convenient and wallet-friendly late-night dinner / supper option to head to when hunger strikes at an odd hour.

Grilled Fish and two sides

Their fries menu looks fancy but $4 gets you normal fries and the sauce. Fortunately the portion helps justify its price. The yuzu sauce tasted exactly like yuzu.

With mac & cheese and fries. Satisfying. I like most fish burgers. The macaroni however was expectedly average.

It did its job but nothing memorable.