Japanese

Had the Kinyama Ramen ($10.90). Came with a heap of crispy enoki mushroom and a stack of thin charsiu just below. Enoki was beautifully fried, and generally stayed crisp even when soaked in the soup. I’d say this is more like fast food ramen (but with a fairly long waiting time because of the crowd) with a generous portion.

Had a Hot Shot Set (pork katsu curry, white rice, broccoli, potato salad) + DIY salmon mentai with furikake rice, cabbage salad, and kinoko mushroom + add-on miso soup and mentaiko egg. It was about $28 with GST and a 0.1% service charge.

Quick thoughts - The mentaiko salmon was great, it was a large slice and had a generous heaping of mentaiko. Loved the mushrooms too. The pork katsu curry, potato salad, and add-on miso soup+egg were average, so I wouldn't recommend it. It was also hard to eat with the small bowl and large spoon, which requires some skill or a second bowl.

It was less crowded than the other eateries up till about 6pm on a Sunday, then quickly became packed. The crowd does move quickly though, and food was served in eight minutes. Would return if I need a quick meal, especially once I figure out which dishes are the better ones.

Shared the Burpple premium set with a friend ($30.90, no extra charges), which came with two dons, salads, soup, drinks, and four pieces of chicken drumsticks (not pictured). The soup had radish and salmon pieces, besides the usual seaweed! Was quite surprised by the generous spread, plus the free flow eggs. I found my mentaiko salmon unevenly cooked - one half was moist and tender, another half was slightly chewy and on the dry side (I just had to start on the nicer side first T_T). Otherwise filling and delicious!

Service was fast and good, especially cos we dropped an gooey egg haha. Downside is that it’s a small eatery, so you’re seated elbow-to-elbow with other diners.

Ordered this dry aged tonkatsu set ($18.90+) which the waitress recommended. The meat is tender, but chewy and had a strong meat taste that I didn’t enjoy. There were a couple of delicious fat-filled tips. The set came with soup (cream of corn?) and chocolate ice cream that was good too.

Would be happy to come again, but I think the cheaper lunch sets are more value-for-money.

Friend recommended this as her go-to lunch spot, and we both ordered the chicken katsu white curry set ($15.80+ / ~$18). The white curry tastes like normal Japanese curry, and had a large piece of potato, carrot, and broccoli instead of the usual cubed onion/potato/carrot. The chicken katsu steals the show as it is crisp without being oily, and moist. Felt almost like pork loin katsu, but chicken!! Miso soup is deceptively plain-looking, yet is light and tasty. Found the truffle oil chanwanmushi pleasant, but nothing special.

Am stuffed with the normal portion, but you can ask for more miso soup and rice as it is free flow. The price is comparable to large Japanese restaurant chains, but much better than their usual chicken katsu curry. The interior is also truer to eateries in Japan, and they helpfully provide a basket to place your bag in for safekeeping.