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($11.90 ++) remind me of KFC lmao but their curry sauce was quite so good tbh :") taste like beef aftertaste. The crispy chicken was quite crispy and crunchy for their batter skin but their chicken was slightly hard. But the overall curry sauce was quite addicting to dip and eat with it.

I know that going to a ramen place to order a rice bowl is absolutely counterintuitive, but contrary to popular belief, men don’t always want noods. Sometimes we’re looking for some fun, sometimes we’re looking for some love, and sometimes we’re looking for some happiness. And here at @hanamaruken_sg, I found Happiness Don ($13.80++).⠀
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The Happiness Don really does spark joy with three sizeable slabs of soft bone pork ribs, which have been slowly stewed for about a day. The result is a stunningly sapid piece of pork that falls apart at the slightest provocation, and every breathtaking bite of pork is packed to the brim with unbelievable umami. The pork ribs have been stewed for so long that cartilage within the ribs have been stewed into a jelly, and these bouncy collagen rich tubes are such a delight to bite into. ⠀
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The steamed Japanese rice in the bowl is sufficiently sauced with the same stellar stock that the ribs are stewed in, while the edamame & onsen egg turn this Don into a fully fleshed out & satisfying meal. The pickled ginger was a thoughtful touch, as the sharp sourness was adept and cutting through the fatty richness of the pork & the creamy, sticky runny egg yolk. With just how sublime the Happiness Don is, I don feel so bad about skipping the ramen.⠀
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As for the six piece Gyoza, they were crisp, delicious and fantastically fried, but $8.80++ a plate is a bit of a tall ask as these gyozas are notably diminutive. They are unquestionably unctuous though, with remarkably thin skin swaddling a tasty amalgamation of minced meat (pork? Chicken? Both? We will never know) and chives. Your mileage will vary, but at the end of the day I regret nothing.⠀

New on En Yakiniku's menu is the Wagyu Ochazuke, where hot green tea 🍵 is poured over thinly sliced Wagyu beef 🐄 served on a bed of steamed rice 🍚. The perfect comfort food on a rainy day, or in fact, any day!

Be sure to catch En Yakiniku's Sake Tengoku 🤩, a first in Singapore! Using superior broth & sake 🍶 to steam prawns 🦐 & clams 🦪 on the first layer, & garlicky giant scallops 🌟 on the second layer, the highlight for me in this special steamer over charcoal 🔥 is in the last layer.
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The essence of the steam transforms into a mouthwatering Japanese congee 🍚 at the bottom, which we elevate with a serving of Wagyu shabu shabu 🥩. Owing to the umami seafood broth, this was so sweet & comforting! 🤤

Friend N got the Melty Beef Curry Rice. While drenched in the robust curry gravy, the Black Angus beef chunks were not gamey while retaining its melt-in-the-mouth tender mouthfeel!

AFFORDABLE AND YUMMY Japanese Curry Rice within the SMU campus? If you haven't heard of Kuro Kare @kurokare, this place serves a DAMN FINE curry! 🍲 Also, SMU @sgsmu students get an additional $2 discount for every item!

You might notice the much darker hue of the curry roux generously ladled onto every plate! Due to the 36-hour cooking process, the gravy is umami-packed with a pronounced sweetness from the caramelised onions (which explains the darker colour of the gravy) and finished with a mild earthy kick from the combination of spices. Goes really well with the available protein options, such as their appropriately named K.F.C. (Kuro Fried Chicken)! 😆🐔 The chicken katsu also hits the spot with a light & crispy panko cladding over the chunky chicken meat.

Heard good things about this Japanese Curry purveyor at SMU so decided to pop by to try. Navigated the labyrinth that was the SMU underground and found ourselves as the only customers in the cosy eatery at close to 7.30pm.

The things that stood out the most were the wide variety of different toppings on their curries as well as the affordable prices - their most expensive beef option was only at $16.90!

We chose the Fried Chicken ($11.90) and the Croquette ($6.90) options. The curry that accompanied each bowl was truly something unique and remarkable; every bite was full of bold and earthy flavours, a blend of richness, spice, and tinges of sweetness and tanginess. You'll forget about using those Golden Curry premix after trying Kuro Kare's rendition. Add in a few drops of their chilli blends for a burst of tangy spiciness to kick things up a notch (but beware, they're REALLY spicy!). When the heat becomes too much, don't forget their cold and refreshing barley tea as well as their tangy and crunchy pickles - both were complimentary and free-flow!

On to the toppings, we really enjoyed the Chicken Katsu which was juicy and so crisply battered. While we felt the croquette was was slightly lacking in potato, the mentaiko sauce drizzled on it was surprisingly delicious and paired well with the curry. It was so good I had to try their Waffle with Mentaiko ($3) which was a combi I've not seen before. While they were nice, I thought that the waffle could be crispier for that crunchy exterior-soft interior and the mentaiko could be torched for depth of flavour. But for $3, the portion and taste was not bad!

Salmon overloaded. Not only are they popular for their thick cuts of salmon sashimi, but their rolls were also pretty good too! Getting their rolls for half the usual price every (roll with us) Wednesday is a steal.

The rockstar roll combines seared salmon draped over fried cheddar and generously topped with torched mentaiko sauce. While the cheese and mentaiko stood out in this roll, the salmon was also nicely seared. This would be good for sharing as the rich and creamy flavour may get a little jelak to finish alone.

The other roll I tried was all salmon all the time that has salmon sashimi, cucumber and avocado covered with seared salmon and tobiko and drizzled with yuzu mayo.

Rockstar Roll 》$9.95 (U.P. $19.90)
All Salmon All The Time》$9.45 (U.P. $18.90)

they have a p nice selection of sake too!

went early for dinner before it got really crowded. you MUST drink or you won’t be allowed to dine👀 wld rec the Potato Salad ($6) and Oden Dashi Soup ($2) sides to go w ur drinks👍🏼

Kaisen 8ar is one place that we have had caught wind of a couple of months ago and looking forward to its opening — located at the third floor of Fortune Centre, Kaisen 8ar takes over the former premises of the now-defunct Gyosen; itself being another Japanese restaurant serving up Donburi and Omakase set menus for lunch and dinner within the building. Kaisen 8ar is yet another concept by Chef Kevin Wee; a name that probably one would find familiar if they had been following the happenings in the local F&B scene in the past couple of years — for those whom are unaware, Chef Kevin Wee had previously been worked in establishments such as Syun and Kaunta, while other establishments that he had been involved with in the past includes House of Chirashi which is located at East Village, the now-defunct Chirashi Sora at The Venue Shoppes, as well as Age-Ya at Far East Plaza. He also does run a hawker centre stall named Hinoyama at Golden Mile Food Centre which serves up his stellar salmon miso soup which we visited some time back when they had just opened their doors. The space of Kaisen 8ar hadn’t seen much change ever since its days of being Gyosen; the entire space being decked in a rather dark theme that sees a large use of black in its fittings. That being said, we did notice that there is quite an impressive mural on the wall of the main unit featuring Japanese Koi fish, while the wooden furnishings do help to provide some contrast against the dark interiors of the space. Occupying two shop units that we are located across the aisle from each other, patrons can either pick to sit at the main unit which comprises of mainly bar counter seating or the adjacent unit that comes with proper dining tables and chairs. The food menu at Kaisen B8r sees items being split across categories such as Appetizers, Bara, Sashimi, Sushi, Kaisen Chirashi, Tempura (deep-fried), Yakimoko (grilled), Donburi and dessert.

We have previously written about the various Chirashi Dons which Chef Kevin Wee had served up at the various establishments which he had been involved with in the past ever since his days at House of Chirashi — all of them being having left a strong impression considering the price and the quality of which it comes with; his Kaisen and Bara items are not to be missed. The menu at Kaisen 8ar describes the Salmon Don to come with elements such as Trout Sashimi, Trout Belly, Tamago, Ikura, Tobiko, Furikake, Tempura bits, Sakura shrimp and Cucumber — the Salmon Don also comes accompanied with a bowl of their Salmon Miso Soup on the side as well. As always, the Salmon Don comes in a really dramatic aesthetic where the item is served in a two-tiered platter; the main components of the Salmon Don occupying the top-most tier of the plating, while the salad comes at the base. Having tried so many variants of Chirashi Dons from Chef Kevin Wee, the Salmon Don at Kaisen 8ar isn’t too unfamiliar to those whom had tried his creations before — going straight for the slices of trout sashimi, these were thickly cut to ensure one can get a good bite of the fish to enjoy its textures; the fish being absolutely fresh at the same time. In retrospect, the Trout Belly comes with a light torching from the blowtorch to achieve that slight smokiness akin to Aburi salmon belly; this one being thickly-sliced like the Trout Sashimi to give it a good bite as well. Since this is pretty much a Kaisen item (as opposed to Bara), this meant that the other elements such as the Tamago, Cucumber, etc. are not chopped up and mixed into the rice just like how the Hana Bara is. That being said, the other elements all play well to provide a harmonious blend and contrast of flavours that enhances the flavours of the dish; a little sweetness here, a bit of crunch there, and a popping sensation that provides for a umami note — everything is just as well-balanced. The mushroom-infused sushi rice served at room temperature is a hallmark of Chef Kevin Wee that should not be forgotten as well; provides an additional touch of earthiness to the Salmon Don for a flavour unique to his very own.

From all of the previous concepts that Chef Kevin Wee had been part of all the way to Hinoyama and Kaisen B8r, one thing is definitely constant here — the concepts which he had been involved with have shared one thing in common. There has always been a disparity between well-priced Bara Chirashi Dons that often feature marinated fish slices / cubes as opposed to the ones that seemingly coin on the natural flavours of the fish which usually comes charged at a premium price tag — Kaisen 8ar attempts to bridge this gap rather reasonably; despite the higher price of the Bara and Kaisen items at Kaisen 8ar as compared to that of what House of Chirashi, Chirashi Sora and Age-Ya used to charge, we do still think that Kaisen 8ar had achieved what seems to have been a constant theme across all the concepts that came before it. Food quality has also remained rather consistent all these whole with Chef Kevin Wee behind the counter as well; there had always been a consistent emphasis on the freshness of the fish, while the execution of the dishes exudes attention to detail — right from the way the sashimi slices / cubes of assorted raw fish are being sliced, all the way to the other elements that are included in the dish to further elevate the entire experience further. There is also a lot of care placed in the presentation of each dish; every dish featuring a multitude of colours with an eye-catching presentation — usually in a format featuring multiple tiers, which is a feast to the eyes to the patrons. Case-in-point, the Hana Bara was exactly what we recalled it to be as per our visit to Age-Ya just months before where we last had it; still as colourful and flavoursome with a myriad of textures that just keeps one going. The same could also be said about the Salmon Miso Soup as well; not overly salty, while the salmon chunks (which they were also generous with) was melt-in-the-mouth tender — very delicious. Prices of the Bara and Kaisen items at Kaisen 8ar range between $20.80++ to $78.80++ — pretty much dependant on how “premium” one wishes to go; still a place that those whom have yet to check out Chef Kevin Wee’s rendition of the Chirashi should add to the list of places to go. We were still able to make walk-in visits when we dropped by on a weekend afternoon for lunch service; best to check it out before the crowd finds out about their existence in time to come!

wld rec this!! warm & comforting, goes well w drinks. you can choose from plum/mentaiko/salmon