[Tasting] Shinya Izakaya 深夜の居酒屋 @ 79 Boat Quay

Is it just me, or does Boat Quay look more vibrant nowadays? It feels that the area has rejuvenated by the steady stream of merry makers or just hungry people looking for good food, and reasonably priced drinks.

entrance to Shinya Izakaya

Was invited to the Shinya Izakaya and this new izakaya is helmed by Chef Kakiruma, Jack Wee and Vincent Lau. Shinya Izakaya specialises in fresh sashimi 刺身, kushiyaki 串焼き (skewers), Agemono 揚げ物 (deep-fried dishes), Yakimono 焼き物 (grilled dishes), Itamemono 炒め物 (stir-fried dishes) and Donburi 丼 (rice dishes). Location wise, it is just a few steps away from Georgetown Tze Char & Craft Beer. 

Izakaya in general, refers to a "stay-drink-place". I do like to visit izakaya (not the standing type though), as I could get a variety of snacks/appetisers (otsumami おつまみ) to go with the drinks.

Let's check out Shinya Izakaya! Being the new kid on the block, has its perks. Perks for customers! Spotted their 'Opening Special' promotion of the $1 sashimi or the $1 oysters, with terms and conditions applied. So, do check with the restaurant directly for any further query. 

good deal

cheers

If you're a teetotaler, then it might be a good idea to bring along a friend who does drink (alcoholic drinks to be specific) as the opening promotion requires the purchase of normal priced alcohol. Again, for friends who drink, please drink responsibly.

what are we drinking today?

The interior of the restaurant felt spacious. We were seated at one of the booths that could fit 5 to 6 pax. There are private rooms available as well, hence please check with the restaurant when you make the reservation.

booth seats

inner section of the restaurant

private room

For drinks menu, there are options for Premium Sake, Sake (in the form of 300 ml, 720 ml or 1800 ml bottle), Wine, Beer and non-alcoholic drinks such as soft drinks, green tea or juices. Iced water is complimentary. Selected per glass options for sake and wine are available.

We got ourselves a 720ml bottle of sake to try and to match with the food that we will be having today. Was recommended the Hokkaido Kanjyuku, an aged sake. Aged sake is also referred to as 'koshu'. This informal term refers to sake that's been aged at the brewery for some time before release. For Hokkaido Kanjyuku, it was aged for 3 years. The colour is light yellow, tasted sweet and mellow.

Hokkaido Kanjyuku (Junmai Daiginjo)

Alc                    : 16%

Polishing rate    : 65%

Brewery　　    : Kobayashi Shuzo (Hokkaido)

Not good to drink on an empty tummy, so we started with a platter of sashimi. It was beautifully plated. The default number of sashimi slices is 3 pieces for both the 5 and 7 Kinds of Assorted Sashimi.

5 Kinds Assorted Sashimi (akami, kanpachi, salmon, tai, hotate) @$48

 Ala-carte sashimi comes in 5 pieces per order. There's about 10 different types available on the menu, including premium items like otoro and chutoro sashimi. 

Ala-carte sashimi (clockwise): shima aji 縞鯵 (@$38), otoro 大トロ (@$48) and salmon belly 鮭の腹 (@$14)

close up view

looking otoro-ly delicious

What are the snacks/appetisers that you usually start with? Eihire or Grilled Dried Stingray Fin, is a typical Japanese drinking snack. However, the version here is more chewy as it seemed less charred than the versions that I had from other places.

Eihire (Grilled dried stingray fin) @$12

Gobo Stick Karaage @$6

I think this was my first time having deep fried burdock sticks and boy, I loved it! The flavour reminds me of pisang goreng (fried banana) but it's not. Hehe!

Moving on to the meatier parts, and I do mean it quite literally! We tried the Buta Kakuni, Chicken Teriyaki and Saikoro Steak.

Buta Kakuni (Stewed Pork Belly) @$12

The stewed pork belly was a whole lot thinner than I expected. Usually, we'd see thicker cuts of the meat for this dish. Tasted of savoury soy, sweet mirin and dashi. The fats was melty and dissolved almost immediately once it got into the mouth. Nice.

I was surprised by the Teriyaki Chicken dish, as it looked more like a deep fried item rather than a grilled one? No idea but it tasted good. 

Chicken Teriyaki (Grilled Teriyaki Chicken) @$12

Saikoro Steak (Pan-fried Diced Premium Beef) @$25

Am actually glad that the Pan-Fried Diced Premium Beef (Saikoro Steak) is more of cubes rather than too finely diced! Tender bites for all the two glorious pieces that I managed to steal. Light flavours for the meat.

Let's have a bowl of Tendon for something more substantial, although after having drunk the sake, a bowl of ramen would be ideal as well.

Tendon (Crisp Prawns with Vegetables on Rice) @$15

While the Tendon here does not have fluffy looking batter, nor was it superbly crispy since it was lightly drizzled with sauce, the taste kind of grew on me as I had more of the rice at the bottom. Only managed to try the root vegetables in the bowl and I liked both the pumpkin and sweet potato. Well cooked and tasted sweet. There's eggplant in there as well.

Usually, I'd look for chicken gizzard or heart but it's not available here. Instead, we tried the shishito, shitake, chicken meatballs, enoki bacon and tebasaki (chicken wing). The shio tebasaki was a tad dry but still flavourful. Loved the shishito (Japanese green peppers).

Kushiyaki (Skewers) - left to right: shishito @$2.50, shitake @$2, tsukune @$2.50, enoki bacon @$3, tebasaki @$3

 

My favourite dish for  the night, was the Grilled Yellowtail Collar. Looked a tad on the small side but tasted so good! Plump meat that felt buttery, and seasoned just right. Perfectly cooked.

Kama Shioyaki (Grilled Yellowtail Collar) @$20

Thank you Jennifer Yeo Consultancy for the invite and Shinya Izakaya for hosting the dinner.

Attended with Kris, Tracy, Hence and Ivan.

Shinya Izakaya

Address: 79 Boat Quay, Singapore 049867

Contact: 6327 9240

Reservation: 8112 8028

Business Hours:

Closed on Mon

Tus-Sun: 3pm to 4am

[Tasting] Gochi-So Shokudo ごち惣食堂 @ Novena Square 2

My first time trying Gochi-So Shokudo. They have 14 outlets islandwide hence, there is a high chance there is one near you!

Made a visit to the Novena Square 2 outlet at Level 3, thanks to an invitation from Jennifer Yeo Consultancy.

menu

let's discover the secret behind delicious pork~

scan to order

Let's try everything from the Truffle Fair menu! If you're a fan of deep fried, then the Truffle Cheese Mille Feuille would be right up your alley! Or, if you prefer grilled version, then go for the Truffle Chestnut Jowl Don.

Truffle Cheese Mille Feuille @$18.90++

Truffle Cheese Mille Feuille 

layers and texture

dip for a change-up

Truffle Chestnut Jowl Don @$12.90++

If you top-up $2, you'll get a choice of drink and a side. Wow, such value for money!

Iced Green Tea

Both pork were good as expected, but am more inclined towards the grilled version. We ordered a couple of other things to share and our table unanimously agreed that the Iberico Secreto Black Char Siew was our favourite! Succulent meat, well grilled, savoury sweet and so tender!

Iberico Secreto Black Char Siew (6 pieces) @$9.80++

Octopus Karaage @$7.80++

Crispy Pork @$5++

Oyster Katsu (3 pieces) @$7.80++

For all deep fried sides that we ordered, it was best to be eaten while still hot. Octopus karaage and the crispy pork were tender with adequately seasoned batter.

However, be careful with the piping hot oyster katsu!

interior

The prices remained reasonable for the quality of the food. Indeed value for money.

Thank you Jennifer for the invite and Gochi-So Shokudo for hosting the dinner. 

Outlet Information:

1. Asia Square Tower 2 #02-10
2. Bedok Mall #01-75
3. Bukit Panjang Plaza #02-19
4. Chinatown Point #02-41/42
5. Hougang 1 #01-23
6. Jewel Changi Airport  #B1-289
7. Millenia Walk #02-16
8. Northpoint (North Wing) #02-27
9. One Raffles Place #B1-30
10. Plaza Singapura #B2-50/51
11. Novena Square 2 #03-72
12. Tampines 1 #03-K2
13. The Seletar Mall #01-34/36
14. Westgate #01-02 

Gochi-So Shokudo ごち惣食堂

Website: https://www.facebook.com/gochiso.shokudo

Address: 10 Sinaran Dr, #03-72, Singapore 307506

Business Hours:

Sun-Thur: 11:30am–9:30pm

Fri-Sat:  11:30am–10pm

[Mother's Day Promo] 母親節外買套餐 Celebration Take Home Mother's Day Set

母親節外買套餐 Celebration Take Home Mother's Day Set (Good for 4 to 5 pax)

Celebration Take Home Mother's Day Set (4 to 5 pax) @$238

For friends whom prefers to celebrate Mother's Day in the comfort of their own home but is currently fretting on what order, this article is just for you! Goldleaf Restaurant offers a takeaway set that has dishes that mom would approve and of a good value too.

Let's take a look at the dishes in this set, shall we?

Cold Dish Trio 冷盤三拼

Cold Dish Trio 冷盤三拼

Braised Duck Thigh 家鄉鹵鴨腿

Braised Duck Thigh 家鄉鹵鴨腿

The braised duck thigh was aromatic, well braised and fork tender. That braised sauce is gold!

Steamed Seabass in Superior Soy Sauce 清蒸金目鱸

Steamed Seabass in Superior Soy Sauce 清蒸金目鱸

Kam Heong Flower Clams 甘香花啦啦

Kam Heong sauce is typically made of dried shrimps, curry powder, shallots and garlic. The kam heong flower clams here is of strong flavours and goes well with beer!

Kam Heong Flower Clams 甘香花啦啦

Braised Mushrooms with Seasonal Vegetables 三菇扒時蔬

Braised Mushrooms with Seasonal Vegetables 三菇扒時蔬

After eating at Goldleaf a few times, I must say that even their vegetables dish is done well. Crunchy greens, tender mushrooms with lovely sauce.

Golden Porridge 黃金海鮮粥

Golden Porridge 黃金海鮮粥

The golden porridge is cooked with sweet pumpkin (hence, its colour) with plenty of seafood such as whole prawns, scallops and mussels. Oh boy, those mussels were huge!

huge mussels

The above set although meant for 5 pax, I would say it can even feed 6 pax comfortably.

Thank you Kris for the invite and Goldleaf Restaurant for hosting the tasting.

Goldleaf Restaurant 金葉餐廳

Address: 88 E Coast Rd, #01-05/06/07 Katong Square, Singapore 423371

Website: https://goldleaf.com.sg/

Contact: 6346 1088

Business Hours: 

Daily: 1:30am–3pm, 6–10pm

[Tasting] COCA Leisure Park Kallang

My first time at COCA although I have long heard about this restaurant. Been around for as long as I can remember! Was blessed to be invited for a tasting at COCA Leisure Park Kallang by Jennifer Yeo Consultancy.

Located at Level 2, the restaurant was easy to locate since it was either at this end of the escalator or the other.

entrance

buffet

typical table setup

Doing the regular buffet dinner, priced @$49++ per pax and with about 70 items from the menu. Diners would be able to order through the tablet device on each table.

For the hotpot soup, the staff recommends us the new Laksa broth and Hua Diao Phoenix Pot.

let's see the soup

Laksa and Hua Diao Chicken Hotpot

While waiting for the ingredients to be served, diners could get their sauce from the sauce counter. Remember to mask-up when moving there. Noticed that when staff was not busy, they would assist the customer in mixing the sauces.

COCA original sauce (front) and my original anyhow made sauce (back)

for Hua Diao Chicken soup

Thanks to the staff who prepared the Hua Diao Chicken for us.

immersive experience

all in

let it simmer

suitably dressed

For drinks, one could have the option of lemongrass, lime juice or water chestnut. It is refillable.

water chestnut, lime juice

let's begin!

thinly sliced meats, seafood, prawn paste, dumplings

Fish Fillet 鱼片

Fish Maw 鱼鳔

Green Noodle 菠菜面

Prawns 虾

Thinly Sliced Mutton 薄片羊肉

House Special Shrimp Paste 特制虾浆

vegetables, beancurd skin and mushrooms

table-full, so beauty-full

cooking the Fish Glue 鱼滑

The quality ingredients one gets from COCA, translated into a delicious meal. Fresh seafood is their strength and goes well with laksa and also the hua diao soup.

prawn paste

fresh prawns

If you would like to enjoy COCA Laksa Hotpot at home, here is the info and the order link is provided below:

Laksa Hotpot Set (Serves 3-4pax) delivery only - $88

- Complimentary Mala Fried Rice

- Complimentary Mala Fish Skin

- 2 soup base 两种汤底  (2 Liter each)

- Thinly Sliced Pork Collar 薄片猪肉 200g 

- Chicken Fillet 鸡肉片 200g

- Prawns 鲜虾 8pcs

- Chicken Meat Paste 鸡肉浆 80g

- Shrimp Wanton 云吞 4pcs

- Fishball with Roe 鱼包蛋 4pcs 

- Chinese Cabbage 大白菜 200g 

- Local Lettuce 生菜 100g 

- Emperor Shiitake 皇帝椎茸 100g 

- Green Noodle 菠菜面 2 portion

- COCA Chili Sauce  COCA泰式辣酱 (200g)

Thank you COCA for hosting the dinner, and special thanks to COCA staff at Leisure Park Kallang for your care.

COCA

Address: 5 Stadium Walk #02-01, Leisure Park Kallang, Singapore 397693

Website: https://coca.com.sg/

Contact:

62413833

Business Hours:

Daily: 11:30am–3pm, 6–10:30pm

Order Online: https://cocahotpot.oddle.me/en_SG/product/8a818ed07f3442ca017f3ed8f28d3f85