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@Clarke Quay

Shinzo @Carpenter Street (Singapore)

March 3, 2014
#Noodles, #Seafood, @Boat Quay, @Chinatown, @Clarke Quay, @Singapore, Japanese, Somen, Sushi
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Yogi sushi, second round.

imageI think it wasn’t even a week since I’d bean here but after another late yoga session i was magically drawn back into this place.

The initial idea was to just have some simple cold somen but glimpsing through the menu and chatting with the guys I  quickly came up with a much more complex plan. Ordering a round of sushi was the start – a wonderful soft Hotate Abury (seared scallop) topped with some tangy mayonnaise, delicious top grade Sake Sushi (salmon) and my first take on some ugly as looking but truly life-changing Anago (sea eel), all so big, covering the rice completely underneath.

wpid-imag6487_1.jpgMentioning that I wanted to have the Somen, one of the gentlemen recommended me a special version of the Sakane Soba instead. These were magnificently unfamiliar and being made from fish meat gave the noodles a unique flavour and crazy fish-like texture too. The chef topped it all with a thin, melt-in-my-mouth slice of Ohmi Wagyu working just fine with the soba and the strong dashi broth.

wpid-imag6493_1.jpgThey were also so nice to let me take part in the last course of their Omakase customers’ dinner and gave me a refreshing and lightly sour Ume Jelly ON THA HOUSE. Great day end that one was, thanks.

Shinzo Japanese Cuisine
17 Carpenter Street
#01-01
Singapore 059906
Tel: +65 6438 2921
http://www.shinzo.com.sg/

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Shinzo @Carpenter Street (Singapore)

February 26, 2014
#Seafood, @Boat Quay, @Chinatown, @Clarke Quay, @Singapore, Don, Japanese, Maki, Sashimi
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These doors are made to open.

imageIt gotten pretty late at the office and I just had finished one of the last yoga sessions of the day realising that way past 9 p.m. healthy dinner options thin out. I remembered that six months old Japanese restaurant next door which I had recognised first during its’ opening week when all the flower bouquets were lined up in front. I pushed aside the little sliding door at the entrance, it was still open, SCORE! It was totally empty and everyone was already cleaning up but they waved me in with a smile and guided me to take a seat.

Sitting at their bar it felt like ages ago that I had proper sushi and it suddenly turned out that I had missed it a lot actually. Therefore I ordered me a generous portion of delicious Maguro Sashimi (tuna), soft and chill, unfortunately a bit stringy at bits as well.

imageProteins done but I still had to secure my carbo intake and it seemed like that Tekka Don could do a great job. The fish was from the same cut as my sashimi just shortly marinated in a special soy mix, fresh and softly sharp because of all the finely chopped scallions. The sticky Japanese rice was amazing especially with the vinaigrette and all in all a proper after workout choice.

imageAs a palette cleanser in between all that fish, I ordered the Oshinki Maki (pickles) which I had expected to be that yellow pickled radish. To my surprise I received something green and super crunchy instead which one of the chefs told me was pickled turnip stem. Never had this but it was great and funny because of its’ scrunch with just a hint of sour.

I really liked it here and felt a bit special tonight with me as the only guest getting all the  attention. The chefs host like gentlemen and entertainers and aren’t shy to have a conversation with you, give  a recommendation or suggest customization of the menu items. I’ll come back here anytime if I feel like a treat and don’t mind to pay it as such as ‘Shinzo’ is also not the cheapest of places. Very nice.

Shinzo Japanese Cuisine
17 Carpenter Street
#01-01
Singapore 059906
Tel: +65 6438 2921
http://www.shinzo.com.sg/

Tamoya @Liang Court (Singapore)

June 9, 2013
#Noodles, @Clarke Quay, @Singapore, Japanese, Udon
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It’s Tamoya Time Again!

imageIt was one of those days again and my udon crew headed back to ‘Tamoya’ at Liang Court for another fix. I had set my mind to finally try their ‘Curry Udon‘ but since it got a bit late last night I felt more like something refreshing and spontaneously changed my mind and ordered the cold ‘Sanuki Udon‘ and added some of their newly added tempura items ‘Asparagus‘ and ‘Vegetable Croquettes‘ on top.

The noodles were lovely chewy as always and the cold soya broth tasted deluxe and was exactly what I needed, cooling and refreshing. The ‘Asparagus’ was nicely al dente but unfortunately a bit blend and tasteless. The croquette had a crisp coating with a soft nearly creamy potato-y inside which was a nice  taste and texture contrast to the cold main.

I guess in the meantime it became clear that I will come back here on a fairly regular basis to further explore their menu and maybe eventually I will end up having these delicious looking ‘Curry Udon‘.

http://tamoya.com.sg/index.html

Tamoya
177 River Valley Road
#01-11 Liang Court Shopping Center
Singapore 179303

Tamoya @Liang Court (Singapore)

March 28, 2013
#Noodles, @Clarke Quay, @Singapore, Japanese, Udon
2 Comments

Longest Udon Ever!

imageAs announced not even a month ago I had to come back here to try more types of their sanuki udon and this time I went for their ‘Kama-Age‘. The reason I didn’t order this at my first visit was pretty much a sign and their menu saying you may have to plan for 10-20 minutes preparation time. Those shrank to bearable 2-3 minutes when I ordered today. To be honest i couldn’t really make out why it took longer than the others but since it was much faster than I expected and a queue was building up behind me I didn’t try to ask.

The ‘Kama Age‘ came in one big flat traditional design bowl in which the udon sat in hot water. Aside came a smaller bowl filled with a tasty dipping sauce of dashi (fish/katsuobushi broth) and soya sauce. It tasted very delicate  and light and made eating them more fun and difficult. Since the noodles here are super long I practically started slurping in one end, had the middle sliding through the dipping sauce whilst the other end was still sitting in its’ hot bath. If I ate them right that is. I have to mention again that I really liked these noodles. They are handmade of a mix of three different imported Japanese flours and are nicely chewy. Besides the udon I also tried the ‘Chicken Karaage‘ today which was juicy and tasty but unfortunately also quiet fatty on the inside.

This place definitely hasn’t seen me for the last time as I have yet to try their ‘Curry Udon‘.

http://tamoya.com.sg/index.html

Tamoya                                                                                                                                                                 177 River Valley Road                                                                                                                                       #01-11 Liang Court Shopping Center                                                                                                     Singapore 179303

Tamoya @Liang Court (Singapore)

March 9, 2013
#Noodles, @Clarke Quay, Japanese, Udon
3 Comments

Great New Udon Assembly Line!

imageMy pal and I were hungry and bored this evening and so decided to make for some good old Udon. I read about this place recently and wanted to check it out ever since and so we decided for ‘Tamoya Japanese Sanuki Udon’ at Liang Court. The place has an unspectacular cantinelike setting and the ordering process has something of an assembly line.

I ordered a large bowl of ‘Kitsune Udon‘ (Fox Udon) that come in a deliciously light broth and are topped with sweet ‘Aburaage‘, fried tofu pockets. The udon were nice and chewy and surprisingly long, perfect for noisy slurping. I stocked up properly on the negi from the self service counter and finished the whole bowl down to the last drop. Only the tofu was a bit too sweet for me but I guess that one was called for.

Even that I am not a big fan I still had some ‘Eggplant and Sweet Potato Tempura‘ aside which were tasty and crisp. I liked the sweet potato more as the eggplant was a bit blend and too soft.

I am nearly as much an Udon fanatic as I am with ramen and so I am happy Tamoya has decided to come down to Singapore. I’ll be trying some of the other types in the near future so watch this space.

http://tamoya.com.sg/index.html

Tamoya                                                                                                                                                                 177 River Valley Road                                                                                                                                       #01-11 Liang Court Shopping Center                                                                                                     Singapore 179303