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2010-11-28
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I have heard many good reviews about this Korean restaurant at Amara Hotel, & that many of its customers are actually true blue Koreans, so I thought I shouldn't miss it.I made a reservation for table for 2 pax on a Fri night at 6.30pm. When I arrived, the restaurant was still not full, but there were already many tables of Koreans and a big group of Japanese. As I browsed through the menu while waiting for my friend, I could see that the prices were not cheap, but what excited me was that there
I made a reservation for table for 2 pax on a Fri night at 6.30pm. When I arrived, the restaurant was still not full, but there were already many tables of Koreans and a big group of Japanese. As I browsed through the menu while waiting for my friend, I could see that the prices were not cheap, but what excited me was that there were several dishes that other Korean restaurants in SIngapore do not serve as they were more traditional/ authentic Korean food which may not be suitable for local palate!
Finally my friend came & we wanted to order the Dakgalbi (stir-fried spicy diced chicken), but the waitress advised us that it would be too big a portion for just 2 of us ladies. It was meant for 3-4 pax, even for the small portion that was indicated in the menu. I was a bit disappointed as I miss eating this in Korea. So we decided to order 1 main dish each to share. Here's how the food fared:
Kimchi side dishes
Once we ordered our mains, the side dishes were served and there were many different types of kimchi. I like the kimchi which made me feel like I am back in Korea hehe. But my friend commented it was too sour for her liking. There was also the seaweed, radish, salad, fish cake etc. I would say the types of side dishes being served here were very similar to those back in Korea. So if you like localised Korean food, then this may not be suitable for you.
Doenjang Jigae (Soybean Paste Soup) $15 (comes with rice)
This is 1 dish that is very hard to find in SG, or rather, very hard to find a good authentic Korean version here. But this restaurant serves great Doenjang Jigae! One point to take note is not everyone can take the strong smell of this stew, I believe it is an acquired taste. My friend didn't enjoy it when she tried a sip. Haha.
Dolseot Bibimbap $20
This came sizzling hot with the gochujang (chili sauce) and sesame oil separately. At first we didn't know that it was sesame oil so my friend just added the gochujang & it tasted quite different from the usual bibimbap we eat in other Korean restaurants. But I was still ok with how it tasted. Shortly after then we realised that was sesame oil. After adding it in, my friend thought it tasted much better.
As our main dishes came very quickly after they served us the numerous side dishes, we had "problem" deciding what to eat first, cos usually we would have more or less ate all the side dishes before we eat our mains. We thought the waitresses should spread out the servings so that we can take our time to enjoy the meal.
Another bad point about this restaurant is the service. The waitresses are not the most service-oriented people you can find in restaurants. Usually our tea would be refilled automatically by the waitress, but over here, we had to ask them to refill our cup several times. We also felt that they lack the smiles which is important in the service industry.
Personally, I am fine with the food they serve, as I felt it was pretty authentic & the taste similar to what you get in Korea. Guess one can tell by counting the number of Korean customers in the restaurant haha. However, it wasn't to my friend's liking. She mentioned that she still prefers another Korean restaurant which has become more localised these days. So if u think you can't accept authentic Korean food, then maybe you can skip this restaurant.
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