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zeec
This is zeec . Japanese, Indian, Vietnamese are my favorite cuisines. I also love Restaurant, Café and Ramen, Seafood, Sushi/Sashimi.
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Categories : Japanese | Ramen

Interior Decor

Interior Decor

 

Upon stepping into the restaurant, you will realize that the decor is very Oriental in style, and this in fact reflects their take on the food they serve, which is a fusion between Japanese and Chinese. 

This was a food tasting organized by OpenRice, and first up was a shot glass of fresh cold-pressed soursop & pineapple juice. The soursop was pretty distinct while the pineapple helped to make the juice lighter and more refreshing. The juices at Ramen Isshi are classified by colours, and this soursop & pineapple was called Lemon Yellow.

We also got to try their soy-based mango & passionfruit juice (Total Soy-Yellow). At this restaurant, you get the option of adding unstrained cooked soybeans to your juices. The texture was slightly thick, like a smoothie, and was a little grainy due to the soy. 

The first starter that we got to try was their Tofu with Century Egg ($8.00). Small bite-sized portions of tofu are topped with chopped century egg and served in a mix of Japanese soya sauce and sesame oil. The sauce was quite strong which was good as tofu doesn't have much taste on its own. However, I couldn't really taste the century egg and wished it could be stronger. 

Carrot Cake with Saffron

Carrot Cake with Saffron

 

The Carrot Cake with Saffron ($8.00) was nothing like your hawker centre chai tau kway or western carrot cake. The yellow ball you see is the carrot cake, made from flour mixed with carrot and a little saffron, giving it the yellow colour. It has a prawn cube in the middle and it's served on XO sauce (made in-house) and topped with sliced radish and parsley. You're supposed to eat everything in one bite but though yummy, I felt that the XO sauce overpowered everything else. All I could taste was the slightly spicy and umami XO sauce and the mochi/tang yuan texture of the carrot cake. Presentation-wise it was really visually pleasing with all the different colours.

Chicken Wings Fritto

Chicken Wings Fritto

 

Next was the Chicken Wings Fritto ($6.00). We were a bit puzzled when this was served - why are their mid-wings so small? They explained that it's actually half a mid-wing, that's why! The wings are first deep-fried then dipped in soya sauce. Even then, it wasn't too salty and it was just right. The chicken was really tasty, with crispy skin and juicy, tender meat. Writing about it now is making me salivate tongue. The little ball in front of the chicken wings is actually made of 七味/shichimi, a common Japanese spice mixture you can find in many Japanese restaurants. It's freshly made by the restaurant, just like many of their other sauces. It was slightly spicy with a really fragrant szechuan pepper taste. What I also love about this dish is that it's really easy to eat because it's half a mid-wing...no need to try all means and ways to get the meat out from between the 2 bones in a mid-wing.

Tuna Sashimi and Avocado Salad Asian Style

Tuna Sashimi and Avocado Salad Asian Style

 

The next dish is very Japanese in style - Tuna Sashimi and Avocado Salad Asian Style ($12.00). The bottom layer was lovely creamy avocado followed by cubed tuna sashimi then topped with a 70% boiled egg yolk. Simply take a bit of each and wrap it up with seaweed, very much like a California handroll. Drizzled on the plate was a sauce made using sesame oil, mayo and szechuan peppers. The sauce was nice but there was no need to add this as the tuna, avocado and egg with seaweed was already really yummy on its own. I really loved the creaminess of the filling paired with the seaweed lol Yummy!!

Ramen Isshi also serves Homemade Kua Pao in Assorted Flavours ($8.00), in which the buns come is subtle beetroot, turmeric, matcha, prune, black sesame and original flavours. However during the tasting, we only tried the original one. This is something like kong ba bao with the bun made in-house (they have a machine with different functions, allowing them to make buns, gyoza skins and ramen). Sandwiched between the bun is a piece of pork belly and shredded scallions, with a side of sauce that's similar to that used for Peking duck. The bun was a bit too dense for my liking, and I also wished that the sliced pork belly was thicker. It's thinner than the bun so I can't really taste the meat. 

As mentioned earlier, they also make their gyoza skin in-house. Their Homemade Pan-fried Gyoza ($5.00) was served with a side of vinegar and chilli oil. One of the staff shared that the steamed part of the gyoza absorbs the vinegar/chilli oil more easily than the pan-fried side. I liked that the skin was thin and the meat filling was quite juicy. However, the folds of the gyoza was a bit hard. 

Tonkotsu Shiro Ramen

Tonkotsu Shiro Ramen

 

And finally it was the star of the show - ramen! First up was the Tonkotsu Shiro Ramen ($12.00) using pork bone broth. The soup was tasty and creamy, the creaminess is probably from the many hours of boiling the pork bones. I also loved that the soup wasn't so thick hence you won't get jelat/sick of the soup by the end of the meal. As for the noodles, they are the straight type of ramen, also made in-house. I really liked that it was slightly firm with a nice bite to it. The meat was also superb! Really really tender and both the meat and fats just melted in your mouth. It's the first time I have praises for all 3 components - the soup base, ramen and chashu. 

Tonkotsu Kuro Ramen

Tonkotsu Kuro Ramen

 

There was also the Tonkotsu Kuro Ramen ($13.00), which is their signature ramen. It uses the same pork bone broth but layered with really fragrant sesame oil that's been fried with shallots and garlic 4 times to obtain 4 layers of taste. The 4 times of frying definitely worked because I could smell the fragrance of the sesame oil, shallots and garlic, and could taste it in the soup too...super yums and fragrant!! Even though the fragrance was strong, the soup wasn't jelat...not sure how they do it. 

After having some food in our tummy, the good people of Ramen Isshi made us some strawberry makgeolli. This was pretty light in taste, and while you can still taste the alcohol, the drink goes down very easily. 

Tonkotsu Aka Ramen

Tonkotsu Aka Ramen

 

The last ramen served was Tonkotsu Aka Ramen ($13.00), which uses the same Tonkotsu base but with added seafood stock and szechuan pepper. I really loved this because you can really taste the seafood even though it was quite spicy for me. It tastes something like really yummy and flavourful prawn mee soup. Ahh, now I'm salivating again, haha!

Takeaway lunch boxes

Takeaway lunch boxes

 

For those looking to takeaway ramen for their lunch, fret not! Ramen Isshi takes a lot of pride in their food. How do I know? (1) Instead of packing the takeaway ramen in a normal disposable plastic container, they pack it in a 2-tier stainless steel lunch box in a thermo bag. The soup is packed into the top layer (which is air-tight so it won't spill), and the bottom layer is for the noodles. This prevents the noodles from turning soggy and also helps retain heat, so you won't get cold soggy food when you reach your office! (2) The noodles made for takeaway uses a slightly different recipe from the noodles made for dine-in. Hence by the time you reach your office (they shared that 10 mins is the perfect timing), the noodles will be just right.

So after all the food, we ended the meal with a dessert that's cold and refreshing - Almond Jelly with Framboise ($5.00). The bottom layer was raspberry, followed by passionfruit then almond jelly at the top. When you eat the almond jelly on its own, you can really taste the almond. But when eaten with the raspberry and passionfruit, it's overpowered by the other 2 (not that it's bad). The raspberry was a little tart and sour, and I like how it helps to clear the palate after your meal.

On the whole I really like all 3 types of ramen. All are good but it really depends on what you like or what you're craving for at the moment. The Shiro Ramen is already really good by itself, but is lighter in taste compared to the other 2, while the Kuro Ramen is great for those who like something more fragrant. Aka Ramen is perfect for those who love seafood but must also be able to tolerate some heat. I will definitely be back for the ramen smile

Thumbs up to Ramen Isshi for being able to serve great ramen, chashu and soup all in a bowl! Also, thank you OpenRice for organizing the tasting! lol

(Check out my OpenSnap account for more pics of this tasting!)
 
Recommended Dish(es):  Chicken Wings Fritto,Tonkotsu Shiro Ramen,Tuna Sashimi and Avocado Salad Asian Style,Tonkotsu Aka Ramen,Tonkotsu Kuro Ramen
 
Other Ratings:
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 4  |  
Environment
 4  |  
Service
 4  |  
Clean
 3  |  
Price
 3

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Categories : Indian | Restaurant

Been wanting to try out the food here after hearing my friend's positive review after dining at the branch in the east.

I absolutely love the decor and ambience of this restaurant. It is modern and chic, very heavy on wood with warm colours like orange and brown used. There's also a bar at the side. On a side note, I also like how there are options of 'less spicy', 'normal' and 'more spicy' when you order your food via the menu on their iPad. Makes ordering really convenient.

My boyfriend and I ordered the following: Mango Lassi, Biryani, Fish Tikka, Butter Chicken, Aloo Gobi and Garlic Naan. It sounds like alot but somehow we managed to finish all of it lol

 

(Check out my Opensnap account for close-up pictures of the food!)

Mango Lassi: This was not bad, you could taste the mango and yoghurt distinctively, sweetness was okay with a slight tartness from the yoghurt. It was quite thick at first but after the ice melted it was just right.

Biryani: Nothing special about this. Can be improved with a stronger taste of spices.

Fish Tikka: The tandoori fish was my fav dish of the night! It was smooth and tender, with subtle flavours from the spices used. Super yums lol

Butter Chicken: This was ok. I'm not a butter chicken kinda person so I don't have much comments for this dish, but it was definitely not bad.

Aloo Gobi: This is a curried cauliflower & potato dish. The cauliflower was cooked till soft yet still slightly firm. Loved the texture.

Garlic Naan: As the biryani was not sufficient for 2 of us and there were still dishes left, we got ourselves the naan. This was not bad, but wish there was a stronger garlic taste.

All in all, everything was good. The service was also pretty good as all the staff were friendly, prompt and helpful. Thumbs up!
 
Recommended Dish(es):  Fish Tikka
 
Other Ratings:
Taste
 3  |  
Environment
 5  |  
Service
 4  |  
Clean
 3  |  
Price
 2

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Cross Bridge Noodles Smile Dec 12, 2014   
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Categories : Cantonese/Hong Kong | Restaurant | Dim Sum

Saw that they have 过桥米粉 (literally translated as cross bridge noodles, haha) on the menu, so decided to order this as I've only seen this dish at one other restaurant in Singapore.

Cross Bridge Noodles come served with many small plates of ingredients and the noodles served separately from the soup. At the other restaurant, you have to add all the ingredients into the soup by yourself. Here at Crystal Jade, the waiter will push a tray of all the ingredients to the side of your table and help to add them all in while you watch.

Cross Bridge Noodles

Cross Bridge Noodles

 

I like that they served it in a stone bowl which helped to keep the food warm throughout the meal. There was black fungus, bean sprouts, egg, fish and chicken slices and salted veg with thick rice noodles. The soup was nice and slightly 'creamy', probably from hours of boiling the soup with chicken or pork bones. This was nice comfort food and I prefer Crystal Jade's version than the other restaurant's, think it's better quality.
 
Spending per head: Approximately $13(Lunch)

Other Ratings:
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 3  |  
Environment
 3  |  
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 3  |  
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 3  |  
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 3

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Tamago Sushi OK Dec 11, 2014   
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Categories : Japanese | Restaurant | Ramen

I try to eat healthy most of the time, so when I need something for tea break, I will head over to this restaurant to takeaway their sushi. They don't have a wide variety of sushi at the takeaway counter but I try to make do, haha.

Tamago Sushi

Tamago Sushi

 

I got their Tamago Sushi today at $3 for 3 pieces. The size of the tamago was pretty big. Taste-wise it was okay - egg was fluffy and slightly sweet like how it should be.
 
Spending per head: Approximately $3(Tea)

Other Ratings:
Taste
 3  |  
Environment
 3  |  
Service
 3  |  
Clean
 3  |  
Price
 3

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Pretty yummy! Smile Dec 10, 2014   
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Categories : Singaporean | Chinese | Food Court | Noodles

I'm not a fishball noodle type of person, but was suddenly craving for it.

Mee Pok with Ketchup

Mee Pok with Ketchup

 

I got myself the dry version and chose mee pok for the noodle. Because I didn't want chilli, they asked if I wanted ketchup instead so I said ok. The noodles were still al dente with a nice bite to it, and the ketchup gave the noodles a slight sweetness which I quite liked. There were also some pieces of lard which remained rather crispy even after being coated with ketchup. It was quite nice...didn't taste oily too.

Fishball Soup

Fishball Soup

 

There were 5 huge fishballs given. Pretty yummy and very bouncy lol
 
Spending per head: Approximately $5(Lunch)

Other Ratings:
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 4  |  
Environment
 3  |  
Service
 3  |  
Clean
 3  |  
Price
 3

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