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2011-11-07
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Buddies & I decided to try out the new Japanese curry restaurant, Coco Ichibanya, located @ B3 of 313 Sommerset. We arrived just before 6pm on a Sunday, and were happy to be able to secure a table for 4 pax rather easily.Service was prompt and relatively friendly. Though there were many choices of curry dishes, the menu's layout was pretty easy to read through. The best part was that you could decide on the rice portion (they would even deduct $1 off if you decided to have less 100g of rice
Buddies & I decided to try out the new Japanese curry restaurant, Coco Ichibanya, located @ B3 of 313 Sommerset. We arrived just before 6pm on a Sunday, and were happy to be able to secure a table for 4 pax rather easily.Service was prompt and relatively friendly. Though there were many choices of curry dishes, the menu's layout was pretty easy to read through. The best part was that you could decide on the rice portion (they would even deduct $1 off if you decided to have less 100g of rice - good news for small eaters!) and the spicy level of the curry. We decided to try the followings rather quickly:
1) Mini Salad - $2
2) Fried Shrimp Curry - $12.50
3) Pork Cutlet Curry with Cheese - $14
4) Creamed Mushroom Omelet Curry - $13
1) Mini Salad
Ordered by "I just had late lunch" E - it was a simple small dish of greens with the usual Japanese white sesame dressing. Nothing spectacular, but the greens were at least fresh and crunchy. At $2, it's offererd a welcoming option for those dining companions who weren't too ready for a full proper meal.
2) Fried Shrimp Curry (rice portion: normal / spicy level: 4)
"The curry look dark!!" was our first response when the dish arrived. D who loves all things spicy, digged into the curry eagerly. We all tucked in our spoons to try without asking too.. First taste: It wasn't THAT spicy.. thus the spicy level was a little disappointing (given that L5's the max spicy level), though it did leave a very slight peppery tangy after-taste. It didn't taste like the typical Japanese curry too (nor like the local Indian curry). There's just a strong peppery flavour that seems to be present to justify the L4 spicy level. With only 2 medium size shrimps ("not too bad - crispy!" according to D), the dish looked a little bit too sad and bland. If only they had included some vegetables to stew with the curry (chunky carrots, celeries or potates, etc), the dish might have look a little bit more appetizing.
3) Pork Cutlet Curry with Cheese (rice portion: normal / spicy level: 3)
J wanted to try the curry at it's average level, so that she could know what the "normal" curry tasted like. It turned out to be a wiser choice, as L3 curry wasn't as peppery as L4, and tasted more like the usual Japanese curry we were used to. The curry was thick, though we noted that there's also no vegs.. making the dish a little miserable looking too. The pork cutlet was surprisingly tough and not juicy (in fact, it looked very, very dried up), making it a chore to chew & swallow. Having the long strands of shredded cheese around the cutlet helped to "juice-ened" it up a little, but taste-wise, you could do with or without the cheese, as the curry flavour over-powered it. J said she'll never order this dish again as the meat was just too tough, and after tucking in 2 mouthfuls, I had to agree with her verdict.
4) Creamed Mushroom Omelet Curry (rice & spicy level: fixed / not variable)
Personally, I want to thank the friendly waitress who recommended me to try this dish when I was hesitating between #3 and #4. This turned out to be the best dish among what we'd ordered for the evening. The omelet, mushroom, rice and curry proportion was well-balanced (and greatly enhanced by the cream around the omelet), making every mouthful of this dish a joy to munch on. While the dish is creamy with curry (?? funny description, but that's how it tasted like!), the (well-cooked) egg and (not too wet) rice helped to throw the "dry/wet equation" in balance.
By the time we finished our meal, there's already a long queue outside the restaurant. The waitress asked if she could clear our plates, and in less than 2 mins after, the bill was put on our table without our asking (VERY subtle hinting that we should leave as quickly as possible..). Still, the overall service was pretty friendly and decent.
Will I go back again? Maybe.. if I'm around the area. The location is good, and the prices are pretty decent. Food arrives rather promptly, service is fairly good. But I'm afraid both Fried Shrimp Curry & Pork Cutlet Curry with Cheese have definitely been ostracized...
FYI: Coco Ichiban is currently giving all diners a 10% discount (till end Nov 2011).
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