Craftsmen Specialty Coffee

It was a lazy weekend afternoon. We decided to find a quiet place to chill. Chanced upon Craftsmen Specialty Coffee at Mohammed Sultan Road and decided this café shall be it. Around for a few years, its presence can also be found at Central, Siglap and Thomson. Loved how the place is bright and spacious with white wall, high ceiling and light let in through the glass frontage (not sure if the lightbulbs would be sufficient at night though). Colourful bottles of soda and beer on wooden and black metal shelves, together with potted plants hanging from above or sitting on a surface, stood out against wooden tables and chairs with black metal legs on concrete floor. As my dining companions and I were not hungry, we shared a slice of cake and had a drink each. Could neither rave about the coffee nor fault its cake.

Eight Korean BBQ

Eight Korean BBQ opened its 1st branch on the 2nd floor of Central in 2013 and has since expanded to Shaw Centre. My dining companions and I visited the former for lunch on a weekday, and was surprised there was just another two tables occupied. According to the website, it is named after its 8 Colours Set – pork belly slices in wine, original, garlic, smoked, herb, curry, miso and gochujang flavours (from the lightest to the heaviest). Decided to order its Flower Pork Set of flower pork belly, pork neck steak and pork jowl to try different parts of the Mangalitza hog used here. A rare pig of Hungarian origin often mistaken for sheep due to its thick woolly coat, it can withstand harsh winter as low as -30^oC. Is this why the raw meat was red like beef with marbling twice that of regular pork? Was apprehensive about putting a piece of 100%-fat-looking jowl into my mouth but am glad I did as fats had never taste so good, possibly due to Mangalitza fats melting at a lower temperature than regular pork fats.

There was no gamely smell to both the fats and meat which were tender, juicy and sweet. Every set comes with raw leafy greens that you can use to wrap the grilled meat and mushrooms with kimchi and bean sprouts. And Seafood Bean Paste Stew that started a tad bland (though a dining companion thought it was flavourful enough), was just nice in the middle of our meal but too salty and thick at the end. Could neither rave about the clams nor fault the squids in it though the mussels were not fresh which the staff kindly changed for us. We also ordered a comforting White Ginseng Chicken Soup – taste of the chicken that could be easily torn apart with the Korean metal flat chopsticks and spoon, was accentuated with a dash of the salt and pepper that was served alongside. Of the banchan, our favourite was the thin slices of preserved radish. Oh, and did I mention that the grill plate was tilted to drain away the oil and that you can spray fabric freshener on your clothes before leaving the Korean restaurant?

Mitsuba

I was back at the same restaurant for lunch within a week, also on a weekday but with another group of dining companions. It was definitely not because I was so impressed with its a-la-carte buffet during my 1st visit that I dropped by again to try other items on the menu. In fact, most of the food we ordered for the buffet was mediocre with a few not-too-bad dishes and only one that stood out. The Teba Karaage from the Age Mono menu, or deep-fried marinated chicken mid-wing, was crispy on the outside with succulent and well-marinated meat. We could not fault its Chawanmushi and Dobinmushi (Japanese teapot soup) though were divided over the tempuras and Teppanyaki Pork Shogayaki. Found the former a tad oily and its batter too thick for my liking while some of us thought the latter, pork in Japanese ginger sauce, had a gamely smell and taste.

Marutama Ramen

With an orange logo reminiscent of basketball and a name which sounded like "his/her mother" in Chinese, Marutama Ramen opened its 1st branch at Central in 2007. My dining companions and I tried it many years ago, not long after it opened. Recalled how we were not seated until all of us had reached the restaurant on the 3rd floor though the only one yet to be in the queue was already exiting Clarke Quay MRT Station when it was our turn. Marutama Ramen has a simple menu with limited choices and serves Hakata thin noodles in chicken broth. Vaguely remembered I liked its springy ramen though another dining companion prefers Santouka, located on the 2nd floor within the same shopping mall. More branches had since opened at Liang Court, Suntec City and Killiney Road (note that the one at United Square has closed). Chanced upon the latter, not listed on its website, on a weekday evening and there was no queue.