Manpuku!

My family and I decided to head down to Tampines 1 since their opening was so long ago and we didn't get a chance to go down (cos of exams and stuff). My mom heard about the restaurant hall that sold a wide range Japanese food, and we were are really excited to go down! (they're sorta put together by ajisen)

upon reaching tampines, we realised we don't know where tampines 1 was! which was rather silly, since it's just on the opp. side of the mrt station. after finding it, the problem was car park! maybe going down on a friday was not the best idea as it was really crowded! my mom had to hunt for a parking lot, and with lady luck on our sides, we manage to find one real quick albeit the long queue.

we went to shop around a little, went to the 2nd storey and checked out 'uniqlo' which was supposedly a popular casual wear store in japan. Much to my dismay, i really wasn't very attracted to anything there, but i may have been bias since shopping isn't something i enjoy doing.

we spotted 'Manpuku' on the 3rd storey, which was great cos we were actually starting to wonder where it was. The first thing i noticed was the 'please collect your queue number here'. This made me wonder if we were suppose to queue up and wait to be seated, or wait in line to collect a queue number and then wait till they call our number to be seated. Though the latter was redundant, it really did feel like that was what it was trying to say. Nevertheless, it caused a little problem for my family and my mom asked the waiter. and well, we realised it was queue up and wait to be seated.

now, why didn't they just wrote that? tsktsk.

the moment you enter, the ambience is rather mesmerising. The cosy feeling due to the yellow lighting and the welcoming sight of fruit tart that caught my attention. This felt like a good start to a great experience. However, this did not last long.

btw, the photos are rather blur cos i was too hungry to take a decent photo. sorry haha





















I didn't manage to get a photo of the strawberry chocolate tart & prawn okonomiyaki that we ate too!

Overall, it isn't the best japanese food I've tasted. Decent enough, but not that great, however, the price was quite steep considering there's no service charge involved. My family of 5 chalked up a hefty $140 approx. This is rather expensive since the food doesn't really have the 'wow' factor to it! The range of food can be found rather easily and the tart, which i really had high expectations of did disappoint me quite a bit.

Though I wouldn't mind returning to try the other food, but frequent visits would be rare.

10 Tampines Central 1
#03-16/19 Tampines 1
Tel: 6789 6810

http://www.ajisen.com.sg/Manpuku/

Pachi-Pachi Japanese Restaurant

Pachi-Pachi is not exactly the most eye-catching restaurant, since it is quite difficult to be spotted as it seems to blend in so well with the other restaurants. My friends & I actually 'stumbled' across this restaurant after getting tired of eating the same food found near my school. Although it seems pretty popular with the staff working in the buildings nearby, I thought Pachi-Pachi had less customers than expected.

The place felt relatively small the first time I stepped in. With 2 tables for six pax, 2 tables for two pax and 1 table for four pax. But, you can't judge the food just bcos the restaurant is small, can you? And if you're looking for authencity, the Lady Boss will definitely leave you at peace. One main reason being, she's Japanese! =D

As seen in the menu, Pachi-Pachi does not have a very large variety compared to restaurants like Waraku as there are only 2 ppl in-charge of the restaurant.

Chicken Teriyaki Donburi

Just thinking about the teriyaki chicken makes me drool. The sweet tasting sauce with the aroma of japanese rice lingering around you. It's no wonder I've been to this restaurant at least three times. To me, I think the Rice plays a crucial factor to the whole meal. If the rice was badly made, that particular meal would have been lost.

Unagi Donburi

This is my set, and I thought it was good. Not great, but reasonably well made. (I have a weak spot for eels, cos it's so delicious!) Like the teriyaki chicken, the sauce for the eel was great. Not too sweet or too salty, which really made my day cos I hate it when the sauce overpowers the food. Likewise, the rice was fragrant too! But if you don't like soft bones, this is definitely not a good choice.

Salmon Teriyaki Donburi

This was my friend's set, which I didn't get to try. Maybe I'll try it the next next time I go over! Cos I'm saving my next meal for the chicken teriyaki!haha

The tofu which comes with the meal came as a surprise to me, cos i've nvr eaten cold tofu. (Never had the guts to try haha) However, this was a good change but it is advisable to eat the tofu first as tofu has a very mild taste.

This is the ice cream that comes with the set. Today's was cookies and cream, but they do change the flavour. The other flavour is a blueberry + strawberry kinda taste, I couldn't really tell what it was. Though this is not any top notch ice cream, the dessert was very satisfying as it gives a kind of 'complete-ness' to the meal.

From the front of the restaurant, the first thing that can be seen is 'Okonomiyaki'. This word came from two parts, mainly:

Okonomi meaning 'What you Like' and 
Yaki meaning 'grilled/cooked'

I've yet to try this dish cos the 'Yakisoba' didn't leave the best impression.

I went down once to try the Yakisoba with shrimp & egg. It was passable, but I found it a tad oily as I could literally feel the oil when eating it. Didn't really like it, as I felt that the Donburi's were much better.

Basically, this is a great restaurant to come to with reasonable price and a filling meal. (If you're a big eater, that's another case haha) =D

Pachi-Pachi Japanese Restaurant
#01-12 Cuppage Plaza
Tel: 68364045
Opening Hours: Noon-3pm, 6pm-10pm daily

Waraku Japanese Casual Dining

Waraku has become a frequent restaurant for my family and I! We love Japanese food and used to eat at Sakae Sushi all the time, but after trying Waraku, everything has changed! Sakae seem to pale in comparison, but some of their food is still good. Though I prefer Waraku much more. And they've changed to the new menu from 28th April!

I went to the branch @ East Coast Park, and this is how it looks like when you walk in. It feels pretty cosy, but try to not sit at any of the tables within the view in this picture as it can get rather warm.. Maybe cos the A/C in that area doesn't work as well.

We went there at around 4pm as they had the Lunch Special (1 choice of noodles + 1 choice of Don/Sushi for $9.80)  and it's every day from 11.30am to 5pm! It's a pretty good deal for me as it's enough to feed two 'medium' eaters.

We ordered the Chasoba + Gyu Don(without spring onion) set! 

The Gyu Don(Beef Rice) was fragrant! One of the few beef rice that I actually liked! The rice was 'just-right' sticky and it complimented the beef extremely well! It brought out the taste of the beef and the sauce on the rice was flavourful, making the Gyu Don enticing and delectable. Although it looked rather oily on the rice, it can't be tasted at all! This dish left me wanting more!(and it's my sister's favourite gyu don!)

The Chasoba was awesome! The best soba I've eaten in a long time! You can tell by biting into the springy and refreshing cold soba for the first time! It's definitely a Must Try if you go to Waraku!It's really difficult to find good Chasoba, cos most of them either taste like they've been left in the freezer for days or it's just plain bad. The Chasoba is a dish i'll always order when I go there! (:

Soft Shell Tempura($7.80)

The Soft Shell Tempura was not very outstanding. It was a little tasteless, maybe cos of the oil(I really don't like oily food, it gives me a headache). My aunt said the Soft Shell Crab at Sakae was better as the taste was brought out further.

Tako Wasabi(Octopus marinated with wasabi)($4.80)

This isn't a dish that most people would like, it had a very strong wasabi taste which would be quite difficult for most people to accept. The tough, rubber-like texture and the seafood taste would most likely cause most ppl to dislike this dish, but it's a interesting dish to try.

Negima(Grilled Chicken & Japanese Spring Onion)($4.80)

The sauce was a little salty when you first taste it, but the chicken meat was tender. This was a rather normal dish, but was alright on the whole. Not an exceptional dish though.

Chawanmushi(org. $4.80, Special $2)

It tasted rather ordinary, like most chawanmushi. However, this one contained mushroom, eel, naruto and chicken. Which gave it more flavour then Sakae's. It's tasty on the whole.

Uramaki(org. $9.80, Special $6.80)

This sushi is sorta like their 'special' ones, as they had a few pictures of it hanging on the wall.(and they looked really good!) However, the pics on the wall was much better, as the presented dish did not look as appetising. But no worries! Although the first bite wasn't very special, it got more and more delicious subsequently!! Uramaki definitely left made me craving for more!

Drayaki Ice Cream(Fried Ice Cream - $5.80)

Personally, I love this fried ice cream! The fried Doriyaki skin with vanilla ice cream is just divine! The combination of both is perfect as it eliminated the flaws of each item by itself! Without the Doriyaki skin, the ice cream would be plain boring, and without the ice cream, the doriyaki skin would have been terrible. However, when they came together, the hot & cold complimented each other great! The only problems were, you have to eat it quickly as the ice cream melts rather fast. And the toothpick is miserably small, so be prepared that the ice cream might fall off. Other than that, it's OH-SO-DELISH! =D

I'll definitely go back for more affordable Jap food @ Waraku! (:

p.s. Sakae's prices are definitely lower, but you can definitely differentiate the quality after dining at both restaurants!

1020 East Coast Park Way
Singapore 449878 
Tel: 6242-1123 
Fax: 6242-9389
11:30am - 11pm (Last order 10:30pm)

http://www.waraku.com.sg/index.aspx

Yamakawa Super!

The number 1 snacks i love the most are Japanese snacks! Actually, i Love all kinds of japanese food! be it snacks, ramen, sushi, udon, unagi.. you name it, i love it! Not only are the food delicious, they are soo cute and the packaging really attracts your attention!

Admit it! Everytime you see a pocky, yan yan, hello panda or even mochi, it's just so cute! but those are just the normal kinds you can find in Singapore Supermarkets! Imagine a mountain of Japanese snacks that's oh-so-difficult to find in conventional supermarkets! 

Well, you can easily find it at Yamakawa Super @ The Central! The very first time I stepped into this convenience store, my reaction was "Oh My Gosh!!". I've never seen sooo many Japanese brands located in a single store in my 17+years of life! I was overjoyed yet terribly sad! because i've finally found the best japanese snacks store but i'm BROKE! No money to pay for all this food!

But luck was on my side, because I ended up in that shop again when I went to eat at Ramen Santouka! And this time, my mom was there with me! and look at the stash of food I bought home!! =D

can you see the amount of snacks?! the sight of it is heavenly!haha and they even provide us with the recyclable red bag which has its logo- Yamakawa Super. Well, seeing so many snacks, it's normal to wonder how much it cost. It chalked up to a grand total of $79.40! I know you're going to think it's really expensive, but my mom has confirmed that this place sells their things at prices lower than supermarkets!! Hence, the $79.40 was totally worth it! But rmb, this store is CASH ONLY!

Cos we didn't see the sign and ended up loading a hill of snacks! plus, my mom only had $79.10 with her! but the Cashier was awesome! he deducted 40cents off our tab!!haha

This is the legendary Ramune drink- the one that contains a marble in the glass bottle!(sorry about the ugly background haha) I am unable to find it anywhere in Singapore after it disappeared a few years ago! I was overjoyed when I saw this and immediately grabbed it!haha

this is honestly nothing fancy, it's just coke and F&N Grape in an extraodinarily adorable packaging!haha according to my sister,  the Fanta Grape is really 'hot' in Japan!haha which is the main reason why she bought this!my bro just loves coke, so no surprise about the coke!haha

now, everyone knows what is this right!haha if you've watched Doraemon, this is the well-known Doriyaki! It's filled with red bean like the note on the packaging "100% Hokkaido bean"!! this can be found in supermarkets, but since we're there already, might as well just buy it along the way!haha

Pocky with Hazelnut flavour and Kit Kat with Cookies in it! It's really hard to find all these in a normal convenience store! And that Pink Ice cream cone biscuit! How long ago was it the last time I actually ate that!haha it was actually pretty good! my sis & bro loved that ice cream cone biscuit!it's strawberry flavour on the outside and chocolate in the inside!!

Haven't really tried those three yet! But it looked pretty, so we bought it!haha my mom wanted to try Jap cereal, so we just bought one box to eat!(which sadly, hasn't been opened yet!haha)

I love the norifuri!(small packet of toppings on the top left hand corner) After you sprinkle a little on top of your rice, it makes the rice much more fragrant and your food will taste more appetising! The instant miso soup is really delish! My mom always makes that for us and it actually tastes better than those powdered kind where you just pour hot water in! The japanese Pancake!! I've been looking for those for a really long time! Finally found it!!haha the last one is seaweed that can be found almost everywhere but my bro insists on getting it!haha

I'm beginning to like going to The Central! With all these Jap things, it's really a great place to go! Esp. the B1 Central Market where all the less pricey stuff are located!haha should really visit this place if you like Jap food!(: they have other cool stuff too! eg. my mom bought a $15 shoes on one of our visits there!haha

I'll definitely go back to stock up my supplies of Jap snacks! =)

p.s. it's advisable to go there by bus, cos the ECP really kills ppl! my mom had to pay $2.50 worth of ECP just by driving one-way into city!

Yamakawa Super
Central
6 Eu Tong Sen Street
#B1-28B
Tel: 6534-9518

Ramen Santouka!

the main reason why i even manage to come across Ramen Santouka could actually be due to Naruto!(the anime) Well, being a student really kills the joy of eating partly because we're always strap of cash! So, the only way to get a chance to eat great food has always been the reliance on parents!

Anyway, being the second time to Ramen Santouka, I had a rough idea how the food was going to be. However, just to make sure I don't end up leading my family in the wrong direction, I went to check the map! But, after we got to level 2, i trusted my gut feeling and walked to one corner of The Central and ended up at the wrong place. So we went to check the map and realised it was at the other side of the building!

Ramen Santouka can be easily describe with one word... inconspicuous. It's located in the left corner of the building and you'll have to cut through a chinese restaurant just to find it. However, the front of the shop gives off a traditional japanese feel.

It sort of reminds me of those shops by the streets of Japan where you just walk in and buy a bowl of noodles, finish eating it and you're out in 5mins. My family were there at around 7.40pm and it wasn't as crowded as I thought it was going to be. There was no queue, but we had to wait for around 5mins only. The first time I went there, which was during lunch, we had to wait for almost 20mins. 

Santouka is actually about as small as how it looks from the outside. There are about 6-8tables and it's facing the Singapore River. There's a pleasant view if you manage to get a table beside the windows. However, due to it being not so spacious(in my opinion), I found it rather noisy at times as the sound seems to be trapped within.

After ordering, we only waited for a while and the food came quicker than I expected.

Small Ramen(Shio) & Pork Cutlet & Small Rice Bowl Set ($24++)
Shio- Salt Flavour

Just like the first time, the ramen was good. Contrary to what I've read about, the soup wasn't too salty or too strong. It was tasty and delicious. Much better then Ajisen Ramen which I thought the portion was too big and it didn't taste as good. However, the Pork Cutlet wasn't good though. My bro didn't want to eat it after the first bite. Mainly because the meat was quite tough, and it was quite difficult to bite into them. 

Small Ramen(Miso) & Char Siu Bowl Rice ($17.50++)
Miso- Soy Bean Paste Flavour

This was the exact set I had the first time at Santouka, except mine was Shio. I didn't really like the taste of the Miso based soup due to the really strong flavour that goes right straight to your head. The first spoon had a rich taste, but there was a kick to drinking this as you could really taste the strong flavour of the soup. However, even though it's a Small ramen, the portion is rather substantial and constantly drinking the soup made my sister a little nauseous. The Char Siu was good, but I seem to prefer the chinese kind that has the red colouring. But I love the rice. Maybe it's just me, but Japanese rice seem to taste better then normal rice I eat at home.

Hiyashi- Cold Ramen($14++)

The first time I saw this cold ramen, it didn't give off a very good vibe. Maybe cos of the loads of veggie looking dish on the side plate. However, it was actually a lot better than my own assumption. The noodle was springy and pleasant, and my mom was very impressed by this dish. It was definitely a more refreshing dish compared to the others as this dish felt less robust in terms of flavour and taste. The only downside was the sauce. I didn't really like it due to the salty taste. 

We didn't manage to eat their signature dish which is the Tokusen Toroniku(Pork Cheek) during this visit. But I've tried it the first time I went there. The Pork Cheek was divine. It was(in my opinion) the best pork I've eaten(though I'm not an avid pork-eater). However, it is rather costly at $9++ for 6 slices of pork cheek. As there are only 200-300grams of pork cheek in a single pig. Not forgetting that there's only a limited no. of plates being served per day. 

They also provide huge jug of water by your table, to give you an endless supply of cold water- until your jug is empty. 

Overall, Ramen Santouka is not a place to be missed! The Tokusen Toroniku is a Must Try but make sure you're feeling quite rich that day though!

Ramen Santouka
6 Eu Tong Sen St
#02-76 The Central
Singapore 059817
Tel 62240668

sincerely, me.