Suki-ya: A truly satisfying Japanese Hot Pot experience!

I originally wanted to try Ramen Champion over at Bugis +. Unfortunately, they had an event that day so I had to find an alternative spot to satisfy my hunger pangs! For some reason, I was craving for hot pot, finding Suki-ya is a foodie's dream come true!

I had Suki-ya before back in 2014, revisiting it now after their change in menu is definitely worth it! As compared to the previous time I was here, they have included salmon in their meat selection and changed their soup bases! Sad to say, they have also increased their price from $17.90 to $23.90 for an Adult lunch buffet.

To be honest, their price range is still very affordable as they offer UNLIMITED fresh vegetables and meat! In addition, they have a large variety of goodies like chikuwa fish cake, seafood tofu and cheese balls! What I liked best is their sauces! You can get creative and mix the sauce however you like! More on this later!

In the buffet, you are entitled to free flow drinks, unlimited meat and fresh vegetables from the healthy bar! There is complementary ice cream for dinner only. I remembered they used to have a soft served ice cream machine,  I have no idea why they changed it to the regular ice cream cups. Soft served ice cream sounds more tempting!

The waitress helping us to pour our soup into the pot.

For the soup base we went for Shabu Shabu and Butaniku. Shabu Shabu is a healthy and light tasting broth made from simmered kelp, as you add different ingredients, the broth transforms and evolves into a delightful soup. Butaniku on the other hand is richer and more flavour-packed, the taste of the pork broth is very hearty. For those who are a fan of the tonkotsu broth, this is for you!

Before the change in menu, I clearly remembered there was a spicy kimchi soup base. They have changed it to the more authentic Japanese Wasabi soup base since then.

Thinly sliced pork and chicken with chopped spring onions.

The meat selection includes beef,chicken,pork and salmon. Salmon is a new option,very few hot pot places actually includes this as a choice! My mother and I went for the chicken and pork. The meat was professionally sliced, they were as thin as paper! I could literally see through the meat! This makes me wonder how they cut it so thinly...

Look at how thin the meat is!

In Japanese hot pot, the meat is cooked by swishing it in the soup for a few times. This is also where the term 'Shabu Shabu', meaning 'swish swish' in Japanese, comes from! It is crucial that the meat is finely sliced so that it cooks easily! 

Suki-ya offers a large assortment of vegetables.

They also have a wide selection of other ingredients like noodles and fish cake!

A must-try is the seafood tofu, it is so soft and hit the right notes on the flavour! My mother who usually dislikes tofu actually likes it! She had 4 pieces in total!

It is recommended to first add in the vegetables to sweeten the soup. I added carrots and corn for the extra boost!

An upclose of the sauce i made!

One of Suki-ya's specialty is the sauce counter. There is a variety of sauces and ingredients for mixing.

• Egg Sauce

My favourite sauce when it comes to Japanese hot pot! The egg sauce is for dipping your cooked meat into. It makes the meat silky smooth and takes away some of the heat before the meat is eaten. I swear you won't regret it and you have to give this sauce a try! 

• Ponzu Sauce (Shoyu with Vinegar)

This citrus based sauce is most suitable for meat! It is savoury and tangy! For my sauce, i added in some grated radish, chopped green onions and garlic! All of my favourite ingredients combined in one! The acidity of the sauce balances out the savoury soup and is so addictive. I wouldn't mind double-dipping! 

• Spicy Peanut Sauce

This creamy concoction may look unappetizing but it adds a kick to your food! The taste of the peanut is unfamiliar but lovely, when the spicy aftertaste comes in, the flavour becomes so intense! I cannot tolerate spicy food but this one makes me come back for more!

My set up for the day, sauce game strong!

Dipping the cooked meat into the flavoursome sauce.

It was an awesome gastronomical experience and I couldn't move after eating so much! We had a total of 6 plates of meat and 5 plates of vegetables! On top of that, we had our own serving of ramen and glass noodles. 

If you are out looking for delicious Japanese hot pot with a vast selection of ingredients and sauces, I definitely recommend Suki-ya! Moreover, their price range is very reasonable! Do keep a look out for ongoing promotions!

When I went that day, they had a value lunch set. All the food I had was only $9.50 per pax! What a good deal!

Unbelievable!

I hope that in the future Suki-ya can have more variety of soup bases, maybe they could venture into flavours such as tom yum or mala which is a hot favourite (pun intended) with Singaporeans!

Other outlets include Marina Square, Tampines Mall, 112 Katong, Bedok Point, Plaza Singapura, Heartland Mall Kovan and Bukit Panjang Plaza.

I will be ending my post with this explosive cheese ball picture that I took, it was so cheesy and sinful! 

Food coma.

Ippudo Ramen: The BEST ramen I ever had!

A piping hot bowl of tonkotsu ramen is my absolute comfort food! There are so many good ramen places in Singapore, but Ippudo Ramen is indubitably the best ramen i have tasted in recent years! 

Ippudo is a Japanese Ramen chain which has gained recognition as the best ramen in Singapore. It was founded in 1985 in Japan’s ramen capital of Hakata. There are currently 4 outlets in Singapore; Mandarin Gallery, Mohamed Sultan, Asia Square Tower 2 and Westgate. I have heard from friends that the queue at Mandarin Gallery is crazy! 

Picture credit to calvinteo.blogspot.com

I patronized the outlet at Westgate and to my delight, the queue was relatively short despite visiting at dinner time. My friend and I was in the queue for about 20 minutes. I have to commend on their service as we were promptly given the menu to browse on and were constantly updated with the waiting time. 

As the both of us were starving, we waste no time to place our order the minute we were seated down. We ordered two bowls of ramen, the Shiromaru Motoaji and Akamaru Shinaji with tamago (Japanese braised egg). We were able to choose the texture of our noodles, both of us went with the medium done noodles.

Did you know the staff at Ippudo has to arrange the chopsticks in a specific manner?

The walls of the restaurant was lined up with ramen bowl.

We waited for about 5 minutes before the ramen arrived. To be honest, the entire time we were waiting, I could smell the bowl of ramen from the table next to me. I was eyeing his bowl of ramen for so long! Thank god our ramen came just in time!

Looking at the picture now, i can still taste the delicious broth in my mouth.

Shiromaru Tamago

I had the Shiromaru Tamago! It is Ippudo's classic range of ramen with thin noodles, bara chashu (pork belly), cabbage, kikurage (black fungus), spring onions and a flavoured egg.

I kid you not, this bowl of ramen packs a punch. The tonkotsu broth is extremely flavourful but not too rich! I have had ramen before with really thick broth that makes you sick, but this is not too thick at all! Just the way I like my soup to be. 

The tonkotsu broth, when paired with spring onions, complements each other so well. It is savoury, creamy and oh so yummy! After I took this picture, i added in some sesame seeds and chilli powder to bring the soup to another level. It tastes even better! The soup is so addictive i even finished it to the last drop!

Now on to the noodles, we ordered medium doneness for our noodles. How strange, but it reminded me of how i order steak! The noodles turned out perfectly al dente and springy. The noodles they serve here are much thinner than the usual ramen places. The noodles is so good even on its own!

The best part of the ramen has to be the chashu, i have never ever had chashu slices that were this tender and well seasoned. Let me repeat, I NEVER EVER had chashu slices this incredible! It's such a pity that there were only two slices in the dish, i could easily finish 10 or more! The fat to meat ratio on the chashu is perfect. I would come back just to eat the chashu again.

I love my ramen with cabbage! The small pieces of cabbage gives the ramen more layers and adds a new texture! I approve!

Do not be alarmed, this is not any weird Asian delicacy, it is just cooked black fungus! I usually prefer my black fungus to be more soggy, however this has a good crunch. My favourite black fungus would still be at Keisuke Tonkotsu King.

Last but not least, the much anticipated braised egg! To be honest, i'm not a big fan of the egg here. The egg was slightly overcooked and did not have the characteristic of Japanese soft boiled egg at all. Nonetheless, it is still delectable and tasted very much like an ... egg.

If you are considering Ippudo for your next meal, do try the Shiromaru Motoaj!

Akamaru Tamago

Ippudo ramen's modern creation, the Akamaru Shinaji ramen! Akamaru Shinaji is enhanced with a special-blended miso paste that transforms the tonkotsu broth to a pleasant and savoury soup. It is served with fragrant garlic oil which adds a garlicky taste to the ramen. 

The soup turned to a nice brown colour as you mix the ingredients together. This bowl of ramen is distinctly different from Shiromaru Motoaji. It has a much more complex flavour and is much more salty as compared to the original broth. 

For two pax, we spent about $18 each. We did not order any appetizer or side dishes as we wanted to savour the authentic taste of the ramen. For this price, I would say it is definitely very worth it! I already cannot wait for my next visit to Ippudo!

Overall, I strongly recommend others to try the ramen over here at Ippudo. I hereby announce that Ippudo is now my favourite ramen in Singapore! An exceptional bowl of ramen do not need a lot of fancy ingredients. A robust broth, al dente noodles and great pieces of chashu would bring it up a notch!

Yes, the soup is really that satisfying.

December 2014: A conclusion

At the end of every month, I will be releasing a blog post showcasing the month's highlight and my thoughts. My first post of this series shall be dedicated to the month of December! This December was amazing, I had plenty of new opportunities to do what I love and I was so much happier. I'm so thankful 2014 ended on such a good note. Even though things weren't as smooth at the beginning, I made it through and I am sure all of you did too. Caution: extremely long winded post ahead! 

Sabine's Cabana

I am very thankful to Sabine's Cabana for giving me the golden opportunity to model with them! It has always been my passion to pose in front of the camera (I think it is pretty evident on my Instagram account!) and take up modelling. I am so blessed to be presented with this chance to do what I love. The shoot was amazing and I had a great time working with all of them! Michelle and M.S did a superb job with the photography and Afrina was a good learning example! I was definitely impressed by how she was so natural and could pull off any type of poses! I'm looking forward to working with them again and meeting the rest of the team! 

 

Can you find the cat on the two dollar note?

SimplyCLAWS

It has almost been 4 years since I last met up with them! Being able to reconnect with this bunch of friends is the best thing that happened to me this December. As arranged, we met up on Boxing Day to visit the Trickeye Museum in Resorts World Sentosa! Unfortunately, Shini couldn't make it so we photo shop her into the picture below! Talk about true friendship! I'm really thankful for their company, some people said friends are the family we chose ourselves and I can safely say they are my 'family' now.

Gardens by the Bay

Spending time with my mother is always filled with amusement and love. This time, we went to Gardens by the Bay together! Knowing flowers are her favourite, I knew she would definitely enjoy her time there! This trip to Gardens by the Bay has strengthened our mother-daughter bonds and made me appreciate her more! This year has been so busy, I didn't get to spend quality time with her. However, i'm glad to do so that day! 

This trip was kindly sponsored by KKH.

The natural lighting made my photo appear so professional!

Peggy's bachelorette night

My sister is getting married in January 2015! I'm really excited and happy for her. We had a bachelorette party, celebrated with delicious food, played some series of dares and had a karaoke session! She's a beloved sister who never failed to encourage and support me in whatever I do. I'm so blessed to have an incredible sister like her, I love you sis! 

General health

This December, I noticed a vast improvement in my health. I'm gaining weight and my overall mood is better! Crohn's better stay away! I am thankful that my health is taking a good turn. This means that I can start pursuing my aspirations and chase after my dreams! My illness motivates me to push harder and challenge myself to exceed expectations. I want to let people know that despite having a chronic illness, I am still determined to live my life to the fullest! Crohn's Disease will never bring me down!

Countdown to 2015

Weiyi and I went over to *Scape after work on New Year's Eve to have our countdown party at *Scape Collison 2015: Illumine! The event was graced by renowned international dancers from Japan and Korea! It was filled with several dance performances that absolutely took my breathe away. At the strike of midnight, balloons were released from the ceiling and everyone were dancing to fantastic beats from the DJ! The mocktail that day was delicious too, it was refreshing and quenched my thirst! What an awesome way to end 2014!

In conclusion, December was an incredible month full of amazing unexpected events. My life is different from what it was back in November and i am glad it turned out this way. Sometimes, we have to be adventurous to find out what the world has to offer. Be brave and be positive.

I'm looking forward to more opportunities and a more joyful 2015. Stay tuned to my January conclusion! Please pray hard that my results are satisfactory and that I can successfully make it into my dream course! Sending positive vibes to everyone!