Nene Chicken

C says:

I've concluded that Korean fried chicken really isn't for me; or if that's too much of a generalisation, then to be specific, I really don't like Nene Chicken's version. It's everything that I don't like in my fried chicken - a thick layer of batter, and slathered in sauce.

They do their fried chicken two ways at Nene - chicken wings, and chicken tenders, which are bite-sized pieces of both white and dark meat. You can then opt for one of a number of sauces, including Freaking Hot, Cheese, Sesame and Green Onion.

We got the chicken tenders with Sesame, and the wings with the Freaking Hot sauce. I didn't like the tenders at all - the sesame sauce was abnormally sweet, and the chicken was far from tender, especially the white meat pieces.

It was a cute touch that they gave us plastic gloves for the wings, but after a couple of wings, diminishing returns kicked in fast. The wings were overly battered and the sauce was thick, sticky and overpowering. For those who can't take heat, the Freaking Hot packs a bit of a punch, though it only kicks in after a while.

Maybe the other flavours are better, but I really don't think I can even bring myself to try any of them.

A says:

Eh, I might go back to try a few other flavour combos just to confirm my "Not recommended" opinion. But even for a person who likes food drenched in sauce, this was really too much. In fact, the only good thing I can say is that you get a lot of meat on the drumlets.

Nene Chicken
1 Vista Exchange Green
#01-24, Star Vista
Open daily: 11 am - 10 pm

Bornga

C says:

Maybe it's just me, but I really don't get what the fuss of Bornga is all about. It could be the fact that it's opened by a Korean celebrity chef, and that Singaporeans are currently mad about anything Korean, but for someone who doesn't have Seoul fever, this place left a lot to be desired.

To put my review in context, we first tried going on Friday night after work, but the line was about 20 people long (they don't take reservations), and after it moved by only 2 people in 15 minutes, we cut our losses and decided to come on a weekday instead.

Fast forward to Monday evening. There was no queue and the entire al fresco area was empty. So imagine our surprise when we were told that there was a 10 to 15 minute wait. Why? Because the al fresco area was closed due to shortage of staff. Not very professional, but ok. We waited and were eventually ushered to a table.

The complimentary side dishes weren't as impressive nor varied as those at Ju Shin Jung, nor were they as tasty. The kimchee had less depth/flavour, but ironically that's why A actually prefers the kimchee here.

A specifically came here for the Naengmyun - their signature cold noodle, comprising thin buckwheat noodles in a light icy cold broth with sliced beef. I like cold soba, but I'm not a huge fan of cold noodles in a cold soup, but A really liked this and pretty much finished the entire (huge) bowl singlehandedly.

You have to order at least 2 BBQ items, so we ordered the boneless prime rib ($38), and the thinly sliced brisket ($22). You're supposed to wrap the grilled meats with the scallions and lettuce that are provided, which I did at first, but after a while I just had it with my steamed rice and some turnip kimchee.

I wasn't particularly impressed with either of the meats. At those prices, I'd much rather go to either Ju Shin Jung or even Gyu Kaku. There's a very limited selection of meats here, and only the brisket is under $35. The other 4 or 5 grill items are between $38 and $45, which can get you quite a lot more at Gyu Kaku.

A few other things bugged me here as well. Firstly, I didn't think the servers were particularly skilled in grilling the meats for you. After cooking the prime rib, they changed the grill top, but before waiting for it to get hot, they promptly plonked the brisket on to cook. Naturally, there was no sizzle or caramelisation, and the meat was sitting on the lukewarm grill top, steaming in its own juices instead of being grilled.

They also don't use different tongs for handling raw and cooked meats, like they do at Gyu Kaku, which doesn't bode very well in terms of cross-contamination.

I find that the food just isn't prepared with much finesse. Even the lettuce that was provided to wrap the meats with wasn't properly drained; it was still dripping wet, which in turn diluted the flavour of the lettuce wraps.

As you've probably figured by now, I was not very impressed with the place, but A doesn't seem to dislike it as much as I do, and actually doesn't mind going back.

A says:

C and I really disagree about this place. I quite like the food here. But then I like cold food so I had the cold noodles. Meat-wise, I found the standard the same as our other fave BBQ places. Plus, although the selection is limited, the standard Korean side dishes that come with the meat aren't as aggressively flavoured. Overall, it may not be my top pick for Korean BBQ, but I wouldn't mind going back.

Bornga
1 Vista Exchange Green
#02-24 The Star Vista
Tel: 6694-4696
Open daily: 11.30 am -10 pm

Woori Nara

C says:

After hearing and reading good things about Woori Nara’s Volcano Korean fried chicken, we headed to Lorong Kilat to try it for ourselves. We ordered half a Volcano chicken (supposedly their super spicy variety), and a regular yum yum chicken with rice set.


As with all Korean restaurants, this came with a few sides. I guess we’ve been spoiled by the Korean bbq place near our house, cos the sides here were nowhere near as varied nor as tasty as the ones there. Clearly then, the meal wasn’t off to the best of starts.


A’s yum yum chicken set arrived first, and if this was supposed to be mildly spicy, I didn’t have high hopes for the volcano one. The chicken was more sweet than anything else, and even the rice wasn’t hot or fluffy.


The Volcano fried chicken really didn’t live up to my expectations. Sure, there was some heat but only a strange lingering pepperiness rather than any proper heat. The sauce was again just predominantly sweet, and my biggest grouse was that the chicken was just way too battered, so that all I tasted was batter drenched in a sweet sauce, and could barely taste the chicken.

Maybe that’s the style of Korean fried chicken, but if that’s the case I think I’ll pass, and get my Korean fix in the form of grilled meats or a simple kimchi soup nearby.

A says:

I like the sweet chilli sauce that doesn’t really taste killer hot, but leaves a strange stinging in your mouth and tummy when done.

But is it worth a special trip out to try? Er... not really.

Woori Nara
19 Lorong Kilat
#01-02
Tel: 6464-9282

Ju Shin Jung Korean Charcoal BBQ

C says:

After an absolutely miserable wet weekend, the rain let up for a brief period on Sunday evening so we decided to walk out to the Korean bbq place across the road from our place. I’ve heard that the place is quite popular with Koreans, but was warned that prices weren’t low.

We ordered a couple of grilled meats, since that’s what they’re supposed to be famous for. At about $20 and up for the meats, it was definitely true that this place isn’t cheap. We went for a beef short rib ($36), and a honeycomb pork belly ($28). We also ordered a kimchi soup, since I have to have kimchi at a Korean restaurant.

We sat back, expecting just a light meal of soup and some grilled meat. Suddenly a waitress appeared with a gazillion plates till our table was full to overflowing. So much for a simple meal! I guess when you order the grilled meats, all the side dishes are included. There were loads, from two different types of kimchi, cold tofu, ikan bilis, to a sweet potato salad and a sweet fritter of sorts.


The cabbage kimchi was excellent – slightly spicy and garlicky, and perfect with hot white rice. The tofu was good too, as was the stir fried bean sprouts. On hindsight, since all these are included with the grill, the prices aren’t that astronomical after all.

The meats were ok, but the pork belly was a bit tough. I think we need a while to experiment with the various cuts of meat, to find out what’s the best (and also best value…).

The kimchi soup at $12 came with a bowl of rice and was chockfull of ingredients like cabbage, tofu and pork belly. This is a good deal, and I think if we want something simple (for real this time), we’ll just come and have a soup and maybe a bibimbap or a noodle dish.

I dare say that I enjoyed this a lot more than A, so as much as I want to come back quite soon, it’s going to take some convincing.

A says:

omg. I thought it was just meat with the order. We got a freaking flood of side dishes, most of which were great.

Just fyi for newbies so you don’t look as silly as we did, the small pill-like things are dehydrated wet towels. Add a little water and watch the magic happen.

Also, the large dish of veggies they give is to wrap the meat in. Next time, I don’t think I’ll need rice at all.

Ju Shin Jung Korean Charcoal BBQ
27 West Coast Highway
#01-18/19 YESS Centre
Tel: 6464-0872