Like many Singaporeans, Korean food is one of my favourite cuisines.
After all, who can resist the spicy hit of kimchi, deep warmth of soondubu and the heartiness of bibimbap?
Despite this, I’m no Korean food connoisseur.
So, on a particularly challenging day at work where I felt like I deserved a good meal, I asked my Korean colleague on a whim:
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Her recommendations, surprisingly, were somewhere quite unexpected.
Good Korean food and where to find it
My colleague, Mikayla, is a born and bred Korean who moved from Korea to Singapore just under a year ago to join Mothership.
In search of a taste of home, she eats Korean food pretty often, so it’s safe to say that she has tried her fair share of Korean restaurants from all over the island.
When asked about the Korean food in Singapore, she said:
“Most of them taste like fusion dishes to me, unless the restaurant is mainly run by Koreans. I find it very rare to find Korean cuisine that’s authentic to the taste.”
To get food true to the cuisine, Mikayla told me that she recreates some dishes at home.
She also has her own list of food haunts for dishes she can’t make herself.
Two of the restaurants she shared with me for “authentic Korean food” can be found in Aperia Mall, which is just a stone’s throw away from our office in Kallang.
Both restaurants, TTEOK Sang and Pohang Seafood, are run by actual Koreans.
The former sells stews and street food, while the latter has more hearty, proper cuisines.
“TTEOK Sang has this stew ‘gam ja tang’ (pork bone soup). My big go-to on a gloomy day or when I just really need that good broth,” she says.
Hearing this, I quickly jio-ed some colleagues in the office (including Mikayla) for lunch at Aperia Mall.
TTEOK Sang
TTEOK Sang is a simple and humble store that suits those looking for a more casual dining experience.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
We ordered a variety of classic Korean snack foods: A plate of tteokbokki (S$6), oden (S$2) and gimbap (S$4).
For mains, we got a typical fare of claypot bibimbap (S$11.90) and soondubu (S$11.90).
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Mikayla took the chance to introduce me to a traditional dish I had never heard of before – ganjang gejang (S$15.90).
Ganjang gejang is a Korean soy sauce marinated crab, and is meant to be eaten raw.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Apparently, you’re supposed to squeeze out the flesh of the crab and enjoy it straight from its shell.
Its salty and fishy taste definitely whet our appetite for our next stop, Pohang Seafood & Butchery.
Video by Kow Zi Shan.
Pohang Seafood & Butchery
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
After asking for recommendations, we were directed to a table with a charcoal grill.
The table was quickly filled with sauces and banchan (side dishes), followed by mains: marinated beef short ribs (S$42), pork belly (S$25) and assorted sashimi (S$70).
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
The store owner spoke to Mikayla in Korean, sharing that all their fish – which you can see in the tanks at the front of the restaurant – is flown in, fresh from Jeju.
Here, the chefs spared no expense, as the salmon, tuna and flatfish were thickly sliced and simply delicious.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Each month, they also have a tuna cutting show followed by free flow of tuna, flatfish and salmon.
Video by Pohang Seafood & Butchery
The charcoal-grilled beef was very tender, yet not too chewy.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Of course, we had to eat it like the Koreans do – wrapping it with lettuce, together with some rice, grilled kimchi and garlic/onion.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
The restaurant also offers lunch specials, which are perfect for office workers in the area.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
SHINE Korea
To round off our Korean cuisine adventure, we dropped by SHINE Korea in Aperia Mall to take a look at some of the Korean snacks.
Mikayla pointed out her favourite ones:
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
While I also shared my favourite:
Image by Kow Zi Shan.
After such a satisfying meal, I felt more motivated to return to work at the office.
Next time, I’ll ask Mikayla to let me try her home cooked food.
This sponsored article by Aperia Mall made this writer fall in love with Korean food all over again.
Top images via Kow Zi Shan.