International Cuisine
I wasn’t planning a big meal. I was just around Orchard, looking for somewhere casual with good food that wouldn’t require too much thought. That’s how I ended up at POCHA! Korean Street Dining at ION Orchard. Inspired by Pojangmacha, the casual Korean street stalls found in Korea’s Euljiro and Itaewon, POCHA! brings the feeling…
The moment I stepped out of the lift on the fourth floor of Cuppage Plaza, the unmistakable scent of charcoal smoke hit me, a smoky invitation that teased my senses before I even saw the sign. This old building near Somerset, usually filled with faint aromas of soy and sizzling food, suddenly felt alive with…
Visiting Tim Ho Wan PEAK wasn’t part of my plan, but the inviting aroma drew me in. I was simply passing through The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands when an irresistible aroma stopped me in my tracks, the sweet, smoky scent of perfectly roasted char siu. It was one of those smells that pulls you…
My first Korean meal was a mess. Not the food me. I was twenty, out with friends, and I let them order everything. We ended up with four rice dishes, a stew nobody touched, and a mountain of side dishes I assumed we had to pay extra for. I spent the whole meal quietly panicking…
I almost walked past it. Cuppage Plaza does that. You take the lift up, the corridor’s a bit dim, and you start wondering if you’ve got the wrong floor. Then a door slides open, charcoal smoke drifts out, and you know you’re in the right place. I visited on a Tuesday, around 7pm. Quiet night.…
I didn’t set out to become the guy who maps Korean food and Korean restaurants across every mall in Singapore. It just happened, one meal at a time. Over the past couple of years, I’ve eaten my way through most of what ION Orchard offers from the food court downstairs to the spots scattered across…
The first thing I did was take off my shoes. I hadn’t expected that. You climb the steps into Shinjuku Restaurant, and a staff member gestures, politely but clearly, toward the rack by the entrance. Shoes off. And something about that small act made me slow down before I’d even looked at the menu. Cuppage…
The first time I ordered sashimi, I did everything wrong. I was maybe nineteen, sitting at a counter in Singapore with a friend who knew what she was doing, and I panicked. I drowned a slice of salmon in soy sauce, dropped a fat clump of wasabi on top, and swallowed it before I could…
I didn’t set out to write this. It started as a habit. Somewhere between the shopping errands and the quiet afternoons, I began drifting up the escalators at Takashimaya, looking for a plate of raw fish and a corner to sit in. Over the past two years, I’ve eaten sashimi at nearly every Japanese restaurant…
The first time someone brought me to Cuppage Plaza, I almost walked past it. It sat there off Orchard Road, a little worn at the edges, nothing like the polished malls nearby. My friend just said, “Trust me,” and led me up a quiet stairwell that smelled faintly of grilled fish and soy sauce. Then…