Salmon Steak in Miso Sauce @ Kotobuki Japanese Restaurant, Singapore

Situated right at the heart of Singapore's business district, Kotobuki Japanese Restaurant is indeed a cosy place for great business meal.  So, it was of no surprise this small restaurant is fully packed well before lunch hours.

As I had too much meat the day before, I decided to order some fish instead.  I ordered the Sake Miso Steak (SGD 22.00) which is actually a salmon steak coated with miso sauce, served on a sizzling hotplate.

The salmon was amazing, thanks to the flavourful miso sauce.  The miso sauce was really delicious and somehow, it did taste as though there was a hint of alcohol in it.  Serving it on a hotplate also allows the miso sauce to caramelize, bringing out the rich, sweet flavour of the miso.  Not to forget, the lovely crispy salmon skin at the bottom.  As the miso sauce only coats surface of the salmon, you still can taste the sweet salmon flesh.

This dish is a bit of a fusion as it comes with some mixed vegetables and potato wedges.  A bit disappointed as there were only two pieces because the wedges were quite nice and cooked until soft.

Kotobuki is a bit more upmarket, so the price can be quite pricey for a normal lunch, but I think it was worth it.

Kotobuki Restaurant

8 Shenton Way (AXA Tower)

#01-17/20

068811 Singapore

Tel: (65) 68830525

Open Daily

Lunch: 11:30am - 2:30pm

Dinner: 5:30pm – 10:30pm

Spicy Pork Bulgogi @ Manna Korean Restaurant, Singapore

Along the Telok Ayer Street, there are many eateries.  Being unfamiliar with the area, we just let our Singapore colleagues show the way and they brought us to a nice Korean restaurant for lunch - Manna Korean Restaurant.

As it was lunch time, it was super packed.  So, without any reservation, we had to wait for 10 mins or so.  But the wait was worth it.

As I did not have a proper breakfast, I decided to go for a heavy lunch and ordered the Duckbaegi Bulgogi (SGD 16), which is a spicy pork bulgogi served in a hot earthenware.

Come with a bowl of rice, it was very delicious.  Although it looked like it was very spicy, it was not at all.  In fact, like any bulgogi, it was very sweet but with a hint of spiciness.  Plus, the pork was thinly sliced, so every bite of the meat just melts in your mouth.

It was pretty a large bowl, and so after a while, I gave up on the rice and focused on finishing the bulgogi.  I think this should be more suitable as a portion for two instead.

They also have a nice selections of refillable side dishes.  I loved the sweet and spicy fried tofu and the sweet black beans (kongjaban) but my colleague found the salad noodle very nice (I didn't try as I was busy with my bulgogi).

Their food is quite reasonably priced and with special lunch sets just below SGD10, I am not surprised that many come here for an authentic Korean lunch.  Service was pretty fast too once you put in your order.  It was the wait for the table that is longer.

Manna Korean Restaurant
101-109 Telok Ayer Street
068574 Singapore
Tel: 6227 7425

Aglio Olio Bistro @ AXA Tower, Singapore

Coming here was by random.  We were just walking along Shenton Way from our hotel, looking for somewhere decent for dinner.  Right when we almost decided to give up and head straight to Chinatown instead, I noticed there were some restaurants inside AXA Tower.  In fact, there were quite a lot of choices inside the building, but we decided to opt for western food at Aglio Olio Bistro.

My colleague and I went for the Dinner Special for 2 (SGD 34) – I guess he must be very hungry since he was the one who recommend to go for the set.  Anyway, I find this set really quite a deal as there were quite a lot being offered – 2 pasta, a basket of chicken wings, garlic bread, soup of the day and lemonade.

The soup of the day was Mushroom Soup – normal off-the-shelf cream of mushroom soup but with lots of chopped vegetables (which I suspect is onion and celery).  Pretty disappointed with the soup as it was hot enough and too starchy.  But it went well with the toasted garlic bread, which I enjoyed very much.

The fried chicken wings were pretty good – well seasoned with herbs and succulent.  It tasted good enough without the chilli sauce.

The main dish which I ordered is the Bacon Cream pasta, which is really delicious.  The cream sauce was so flavourful with the pork bacon shreds and with some chopped cili padi, the hotness made it super appetizing.  The thickness of the sauce is just right and not too overpowering.  Plus, the portion is reasonably big.  Totally enjoyed it.

Ambiance-wise, it is very cozy and perfect for a small get-together with friends for a chat or two.  Definitely will be back here again, especially since they just gave a SGD10 voucher for the next visit.

Aglio Olio Bistro

8 Shenton Way (AXA Tower)

#B1-14

068811 Singapore