Myung Ga II – Authentic Korean Family Recipe [MEDIA INVITE]

Myung Ga (명가) II is a name famous in Singapore’s Korean food scene, that has become synonymous with dishes rooted in authentic Korean family recipes. The restaurant is expanding its legacy and proudly announces the opening of its second outlet in Singapore’s Litte Korea, Tanjong Pagar.

Myung Ga II

We started the tasting with Original Kimbap Spam ($11). These colourful Kimbab fillings include spam, omelette, carrot, spinach, pickled radish and burdock root. We like the chewy of the rice and seaweed, followed by the different textures of the fillings. I feel they can be a bit more generous with sesame oil wash on the seaweed. A good start to the meal.

Original Kimbap Spam

Banchan

Donkatsu ($20). I have tried a few Korean donkatsu in Singapore and I must say the version at Myung Ga II is the best one I tried in Singapore. The pork cutlet is fried to the point of very crispy, and the sauce has a nice balance of sweet and sour. The best part is the pork cutlet remains crispy even when it is covered with the sauce for a while. Served together on the donkatsu are corn kernels, baked beans, salad and pickled radish.

Donkatsu

Cheese Gyelanjjim ($15). The slightly charred cheese on top of gyelanjjim is just so inviting. The egg is fluffy and tasty, while the cheese adds the stretch factor and umami flavour to the egg.

Cheese Gyelanjjim

Seafood Pancake - Haemu Buchu Jeon ($20). Crispy externally, moist and pillowy internally. They are very generous with the ingredients, as I get a bite of the seafood in each part. The pancake itself is very tasty, I did not use the dipping sauce.

Seafood Pancake

Altang ($23) Korean Spicy Fish Roe Stew. Once we saw the fish roe and fish milt on the menu, we decided we must order this soup. The fish roe has a firm eggy texture, while the milt is soft and easily melts in your mouth. The soup is hot and spicy, suitable for LD but too spicy for me. The good thing is the portion of fish roe and fish milt are very generous as well.

Altang - Korean Spicy Fish Roe Stew

Spicy Stir Fried Octopus - Nakji Dupbap ($20). One of LD’s favourite Korean dishes, the octopus is tender, slightly chewy and spicy but shiok. Definitely a rice thief.

Spicy Stir Fried Octopus - Nakji Dupbap 

Finally, we have Sliced Iberico Pork Belly ($22 for self grill / $24 for served grill). A speciality dish for Myung Ga at Tanjong Pagar. It is a time-honoured tradition of frozen pork BBQ. With the latest technology, frozen pork now delivers a better flavour compared to the vintage year.

Sliced Iberico Pork Belly 

The frozen thin slices of pork belly are grilled and seasoned with salt and pepper. The result is crispy pork belly. You can eat the pork belly with seasoned gochujang, salt & sesame dip, green chilli and lettuce. I recommend that you ask the staff to do the grilling for you. Also for the first order, there is a minimum of 2 pax.

Perfectly Grilled Sliced Iberico Pork Belly 

The sidekick for grilled pork belly

The décor of the restaurant is like a casual café setting. You won’t see any suction pipes coming down from the roof as it is not a Korean BBQ restaurant. The restaurant is bright and the ambiance is spruced up with K-pop music.

The Dining Area

Overall, Myung Ga II served solid Korean homecooked food. The dishes are well executed and they are very enticing as well. We’ll come back to try the rest of the dishes plus the Altang and Nakji Dupbap.

Our Desserts

Thank you very much Protegie and Victoria + Myung Ga II Team for the invitation.

Food & Drink: 8.5/10

Value: 8.5/10

Service: N/A (Tasting Invitation)

Ambiance: 7.5/10

Budget per Person: $26 - $50

Myung Ga (명가) II

28 Tanjong Pagar Road

Singapore 088451

T: +65 8042 8025

F: https://www.facebook.com/myungga2.sg

IG: @myungga2.sg

OH:

Tue – Sun: 11.30 – 15.00; 17.30 – 22.00

Closed on Monday.

Other Location

1 Jln Anak Bukit

#B1-55 Bukit Timah Plaza

Singapore 588996

T: +65 6469 5123

OH:

Tue – Sun: 11.30 – 15.00; 17.30 – 21.30

Closed on Monday.

Bulgogi Syo – The Art of Grilling [MEDIA INVITE]

Bulgogi Syo is the brainchild of Chef Chul Park, the founder of SEORAE. Bulgogi Syo introduces the art of Korean hot stone grilling to Singapore. The concept uses an unprecedented 3-step Hot Stone grilling process that fuses Perfect Fire (Bul) with Perfect Meat (Gogi) to create the Perfect Experience (Syo/Show).

Bulgogi Syo @ Bugis

The 3-step processes are Sear, Torch and Flambé. First, prime cuts of meat are seared to perfection on hotstone pans especially custom-made in Korea, to lock in the natural juice and flavours. Second, the powerful Fire Blaster can reach a temperature of 1,400 degrees, to deliver delicious char and smokiness to the meat exterior. Third, the selected meat is served on individual hotstone, doused with Special Essence and flambé on the table.

Second Process - Torch with Fire Blaster
Image Credit: Ivan Teh RunningMan

After you complete your order, you can proceed to the banchan station. They have kimchi, pickled radish, potato pasta mayonnaise and tomato with balsamic vinegar. My pick is the potato pasta mayo, it is sweet, creamy and offers dual texture of al-dente pasta texture and crunchy potato. LD says the aged Kimchi tasted good. The pickled radish is usually served in a Korean Chinese restaurant, it is good to offset the “jelakness” from all the meat.

Banchan Station

First dish to arrive is LA Galbi ($39.90). It uses USDA Choice Grade Short-ribs and it goes through A 3-step process. Once it reached our table, the service staff prepared for the third step and set it on fire. The flambé lasted around 6 seconds. The result is juicy and fork-tender beef ribs. It is well marinated, sweet with packed with umami flavour plus you can taste the nice charred flavour in the ribs.

3rd Process - flambé

The LA Galbi is served with kimchi, zucchini, sliced pumpkin and chopped onion on a hotstone. While the kimchi and zucchini suit the dish, I find the sliced pumpkins kind of out of place in the plating.

LA Galbi

Oyster Blade Bulgogi ($27.90). The USDA Choice Oyster Blade beef is marinated in bulgogi sauce. Instead of going through a 3-step process, it only went through the a 2-step process, sear and torch. The beef is then topped with raw pasteurised egg yolk. The meat is juicy, well marinated and I can even taste the charred parts. The marinate is a bit sweet and I can taste the fruity flavour of the apple and pear. When we try to mix the egg with the meat, like in a donburi, we find the yolk becomes harden instead of oozing.

Oyster Blade Bulgogi

Seaweed rice is served with the main dishes. Bulgogi Syo got the ratio of the seaweed and rice perfectly. The rice is super tasty, bursting with umami flavour from the seaweed. Though it is super tasty, it still goes well with other dishes. Yummy.

Seaweed Rice

Spicy Baby Octopus (Nakji Bokeum, $25.90). The baby octopus is fresh, bouncy and easy to chew. The sauce is on the sweeter side and the spiciness level is manageable. I usually can’t eat spicy baby octopus in some Korean restaurant, luckily, I can enjoy this dish at Bulgogi Syo.

Oyster Blade Bulgogi & Spicy Baby Octopus

Baby Octopus

Cheesy Tteokbokki with Kimari ($17.90). Korean rice cake with Korean fishcake and Kimari (glass noodles rolled into seaweed sheet and deep fried). When the dish was brought to our table, it was covered with shredded cheese. The service staff then torched the cheese to melt it. The chewiness of the rice cake is on point and the kimari added a crisp texture to the overall dish. The sauce is on the sweeter side and the spiciness level is manageable.

Cheesy Tteokbokki with Kimari 

Cheesy Gyeran Jjim ($10.90) - Korean steamed egg with cheese. The steamed egg is fluffy and tasty. The taste of the cheese is very mild and can easily be overlooked, however, it makes the texture of the steamed egg firmer compared to the version without cheese. In some parts of the steamed egg, we also get to see the pulled cheese effect, but it was very short.

Cheesy Gyeran Jjim 

Bacon Kongnamul Pancake ($15.90) – Bacon and beansprouts Pancake. Crispy and crunchy is the theme here. The flavour from the bacon seeps into the pancake though making it tasty enough without dipping sauce.

Bacon Kongnamul Pancake 

Seafood Sundubu Jjigae ($18.90) – Spicy soft tofu stew with tiger prawns, clams, mussels and squid. They are not shy with their ingredients here. The bowl is packed to the brim with ingredients and the broth is just a flavour bomb.

Seafood Sundubu Jjigae 

If you are into Korean Beer, Bulgogi Syo is having a promotion on their Terra Beer. It is 1 for 1.

Terra Beer

The décor of the restaurant is a modern casual open concept. When you walk towards the second floor of the restaurant area in Bugis junction, you will be able to see it straight away. The open concept allows everyone to see each other from outside through to the cooking area. You can even see the kitchen crew holding the Fire Blaster, torching the meat through the glass window. This can be considered entertainment on its own.

Bulgogi Syo 

Kitchen

Overall, I like the concept of Bulgogi Syo. The food is good, tasty and the spiciness level is kids friendly. I recommend their LA Galbi, Cheesy Tteokbokki with Kimari, Seafood Sundubu and not forgetting the super yummy seaweed rice. Definitely a good place to dine with your friends and family. Geonbae!! Cheers!!

Thank you very much Protegie and Bulgogi Syo Team for the invitation.

Food & Drink: 7.25/10

Value: 7/10

Service: N/A (Tasting Invitation)

Ambiance: 7.5/10

Budget per Person: $26 - $50

Bulgogi Syo @Bugis Junction

200 Victoria Street

#02-49, Bugis Junction

Singapore 188021

T: +65 9880 9719

W: https://www.bulgogisyo.com/

F: https://www.facebook.com/bulgogisyo

IG: @bulgogisyo

OH: Daily 11.30 – 22.00 (LO 21.00)

Other Location

Bulgogi Syo @Woodleigh Mall

11 Bidadari Park Drive

#01-33/34, The Woodleigh Mall

Singapore 367803

T: +65 9880 9729

Menu available online