LA-Style Galbi

Needed to tank up on protein and less of carbs. Had an odd little craving for Korean food. To a conveniently-located casual Korean restaurant for some grilled meats it was. With the floofs, we wouldn't be able to do anything fancy. Also, I'm not keen on hanwoo beef or any marbled/fatty meat; fancy restaurants tend to do hanwoo or wagyu. Zzzzzz. 

Toddled off for an easy dinner at Korea House on Killiney Road. We avoided it for a bit when the construction across the road made sitting outdoors unbearable because of the noise, dust and swarms of mosquitoes. Now it has quietened down. We like this restaurant for its casual vibes and decent quality food. I wouldn't call the banchan here amazing, but they certainly are generously and don't stinge on the variety. 10-12 little dishes appear each time we visit. 

Grilled beef and lettuce are quite my thing. But there must be garlic. Without that garlic, it's a tad sad. Tonight's LA-style galbi (grilled beef shortribs) with regular beef hit a spot for us. I really like crunching the flavors of garlic, lettuce and beef together. Mmmmm.

Rice wasn't necessary although it was very nice to have a bite or two. On a night I want rice, I would eat that bowl. But tonight, I wasn't interested in having the rice.

G and the husband wanted soup. They didn't want it spicy. They chose a seafood doenjang-jjigae. I didn't mind a few sips of the soup since this didn't hold gochujang. We were greedy and ordered mandu too. I like the restaurant's version of non-spicy pork and cabbage mandu. Three pieces in a portion. One for each of us. A big mandu. NOMS. 

I skipped the beer and stuck to a glass of lemonade diluted with tons of ice cubes. My throat isn't in the mood for alcohol or coffee just yet. Luckily for me, I have no interest in fried foods, except hash browns. Hahahah. So I have obediently stuck to easy food and proper hydration. 

Off to Dim Sum with O!

Happiness is having a meal with O and having a chat with them. I haven't seen O for months. She had leave to clear, and time for lunch with us! Hurrah. She missed Choya and wanted a venue that welcomes floofs. So we went to the dependable Black Society. It's not a dog cafe, and the menu has got some decent standards. 

It was an easy dim sum lunch. We didn't go overboard with the amount of food. We were hungry, but we didn't want to over-eat. Dependable dim sum appeared on the table. I also wanted the braised chicken feet. They do it fairly well here. Some restaurants use weird braising sauces and that kinda sucks. The husband needed more protein, and there were beef balls for him. We didn't have that much carbs. Shared a savory carrot cake, char siew bao and char siew cheong fun. 

I'm avoiding caffeine and alcohol. Yup, can't even quite stomach coffee which sort of irritates the throat. I'm still croaking, and the restaurant's cucumber-sour-plum concoction soothed the throat. 

I haven't thanked O properly for always checking in on Choya when we're away, or if the husband needs their help. So this meal was on us! Choya was pleased to see O too. She settled down by O's side all through lunch. This lucky Smol Girl got a Momma-approved new toy from O! 

Sushi at JUNRYO

We finally went to JUNRYO for dinner. Their seatings are tight. At dinner, it's 5pm, 6pm, 7pm, and 8pm. The dining limit is stated as 'one hour'. One hour. LOL Okaaaay, this is no atas sushi-ya. It's purely for convenience. Can lah. The a la carte sushi menu suited us just fine. I like it because I'm not obliged to tell the chef I don't want maguro in any form. I order what I want to eat. 

I'm also less keen on spending hours out at a Japanese sushi-ya when I'd rather spend this same window of time with my dog. This is why I tell you it's important to eat and do all the things you want, and travel and fulfil many 'dreams' before you anchor down with a dog. Otherwise I would be highly discontented and less settled to stay in-country with my silly Smol Girl. 

Anyway. JUNRYO. The prices are clearly stated on the menu. Yay. No need to wonder 'how much is this meal going to cost me?' It's never about whether I can afford this meal. COME ON. I absolutely dislike being kertok-ed. I don't like going in blind into any situation. When I don't bother with tuna-anything, the sushi-ya have a headache about how to justify my $450-a head portions. 

At JUNRYO, there is no frill. No shoyu (honestly, no need), no chopsticks rest, and no fancy sake. No iced water service either. So there isn't a point to drinking in this joint unless you're an alcoholic. They do have bottled Sapporo beer. I still ate loads. Had one cold beer. I happily ate 19 pieces of sushi. All the kinmedai, madai and shima aji that I wanted. It's protein! It's rough-hewn, but it's exactly the fish listed on the menu. 

The entire joint is run by ONE SUSHI CHEF who doubles up as server too. He also does all the prep. I have no idea how he can do on this his own day after day. There ought to be at least an assistant behind the counter for everything else. 

The only thing about these types of sushi places, there is no soul and no pride. These joints are completely opposite of those small and proud family-owned ones in Japan and those along the coastal regions. These restaurants in Singapore are not run by owner-chefs. Some investors take out money and get sushi 'chefs' to run it, riding on a high of popularity and being able to easily import fresh Japanese fish. The faces you see at these joints are lowly-paid hired guns nagged out to churn out work. It's pretty much a conveyor belt sushi-ya, with a human face fronting it.