Hyangtogol is located at the Amara Hotel in Singapore. Note this is not in the mall but in the actual hotel itself. The place was actually quite spacious and the restaurant wasn't so busy for a Sunday lunch. The ambiance though shouts traditional Korean food and that is what we ordered.
Our Orders
Chapjae
Sides for Bossam
Banchan (Korean Side Dishes including Kim Chi)
Spicy soup with Tofu
Grilled Beef
Bossam
I'm not going to sell this as the best Korean Restaurant here in Singapore but all I can say is that the food was good. The highlight of the experience is actually not on the main dishes that we ordered but on the banchan. Specifically, fermented and non-fermented kimchi. Its the first time that I actually had non-fermented kimchi. Non-fermented kimchi doesn't have this distinct kimchi smell (probably due to the fermentation process) and it taste more fresh and light.
Lynn and I liked the spicy kimchi soup with tofu. It was just weird that they served it with rice but it did work. The rice did help balance the spiciness of the soup and and the same time made it more filling as well.
Bossam, is a Korean dish of steamed pork where you are given a plate of vegetables, kimchi, garlic, and steamed pork and you create your own wrap. Each person is also given their own dipping sauce. This was also very good and wished we had some soju (Korean Wine) to make the experience complete.
The Grilled Beef was also good but I wouldn't say the best. There were parts of the beef that was a bit tough but there were also some that was soft all the way (but not wagyu soft). I would love Korean BBQ more on a buffet setup though rather than ala carte.
The Chapchae is a disappointment. If you go here, don't order the chapchae. Its a waste of money (20 SGD). Not that it didn't taste ok but man we are in Singapore where you can get better noodles for a lot lot cheaper price. Ok, maybe I shouldn't compare with other noodles but this was just wrong in so many ways.
Price and Value
All-in-all the bill amounted to around SGD 131. Chapjae (20 SGD), Bossam (33 SGD), Grilled Beef (40 SGD), and Spicy Kimchi Soup (15 SGD). Split among 4 people we paid about 32.50 SGD per person which isn't bad. The banchan was also refillable. So the value wasn't so bad but I still take offense with the 20 SGD Chapjae. Our friend said that in Korea this would normally be free :(
Note: I read somewhere that the RWS branch is a disaster but fotunately this was not the case in the Amara Hotel Branch.
Rating:
Food - 3.5
Ambiance - 3
Value - 3.5
Service - 3.5
Overall 3.5 of 5
Repeat Factor (No!! No! Yes Yes! Yes!!):
Yes
Restaurant details:Official Website: http://singapore.amarahotels.com/dining
Address: 165 Tanjong Pagar Road, Singapore 088539
Tel no: +65 6220 7160
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