Food Tasting Invite: Don't Tell Mama

Don't Tell Mama (DTMM) is a Korean-Mexican fusion bistro & bar under the same F&B management group that has brought to us Chicken Up. Located along Tanjong Pagar Road (beside Chicken up), DTMM brings to us an exquisite pairing of Mexican and Korean dishes, infused with creativity and flair. The bar boasts of classic, novel and fun cocktails.

The bistro/bar has an interesting decor concept that's industrialistic from the rustic pipe lights and raw concrete finishing and yet modern and cute with hanging mason jar lights and colourful lightbulbs. 

The handcrafted pallet tables are complemented by recycled plastic crates alongside oil drums and tire tables. 

And of course, beers on taps!

And let's move on to the yums yums for the night, shall we?

Frozen Cocktail + Upturned Soju (Sojurita) - $25

From left: Parcharita (Passionfruit, Mango & Tequila), Strawberrita (Strawberry & Tequila) & Lycherita (Lychee & Tequila)

The rest of the ladies seems to rate Lycherita as the best of the lot but I'll very much prefer Parcharita. Love the tangy, citrus flavour of the passionfruit when it paired up with the soju. I couldn't taste much of the alcohol (tequila) in the frozen cocktail itself though. As long as you don't disturn the upturned soju bottle too much, most of the soju remains in the bottle until you finished about 90% of the drink, only then the soju will start rushing out of the bottle due to lost in the pressure. So you can easily control how alcoholic you want your drink to be!

Cool, right? 

Lightbulb Sodas - $5

From left: Strawberry Soda, Blue Lemon Soda

Yes, those mini lightbulbs hanging from the top of the big lightbulb FLASHES. They just look super-duper adorable and were welcomed with excited squeals from all of us as the staff brought them to our table. 

The strawberry flavour can be a little light, and most of us preferred the tangy blue lemon. 

They also do alcoholic cocktail versions of these lightbulb drinks, so guys... if you want to bring your girlfriend out for a drink. You know where to go now. 

Bulgogi Quesadilla - $14

Authentic Korean bulgogi stuffed in baked tortillas and topped with melted mozzarella cheese, served with guacamole and sour cream. 

Not a beef eater, hence skipped this. From the reactions from the rest of the ladies, I've obviously missed out.... big time. 

Prawn Burrito - $12

Prawn Burrito topped with freshly chopped onions, jalapeno and salsa roja. 

This obviously is not your usual burrito as it has a lot more going on on the outside (all those cheese and toppings) as compared to a traditional burrito. 

I guess if one day, Mr. Burrito and Ms. Pizza fell in love, this shall be their baby. HAHAHA!

Not sure if it's the distinctive taste of salsa roja or not, but it has a characteristic "Indian dish" taste of strong spices to it. It was also one of the first few dishes to be served, but also one of the last dishes we've tasted. Might have done a lot better if it was still warm and not significantly harden up. 

Fried Chicken Gizzard - $8

This is the very first time in my life that I've eaten a gizzard, or an internal organ of any sorts of an animal, and it was surprisingly tasty! Extremely chewy, this should go perfectly well with a mug of nice cold beer. But it might also be a little too spicy if you do not take spicy food very well. 

I love the spiciness though. Yum yum!

Spicy Lollipops - $8

These are actually chicken drumlets made to look like 'lollipops' and slathered with spicy korean sauce, which I believe is the yangnyum sauce (both sweet and spicy). The meat is tender and well flavoured, and it's extremely easy to eat as compared to a conventional drumlet as the meat somehow comes off the bone much easier.

Fried Chicken Wings - $8

Fried till crisp on the outside, well flavoured and tender, you cannot go wrong with this fried chicken wings. Just do not expect yourself to look all dainty and glamorous while eating this. 

No, not happening. 

Kimchi Fries - $18

Sauteed kimchi, soy-seasoned chicken on crispy french fries with kimchi sauce and sour cream.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LURVEEEEE THIS!

Okay, I'm kimchi-bias, I admit. Put kimchi in anything (except beef) and I'll love it. But come on, french fries, with shredded chicken and kimchi? How can anyone not love this? 

Onion Bomb -$12

Actually, I HATE onions. But this, I ate it, and quite a bit. 

Other than looking ridiculously pretty, the batter also has a yummy, peppery flavour which complements the sweetness of the onion really well. 

DTMM is currently have a Beer for a Dollar Deal, whereby you can get a 330ml beer for only $1 with a purchase of any DTMM entree from Mondays to Thursdays, 5 - 7pm. 

From next month (February 2017) onwards, enjoy BOTTOMLESS beer or margarita for only $30++ (for ladies) or $40++ (for gentlemen), from 7-10pm daily for the whole month of February. 

Like DTMM facebook page and follow them on Instagram for more details of their current & upcoming promos.

Don't Tell Mama is located at 

52 Tanjong Pagar Road, Singapore 088473

Opens daily from 5pm - 12am

6221 2007

For event enquiries, email drink@dtmm.sg

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Andong Zzimdak [Media Tasting]

Thanks to OYHZ, the bloggers gathered again for another media tasting, this time at the newly opened Korean braised chicken restaurant, Andong Zzimdak, brought in all the way from Korea. If you've visited Myeongdong in Seoul, you might have came across the restaurant there, too. 

A shot of the crazy queue just to show off how popular Andong Zzimdak is on a Friday night. They even had to stop the queue at just 8 plus because they're almost out of chicken. 

The restaurant is pretty small and cozy, and would be perfect for a small gathering of friends to enjoy some yummy braised chicken. 

As the name of the restaurant suggest, this place is famous for their Andong Jjimdak, which literally translate into steamed chicken of Andong, for jjim means steamed or braised and dak means chicken in Korean.
The name Andong Jjimdak came about as the dish originated in the city of Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and is made with chicken and various vegetables (such as potatoes and carrots) marinated in a ganjang (Korean soy sauce) based sauce. It is usually served spicy but Andong Zzimdak has toned down the spiciness and 'localised' the flavour a little to better suit a Singaporean's taste buds.

Hot Citron Tea - $2.50

If you're dining at a Korean restaurant, it definitely has to be either criton tea or barley tea, right? And I'm definitely team citron. Very reasonably priced at just $2.50 for a standard mug sized, the tea wasn't overly sweet or thick but brewed just nice with the right amount of yuzu peel bits for those who loves to munch of them. 

And there was so much food for 6 of us, I can't even....

Chicken Karaage - $9.90

Well, who says you can't make yummy fried chicken when you're supposed to be selling jjimdak? These fried chicken bites, although a little 'off' because they're Japanese (karaage, yeah?), were still worth my tummy space. Fragrant with a slight savoury taste, the battered skin was fried still crisp while the insides still tender. How can one possibly resist a piece of piping hot, boneless fried chicken? 

 Spicy Dokboki - $9.90

Although the tteok wasn't the softest and chewiest I can find, it was still quite enjoyable as the gravy was indeed spicy enough, as compared to some other places which serve the gravy sweet. It would be perfect if the tteok was cooked softer, which I reckon can be done easily by just leaving it to cook for just a tad longer before serving. 

Mini Seafood Pancake - $9.90

Chewy and packed full of seafood (I tasted shrimps and squids), I like how it comes in very manageable (almost) bite size and each bite gives you as much seafood as the pancake batter itself. 

Boneless Jjimdak (Large) - $59.90 [Medium at $49.90]

Even though there is a chili icon next to the dish (as compared to 3 chili for Mayak Jjimdak, the supposedly spicy one) and there's this huge piece of red chili staring at you in the picture, I find this not spicy at all, just a comfortable savoury braised flavour. Will definitely return to try the Mayak Jjimdak another day. 

The chicken bits are served boneless with skin and pretty tender and well braised. My first try of the glass noodles was an NG as it wasn't well mixed in the gravy, hence extremely chewy, like rubber. After mixing it well into the gravy and giving it ample time to soak up the moisture (and flavour) of the gravy, it became so much softer while still retaining its QQ (chewy) texture. 

So a small note to everyone, remember to mix the glass noodles into the gravy before you eat them! 

Seafood Jjimdak (Medium) - $52.90 [Large at $65.90]

Similar to the boneless jjimdak but with prawns, mussles, squids and boney chicken parts. I find that the chicken in this jjimdak is significantly less tender than those in the boneless chicken, most probably due to the chicken parts. The mussels (my favourite shellfish), though on the small side, were still pretty fresh and chewy. The prawns were also pretty big and fresh, but peeling them when they're drenched in gravy is really not something enjoyable and nobody went for them until M took it upon himself to peel all the prawns for us. 

Thanks, M! :)

And the night ended with us trying to decipher what's Andong Zzimdak's logo all about, thanks to M who threw the question at the table. Somehow the answer we got became "Chicken God" as you can obviously see the Korean letter for God (Shin) in the middle of the logo and in the background I can vaguely see a chicken head... Two, in fact, for there's a mirror image. But of course, that's just mere guesses. 

If you know what exactly the logo is about, do let me know in the comment box below. 

Andong Zzimdak is located at Raffles City Shopping Centre, B1.

For more information, visit their FB page HERE

Till then,

Mia Foo

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Mia's Food Trail Review: Chicken Up

After my review of Penang Culture, here's another restaurant which I've really enjoyed the food while on my Century Square Food Trail.

Chicken Up!

I kind of like how they decor up the place. It's cute (those chicken feet!) yet paired up with pretty rustic looking furniture.

I've previously visited with T and tried out one of their KFC, kimchi fries and watermelon soju, all of which are really good but I felt was a little too pricey. Our bill for 2 (just those 2 dishes with the smaller serving of watermelon soju) came up to $80 plus $90? 

 Bulgogi Fries - $18

Comparing this to the kimchi fries, plus being a kimchi-fan, I'll definitely prefer the kimchi fries. The bulgogi ones are definitely a little too jerlat and 'meaty' for me. Fries itself is already a pretty heavy and oily taste, so drenching it generously with creamy mayonaise and tossed in bits of meat really isn't what I'll love to indulge in. 

I'll go for the kimchi fries anytime, sorry bulgogi. 

Toppoki with Seafood and Cheese - $20

And yes, that's quick a bit of shredded cheese on top when the pot is served. Just make sure to give it a good mix in.... 

And viola, cheesy seafood toppoki!

Unlike the 'traditional' topokki that has thicker gravy with a sweeter aftertaste (those sold locally in SG), Chicken Up does theirs more soupy, spicy without the off sweetness in the aftertaste, and added in tons of seafood, korean vermicelli, and topped up the goodness with grated cheese.

The teok (rice cakes) were chewy without taking down your jaw, and is well infused with the spicy flavour of the gravy, unlike some restaurants that probably doesn't cook the rice cakes long enough with the gravy, resulting in white and bland rice cakes. 

The pot looks small, but this dish sure packs enough to feed 2 or maybe even 3 tummies. 

A funny surprise when I tried the dish was when I bit into the mussel and heard something cracked. Initially I thought the mussel shell broke and I chewed on bits of it but it turned out....

The mussel 'ate' a miniature crab and haven't had time to digest it yet.

Watermelon Bingsu - $18

$18 might seem a little pricey for some watermelon balls, shaved ice, red beans and a scoop of vanilla ice cream sitting on half a watermelon. However, in terms of visual appeal, quantity and quality, $18 didn't feel that much overpriced either.
In addition, those shaved ice were made from freezing milk and not just plain water, making it much more creamy and flavourful than expected.

Macaron Ice Cream - $6 each

I was totally eyeing them when I visited the first time with T but ended up with no stomach spaces for even a bite of this after having the kimchi fries, KFC and watermelon soju. 

And well, it's really just a food trend and pretty instagram-worthy dessert. 

As seen, the macaron shells, perhaps affected by the coldness and dampness of the ice cream, were hard and overly moist and chewy in the centre. Not the best kind of macaron shell you'll want to bite into. The shells were also just flat sweet with no special flavours to them, which made me want to just chuck the shells and just eat the ice cream on their own.

Another $6 for one? I think I'll prefer finding another 2 girlfriends and sharing another bingsu instead, thank you.

Chicken Up is located at Century Square #01-44/47
For more information, visit their website HERE

Till then,
Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Bibigo

This is an extremely backdated review one of my favourite cuisine. Yup, sometime last year (yes, last year. so do not expect any price listed for this review), I met up with PQ and P for some bibimbab at bibigo!

 

Iced Yuzu Soda

 When we were there, there was a set menu promo that comes with a (limited) choice of main and a drink. I couldn't quite remember, but because we got 2 sets (or hit a certain expenditure), we got a complimentary dessert as well, which was so good I can still remember the taste of it in my mouth till now. No joke!

 My main course for the day - Kimchi Fried Rice, which obviously came with a fried egg, sides, and beansprout soup.

The fried rice is slightly sticky and gooey, being drenched with the yumminess of kimchi flavour. Hasn't tasted much of kimchi fried rice to know how it should taste like, perhaps the authentic ones are meant to be sticky and slightly soft. But for my personal taste buds, I would have preferred a tougher, 'dry yet oily' standard kind of Chinese fried rice. If you know what I mean. :)
Nevertheless, in terms of taste, for a kimchi fanatic like me, there's nothing I can complain about.
But for the sides (other than kimchi, duh!) and soup, there's really nothing worth discussing about.

Here is P's beef (something) bibimbab, which looked and smelled really yummy too!

PQ's Seafood Pajeon (Korean Pancake)

Had a taste of it because she couldn't finish it all by herself. Sad to say that I didn't like it at all and the reason is obvious. They were way too generous with the spring onions! There was hardly any flour batter in this pancake, it's almost all spring onions with bits of shrimps and squids in it. So if you're a die hard fan of spring onions, go for it. If not, do consider giving this a miss.

And the love of my life (at bibigo) - Sweet Potato Matang

Basically, it's something like honeyed (or caramelised, or malt candied) sweet potato. I know it sounds meh, but first bite into this common looking dessert and my eyes simply lit up! It was so good! The sweet potato was soft, yet not mushy, and generously coated in the sugary goodness of honey/malt candy/caramel and then topped up with some crispy rice crackers.
Just plain awesome. :)

For more information, visit Bibigo's FB HERE

Till then,
Mia

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