Call it passion or even an obsession, but there’s one thing that nobody can deny: we Singaporeans absolutely love Japanese food. From sushi to ramen and mochi to yakitori, we’ll devour anything and everything that comes from the land of the rising sun. Trouble is, eating Japanese food can get pretty pricey. Not necessarily but often enough, especially for the good places.
Which is why Kogane Yama at Bugis Junction is a godsend. Having recently opened on 4 June 2017, this cosy 44-seater eatery is the brainchild of the people behind Korean fried chicken chain Chir Chir Fusion Chicken Factory and meat stew restaurant Masizzim. And this is their first original dining concept in town.
That dining concept is a good one too – it’s all about affordable and delicious tendon bowls over here (tendon is an abbreviation for tempura and donburi if you’re wondering). So what can diners expect? Well, first of all, the menu is short and sweet. There are only four tendon options: the Chicken Bowl ($13.80), Prawn Bowl ($13.80), Vegetable Bowl ($11.80), and Mixed Bowl ($15.80).
For our meal, we had the Mixed Bowl, which consisted of tempura prawns, chicken fillet, long beans, carrots, shiitake and enoki mushrooms, sweet potato, green bell pepper, seaweed, and shiso leaves – basically everything in the house. We also got to choose from three levels of spicy tentsuyu dips, which if you don’t regularly eat chilli, can get a little intense.
All ingredients came coated in a glorious golden-brown crispy batter, while we chose to eat them with Japanese short-grain rice, as well as Soba and Udon (which you need to top up a dollar each for). If we’re being frank, not all of the meats in our platter came off well. The chicken fillet was a little too dry while the prawn could’ve been juicier.
That said; all the vegetables were stellar. The crispy batter somehow managed to retain every vegetable’s natural sweetness, and even enhanced the flavours in some instances, especially in the case of the seaweed and mushrooms.
At the end of the day though, for the price you’re paying and the portion you’re going to get (which is huge by the way), this is a value-for-money meal. You can even share it if you’d like, which shows just how generous Kogane Yama actually is. The top-ups for both Chawanmushi and Miso Soup for $2 is also a real steal, and there’s nothing much to complain about if all you’re looking for is a quick and decent bite.
Rating: 3.5/5
Expected Damage: 2/5
Kogane Yama, 200 Victoria Street, Bugis Junction, #02-50. Opening Hours: Sunday to Thursday, 11am to 10pm; Friday to Saturday, 11am to 11pm.
For more information, visit Kogane Yama’s Facebook page here.
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