Oh dear, having BBQ for two consecutive weeks is hardly my idea of a healthy diet and is making me feel so "heaty". In fact I was feeling so heaty that I went over to Tampines Mall immediately after my dinner at Ssikkek and bought some chrysanthemum herbal tea!
I came to Ssikkek Korean BBQ at Tampines One with high hopes because I was absolutely in love with their Novena branch. Ssikkek at Novena was still using the traditional grill and aluminium foil the last time I visited but the meat was so well marinated and so fresh. I always end up sitting outdoors when I visit the Novena branch and it was hot and sticky, but I had always enjoyed my meals there.
Ssikkek at Tampines One was slightly different. It was fully air-conditioned and every table was fitted with the new smokeless BBQ grill. The only similarity was the long queue outside which meant that we had to wait quite a while before getting our seats. We had a group of 10 and we waited approximately 15 to 20 minutes before getting our seats. Not bad for such a large group and better yet that they did not insist for all of us to be present before letting us in.
Prices are shown above. Pretty reasonable for a BBQ buffet, if you ask me. Each customer has one free bottle of mineral water and all other drinks will be charged accordingly. I wasn't aware initially but apparently every group only had two hours in the restaurant and your relevant time is noted on the receipt which they left on the table. I find two hours rather reasonable though I can imagine some people being unhappy that they aren't allow to hang out longer with their friends and families.
Now the selection. The selection of meat, cold dishes, seafood and mushroom was decent. To say there was a spread would be a lie. For some reason I feel that there are less choices here as compared to Novena, but another small voice in my head refuted that thought. So frankly, I am unsure.
What I am sure, though, was the quality of the food. The pork belly was not marinated at all and was really bland. The chicken was pretty well marinated and I liked the chicken. The bacon was by far the best which was the main reason why I had more than ten strips of bacon with golden mushrooms over the course of the meal.
You could get the waiters to change the grill for you when the charred bits become too thick and they usually get it done pretty fast. But frankly, service was mediocre. They were quick to get things done but they did not seem like they really wanted to do the work. Our grill was leaking and quickly forming a puddle around my feet so I informed the waiter about the leak when he came around to change the grill. He did not even so much as look at me when I told him nicely about the leak. My boyfriend thought he did not hear so he repeated my comment. The waiter then lifted his head and snapped that he knows about the leak and proceeded to walk away. The good thing was that he eventually returned with a mop to clean up the puddle.
I guess if I wanted to have Korean BBQ in future, I would make the trip to Novena instead.
#04-22 Tampines 1
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