Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant Tasting Session
82 Amoy Street
Opening Hours:
Daily: 11:30am - 2:30pm (Lunch), 5pm - 11:30pm (Dinner)
https://www.facebook.com/PUJIMHADA/
This was an invited media review. I did not pay for the meal during the free hosted tasting session.
Attended with representatives from Captain Slow Yeo, msginginly, Purple Taste, Her Pen And Fork, Jelly Magically, and Epicurious Caniggia.
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| Haemultang / Seafood Soup (SGD $35) |
Good Premium Korean Barbecue With Quality Meat
(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 7
Ambience & Setting: 7
Food & Beverage: 8
Service: 8
Value for Money: 6
Budget about SGD $63 per person.
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Opening its doors in July 2018, Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant in Amoy Street is a solid Korean barbecue, offering large, hearty, communal portions of luxurious, premium, good quality meat. Operated by owner chef Kim Dae Yo, who conducted research in the area for 9 months prior to opening, Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant seems to attract Koreans (a good sign), along with well-heeled diners looking for a good barbecue meal.
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| Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant Signage |
Ambience at Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant is casual and comfortable, suitable for long, lingering meals. The dimly lit area has an intimate feel, with the dark, sturdy wooden furniture, black brick walls, and grey concrete floor, offset by the bright decor of neon-lit Korean words. The place is spacious, they're definitely not maximising floor space here, so there's less seating than expected. The premium exhaust nozzels are of good quality, there is nearly no cooking odour in the air, and you leave feeling fresh. I do wish the place was brighter though.
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| Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant Exterior |
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| Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant Interior |
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| Seating |
Service at Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant is efficient, polite, and engaging. The Korean staff here can converse well in English and Korean, and are well-groomed with smooth skin, looking good. They will assist in preparing, grilling, and serving the meat right at your table, and even Owner Chef Kim Dae Yo does come round to serve diners. They will clear finished dishes / plates throughout your meal, sometimes on request, and they display good product knowledge, able to describe the various cuts. Even when stretched during peak periods, staff still manage to accord personalised attention to each table.
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| Owner Chef Kim Dae Yo |
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| Owner Chef Kim Dae Yo Grilling |
Food at Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant is traditional Korean cuisine, with a focus on Korean barbecue and dishes from Busan, South Korea. Quality and freshness of ingredients is good, with the seafood and premium cuts of meat being, ironically, sourced from Japan. Instead of the usual Korean marinade, they've decided to go natural, opting to have the full original taste of ingredients, with dipping sauces to accompany. Portions are large, sized for communal dining of at least 3 - 4 people. Prices are high, befitting the premium quality of ingredients. Budget about SGD $63 per person for a meal here.
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| Banchan / Side Dishes |
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| Drinks |
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| Charcoal |
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| Us |
The Beer Hite (SGD $12) is a common Korean beer, with a bright golden colour, and aromas of wheat, cereal, straw, and malt. Body is smooth, crisp, and fizzy, with a high amount of carbonation, and tastes of bread, barley, malt, and corn, refreshing with some sweetness and bitterness, and undertones of metal.
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| Beer Hite (SGD $12) |
The Flavoured Soju - Jinro Green Grape Soju (SGD $15) is a fruit soju, its clear, transparent colour belies the bold fruity sweet notes it has. This distilled liquor is smooth and refreshing in texture, and the clean green grape flavour masks the strong 13% alcohol content, making it easy to drink, and easy to get drunk!
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| Flavoured Soju - Jinro Green Grape Soju (SGD $15) |
A typical Korean barbecue isn't complete without a host of Banchan / Side Dishes. Most are decent, including the Kimchi Baechu / Kimchi Pickled Cabbage, the Sagwa Oi Saelleodeu / Apple Cucumber Salad, and the Kimchi Kkakdugi / Kimchi Cubed Pickled Daikon Radish. Typical pairings with grilled meat include the Sangchu / Lettuce, and Yangpa Jangajji / Pickled Onions. All these are complimentary, served with every order of meat, and refillable throughout the meal.
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| Sangchu / Lettuce & Chili |
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| Yangpa Jangajji / Pickled Onions |
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| Kimchi Kkakdugi / Kimchi Cubed Pickled Daikon Radish |
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| Kimchi Baechu / Kimchi Pickled Cabbage |
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| Sagwa Oi Saelleodeu / Apple Cucumber Salad |
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| Kimchi Baechu Geotjeori / Kimchi Fresh Cabbage |
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| Selleoli Jorim / Simmered Celery |
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| Kimchi Suk Kkakdugi / Kimchi Cubed Boiled Pickled Daikon Radish |
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| Ganjang & Gochujang / Soy Sauce & Red Chili Paste |
The Haemultang / Seafood Soup (SGD $35) has a generous portion of fresh seafood, in a salty savoury sweet seafood soup / broth. Stacked high with flower crab, tiger prawns, shrimp, blue mussels, white clams, squid, scallops, and octopus, with a base of spring onions, lettuce, and chili. Enjoyable and warming, helps to open the palate.
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| Haemultang / Seafood Soup (SGD $35) |
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| Haemultang / Seafood Soup |
The Eomuk Guk / Fish Cake Soup (SGD $35) is done Busan, South Korea style, with a sweet savoury fish soup / broth. Stacked with a generous amount of 2 different types of fish cakes, fish balls, tteokbokki / ddukbokki / rice cakes, lettuce, carrots, red onions, spring onions, and chili. Compared to the other soup / broth, the sharp spicy kick is more pronounced here. Good!
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| Eomuk Guk / Fish Cake Soup (SGD $35) |
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| Eomuk Guk / Fish Cake Soup |
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| Eomuk Guk / Fish Cake Soup |
Compared to other versions elsewhere, the Haemul Pajeon / Seafood Pancake (SGD $35) by contrast, has very little all-purpose flour starch and egg. Instead, it's more like a plate of fresh seafood, with generous portions of prawns / shrimp, squid, and spring onions. Has a crisp, crunchy, bouncy, chewy texture, with delicate sweet savoury salty flavours. Somewhat more oily than I'd like, but the excess oil is easily dabbed away. Good!
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| Haemul Pajeon / Seafood Pancake (SGD $35) |
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| Haemul Pajeon / Seafood Pancake |
The Premium Beef Ribeye Cap (SGD $38 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $114) uses Toriyama wagyu beef grade A4, with a good amount of marbling. Filleted in the shape of a prawn, the thinly sliced pieces of beef ribeye cap grill quickly. Because of the high quality of wagyu beef, there is no marinade on the meat, unlike other places which typically use cheaper cuts. Enjoyed the succulent, juicy, light chew to texture, with the bold meaty savoury fatty flavour.
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap Raw (SGD $38 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $114) |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap Raw |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap On Bread |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap On Bread |
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| Premium Beef Ribeye Cap Cooked |
The Premium Beef Striploin (SGD $35 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $105) has a beautiful meat to fat ratio, the marbling forming patterns across the Toriyama wagyu beef grade A4, sans marinade. Being thicker, the beef striploin has a more bouncy, meaty, juicy, satisfiying chew, with the same bold meaty savoury fatty flavour. I understand from chef that the Korean style of cutting meat is perpendicular, along the grain. While this makes it slightly more difficult to cut for servers, it makes it easy to eat for diners.
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| Premium Beef Striploin Raw (SGD $35 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $105) |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Raw |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Lettuce Wrap |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Cooked |
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| Premium Beef Striploin Cooked |
The Premium Pork Neck (SGD $20 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $60) is a huge chunk of Iberico pork meat, eventually being cut into small cubes for easy eating. The pork neck cubes have a firm, cunchy, moist texture, with delicate savoury sweet fatty flavour. Again, the use of premium meat here means they've eschewed the marinade, allowing you to taste the full natural flavour. This cut took the longest to grill and prepare, so if you're hungry, start with something else.
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| Premium Pork Neck Raw (SGD $20 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $60) |
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| Premium Pork Neck Raw |
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| Premium Pork Neck Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Neck Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Neck Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Neck Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Neck Cooked |
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| Premium Pork Neck Cooked |
The Premium Pork Belly & King Trumpet Mushroom (SGD $11 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $33) features medium thick slices of Iberico pork, without any marinade, being easy to grill. The pork belly has a crunchy juicy slippery texture, with the same delicate savoury sweet fatty flavour. The king trumpet mushrooms have a moist juicy bouncy chew to texture, with a light earthy sweet flavour. I find it tastes much better when paired with some of the sea salt on the side.
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| Premium Pork Belly & King Trumpet Mushroom Raw (SGD $11 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 300g for SGD $33) |
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| Premium Pork Belly & King Trumpet Mushroom Raw |
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| Premium Pork Belly Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Belly Grilling |
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| King Trumpet Mushroom Grilling |
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| Premium Pork Belly Cooked |
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| Premium Pork Belly Cooked |
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| King Trumpet Mushroom Cooked |
The Premium Beef Brisket (SGD $16 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 200g for SGD $32) surprised us. The thin slices of marinated Toriyama wagyu beef grade A4 cook quickly, and the marinade lends a sweet salty flavour to the natural bold meaty savoury fatty flavour of the beef brisket. With a soft, tender chew to texture, this cut is the easiest to eat, as well as the most tasty. Especially good when paired with some Sangchu / Lettuce or Yangpa Jangajji / Pickled Onions, with Gochujang / Red Chili Paste.
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| Premium Beef Brisket Raw (SGD $16 per 100g, Minimum 1st Order of 200g for SGD $32) |
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| Premium Beef Brisket Raw |
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| Premium Beef Brisket Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Brisket Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Brisket Grilling |
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| Premium Beef Brisket Cooked |
Interesting to see the multi-purpose use of the Bbang Huin / White Bread (SGD $Complimentary) here. Initially, it's used to soak up excess oil from the meat, then later, to clean the oil and char marks from the grill. Near the end, it's grilled and served as a side dish. When grilled, it takes on a crisp, airy texture, with a smoky, bready sweet flavour that is so tasty. Good!
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| Bbang Huin / White Bread (SGD $Complimentary) |
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| Bbang Huin / White Bread Grilled |
Overall, we enjoyed the dining experience at Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant. The casual and spacious ambience, friendly and engaging service, delicious and hearty portions of Korean food, as well as quality of the premium cuts of meat, are attractive enough to warrant a repeat visit. However, the high prices at Pu Jim Korean BBQ Restaurant means it's not so adequate for everyday dining, more suited when you feel like treating yourself.
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CONVERSATION