Ajumma's at The Cathay
July 06, 2017
Located at The Cathay, Ajumma’s is the only restaurant that offers casual korean food at an affordable price. My friend and I randomly selected Ajumma’s after watching a movie there. It’s a great hangout place with your friend. The name Ajumma's play with the word ajoomma (아줌마) which is the term that koreans usually call married older woman (aunty in our terms), which is to bring out that the food is homey and as if cooked by a housewife.
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| Side Dishes/Banchan (from clockwise: Seasoned Seaweed, Pickled Yellow Raddish, Creamed Corn and Kimchi |
To start off, we were served with banchan, which is the side dishes that usually is offered in a korean restaurant to accompany the meals. The banchan can vary from restaurant to restaurant and usually it is complimentary which is the case for Ajumma's. The ones at Ajumma’s were alright. Nothing scream delicious to me. They were like palate cleanser, restarting your sense of taste and smell. They were great addition to accompany the meal and moreover it's free!
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| Beef Bulgogi (SGD 8.90) |
For those who never try beef bulgogi before, the taste is similar to yoshinoya beef bowl. There is only a few ingredients to go wrong but it is hard to find one with a good balance of sweet and savoury as theirs. Their beef bulgogi features a soft and tender meat sauteed with onion. With the nice caramelisation on the beef heighten the taste and aroma of the dish. I highly recommend a bowl of rice to accompany beef bulgogi. Although my friend did find it a tad too sweet, I would think that the beef bulgogi have a perfect balance.
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| Grilled Norwegian Mackerel (SGD 8.50) |
I would not order this on my next visit to Ajumma’s as the mackerel was fishy and chewy. The fish can become chewy when can happen if it is overly cooked. In effort to mask the smell, the fish was drizzled with a sweet red sauce. I couldn’t figure out what condiment they use to make the sauce. Still, it didn’t help much with the fishiness. Avoid this.
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| Army Base Stew (SGD 14.90) |
It’s quite authentic compared to the ones I had in korea. The stew was full of ingredients such as enoki mushroom, sausage, luncheon meat, baked beans, rice cake, ramen noodle and a slice of cheese. The broth was spicy and slightly sour, mostly contributed by the use of fermented kimchi. The sound of the stew boiling make it more delicious. The army stew pair was more than enough for two to enjoy and only at the price of $14.90. I like it a lot as it warms my stomach and refreshes my palate.
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| Seafood Pancake (SGD 11.90) |
Yummy! It’s like party in the mouth. The pancake was crisp, chewy and filled with hidden pockets of seafood. The edge of the pancake where you can get the crunchiest and crispiest bit is my favourite part. The taste and texture is very much like Indian rojak prawn fritters. The seafood pancake is accompanied with a soy sauce which I believe to be maggi seasoning. One thing to note that it is a little on the greasy side.
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| Pork Chives Dumpling (SGD 4.90) |
The Pork Chives Dumplings was nothing really special to be honest. It is similar to like buying old chang kee gyoza; just bigger and fresher. To make it more appealing, I suggest adding buckwheat noodles in the filling. As only the deep fried version is available, I feel that serving the steamed version would be nice too.
All in all, it was an enjoyable dining experience at Ajumma’s. We were pleased with the food quality that were served to us. The place is small and tiny so be prepared to have someone sit near to you.
Expected damage per person: SGD 7 - 15
Overall, worthy of a ' pleased ' Two Ninja Stars.
Operating hours:
Monday - Sunday 11.30am - 9.30pm
2 Handy Road,
The Cathay Cineplex, #B1-23
Singapore 229233
Contact Number: +65 9780 3772
Facebook page here
Here is where Ajumma’s Korean Restaurant is located:
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