The diverse cuisines of Korea, Japan and Singapore blend at several food spots to create a unique mix, says Khushbu Kirti
Food diversity is the specific term to address what I am going to talk about ahead — consuming a variety of foods, from a variety of cultures. Thus, the food becomes geographically different, mostly exclusively imported from another place. With such advancement in trade and technology, it’s a two-minute work to order, let’s say, Lebanese food and if you order it from a high-rated place, there’s a good chance the raw materials are being imported from none other than Lebanon. Yep, that’s the special part about widening your horizon of cuisines — you can experience a foreign culture right at your home. Now, I cannot vouch for exactly how authentic the experience can be, but following are three tried-and-tested cafes/restaurants that will guarantee to bring their specific cultural experience home.
Japenese culture at Harajuku Tokyo Cafe
I was keen on researching about the diversification of cultures in the food-industry for a long time, however, there never seemed to be a good time. One day, I got the opportunity to try a Japanese cafe called Harajuku Tokyo Cafe and I can write this down, not that I’m not doing it here, that this was one of my best experiences while testing a new cuisine. The cafe is located at Select City Walk mall, Saket. The aroma felt mesmerising as soon as my mother and I entered the premises. It was, undoubtedly, the cutest lil place I’d ever seen and the moment you enter, your mood is distinctly uplifted. The ambience was exhilarating but what grabbed my immediate attention was the claw machine right at the entrance and manga comics at the display. Inside, there was a huge wall with graffiti from the streets of Harajuku, Shibuya. For those who might not be aware, Harajuku is a bustling street full of colourful art and youth fashion. It showcases a plethora of stores of vintage clothing and cosplay. Bars, food-corners, carts, exhibitions are what the street is inherently famous for. True to their real-life model, the cafe also had a decorated food wagon or caravan. Harajuku street exhibits tons of carts selling crêpes, doughnuts, bubble tea, and so on. The ornamentation was unique. The owner of the cafe, Gaurav Kanwar, in a heart-to-heart, explained how even the toy-clouds on the ceiling were imported from Japan, pointing out that the floor-tiles were fundamentally green and white origami – the culture replicated that of Japan. He also spoke of their other outlet in Noida that had special Japanese chefs to hit a high level of standardisation.
We were welcomed with Gyoza (basically the tastiest Chicken dumplings one can imagine), and Plain butter croissant, along with Iced coffee, Cappuccino and Marshmallow gelatin with a dog-shaped cookie. While the croissant was light and melted in the mouth, the coffee was aromatic and, may I say, perfect as it successfully rendered a calming buzz. The Gyoza had sesame toppings, spring onions, and was garnished with micro-beans and leaves. The taste was only elevated by a spicy, tangy tamarind sauce. My mother loved the Teriyaki sandwich, and I must add that she isn’t someone easily impressed. It looked like a subway and was extremely filling with chicken patty and chopped vegetables. The Chicken bao was a dish I had for the first time. It was sweetish, chewy and soft, and the chicken well-cooked and crunchy.
Chef Sanjay recommended to us their special Spicy salmon and cream cheese roll, with salmon, avocado and cream cheese, cucumber, topped with spicy ponzu mayonnaise, white mayo, and garnished with micro-beans. This was one of the inside-out rolls that fell under the category of the Japanese dish called Uramaki.
Korean culture at Gung The Palace
The advent of Chinese and Italian food is a really old story, but with the popularity of BTS and K-drama, Korean food has suddenly garnered a lot of attention. Good for us, eh? My friend and I decided to try Gung The Palace in Noida. And let me tell you, this place actually seemed to bring Korea to you. The restaurant had private chambers for dining, something I only had seen on television and in animes. The wooden flooring gave the place a sophisticated and polished look. We entered and there was a sight of their newly launched BTS coffee brew. Being a K-pop fan, I had the craving to try some immediately. Luckily, I got the chance as our guide, Geetanjali, found me eyeing them and offered some tasters to me. I obviously had to accept when someone urges this amount (winks). The corridors led to the rooms mirrored that of South-East Asian cultures and we stepped in one of the rooms with the traditional setting of the tables embedded in the floor.
Luckily, we happened to visit the restaurant during the Korean Thanksgiving festival, called Chuseok, or Hangawi. This is their major harvest festival. South Koreans celebrate it as a three-day holiday while North-Koreans observe it for a day. It is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, that is, September 21 of this year. This was such a coincidence, I thought to myself, for now we were served with their special Thanksgiving food! Geetanjali informed us about their cuisine containing one main dish and numerous side dishes. We were treated just as royally. The order incorporated two main dishes — Cheese Dakgalbi or Fried cheese chicken and Haemul jeongol (the sea-food casserole), along with side-dishes like Kimchi (orange cabbage leaves), Anchovy, Pancakes (no, they weren’t sweet), and Sigeumchi namul (a special Thanksgiving dish including spinach, radish and gosari).
The fried chicken engulfed in cheese was probably something I knew I wouldn’t get over, and don’t even get me started on their Haemul jeongol. The casserole encompassed the most exotic sea-food, from lip-smacking prawns, and crabs to exotic and delectable octopuses. We were informed that all their sea-food was imported from different parts of Korea and it made sense, for it tasted nothing like what I’ve had before. Just when I was surprised they did not have desserts, there arrived Songphyeon, what appeared to be green sweet momos but actually contained the goodness of slightly sweet sesame seeds. Although very different from our general desserts, we could not complain about the food. We were completely full and content.
Singaporean culture at Mai Bao
After the Korean and Japanese cuisines, I had to try the Singaporean one, because, well, why not? My cousin and I selected one of the highest rated ones on the list and it turned out to be Mai Bao at DLF Avenue mall, Saket. It was a cosy and sleek restaurant with aesthetic colours of beige pink and turquoise. We were greeted by chef Satwant, who was the nicest, offering us customised signature dishes planned out personally. The ceiling displayed a huge S, a pattern I also noticed on the walls and borders of the tables. The paintings and paper-weight showcased majestic lions, the lion-head being Singapore’s national symbol and logo, demonstrating characters like courage, strength and excellence – their national values. It was introduced in 1986, characterising Singapore’s reputation and identity as the ‘lion city’.
With compliments from the chef, we were served with a wide array of dishes, the first being Laksa, a spicy coconut noodle-dish popular in South-East Asia (mainly in China and Malaysia). In Singapore, the chef told us, the Laksa is Katong laksa, with cut-up noodles. The gravy was thick and it tasted well and soothing. It felt like coconut broth and I’d rate it a good four out of five. While the Popiah had too many leaves, and I didn’t quite enjoy the sauce, the Prawn and Blue pea dumpling appeared glossy and unique and the prawns tasted delicious. The Duck bao was served with hoisin sauce which gave a strong cinnamon taste. The sauce was sweet and the duck was hot and tasted somewhat like chicken, which was good for me. While the Creamy mushroom was, no surprises here, creamy, and tasted like tofu, I absolutely adored the Chicken satay sticks — this was mainly skewered grilled chicken, absorbed in peanut gravy and vied for an excellent starter. It had a strong turmeric smell which augmented the taste and is unique to Singaporean cuisine. Another favourite go-to dish of their culture is Hainanese chicken rice, which incorporates steamed chicken placed on rice cooked in chicken stock. It was very filling and had a specific steamy fragrance to it. The chef’s dessert platter was the best save for the last. It was what looked like a pastry with the flavours of silk chocolate, a layer of coconut, and crackles were extremely luscious.
