Shiu Yakiniku

My parents saw the advertisement for this restaurant on TV, and wanted to try it out. However, they weren't able to give me the restaurant name, just that it's a Japanese BBQ restaurant located at the former Crocodile Farm. A ton of googling later, I found the name. It's Shiu Yakiniku, located at The Village, opposite Jurong Bird Park, at the old Crocodile Farm site.

They boast of a smoke-free BBQ. I was initially doubtful, but made reservations nonetheless, because the parents said so. Turned out that it wasn't quite necessary on a Monday night. The place is so inaccessible by public transport, that there was only two other tables in the restaurant while we were there.

The buffet was going at $29++ for the basic menu, with options to top-up the price for more premium menus. Wagyu beef was at the premium menu, but I'm the only beef eater in the family, and they don't allow single person top-up. So I just went with the regular menu. First round we let them bring us a mixed selection of meats. These were arranged prettily in the shape of a palm tree, with chicken as the 'trunk', and thin slices of pork belly as the leaves. The ventilation vents are located at the side of the grill, the entire circumference of it. The result is smoke being vented off before it actually reached the table surface. And guess what? I didn't smell of BBQ at all. The hubby can vouch for me. His vegetarian nose usually dislike the BBQ smell I carry into the car after my dinners. He totally didn't detect any this time round.

Smokeless BBQ pit

We liked the pork belly. They were marinated nicely, and the thinness resulted in chewy pieces of not overly tough meats. The chicken were marinated well too. The marinates were generally not to sweet. The squid was actually pretty fresh and sweet. However, I can't remember how the prawns were, so I shall not comment on it.

Palm shaped arrangement of meats, trunk already half gone

I actually liked their beef, even though it wasn't wagyu. They had two varieties on the menu. One of it was a pretty decently thick slab of meat, about 1cm thick. Which means if I'm careful with my timing, I can actually get it medium. And I did, and I was happy. The tenderloin was thinner, but still tender after being cooked through. The mutton were sliced thinly, but marinated well enough that you know it's mutton, but the muttony smell wasn't overpowering. This restaurant also brings out the meat only when you order, so I feel less inclined to think that they were surrounded by flies before I get them.

The beef

My mess of cooked meats

The side dishes had hits and misses. The sushi were terrible - they had a mushy feel and not-so-fresh taste to them. The kimchi soup was so so, the ginseng chicken soup (it was really only soup) was pretty nice. The kimchi were yummy (why is there these Korean dishes in a Japanese restaurants?), but the other cold side dishes weren't so good. The fried chicken was good, but fried fish absolutely bland.

Overall, I enjoyed myself. Mainly because of the beef I think. And the smoke-less-ness. I think I'll bring people back. But location is really sucky, because you either have to take a cab or drive. I think there's a bus going there, but you'll probably have to take MRT and change at Boon Lay.