Entree Kibbles: Japan Rail Cafe @ Tanjong Pagar Centre [Singapore]

I first got to know of Japan Rail Cafe when i was checking out Hattendo Cafe (八天堂) which was just right opposite but didn't manage to patronize as the key objective then was a meal at Man Man Japanese Unagi Restaurant with my mom.

Hence, when Alex suggested lunch at Japan Rail Cafe one public holiday afternoon; i didn't reject and was surprised to find a retail outlet selling Japanese stuff and even the Japan rail pass. Turns out the cafe was a collaboration with the Japan National Tourism Organisation!

I would know where to go the next time i plan to visit Japan; however, i wouldn't bring Jerald as he would like pester me to get him the many expensive rail train models available for sale at the retail section!

Anyway, the main purpose was to check out the food at the cafe and we were brought to the indoor, air-conditioned seating area for 46 persons. Outdoor seating is also available at the open terrace.

Table setup - the Japan Rail Times is issued monthly with information on tourist sites in Japan. Aside for being a newspaper to publicize tourism in Japan, it also served as a menu for diners! I would share the menu later at the end of this post.

Uji Matcha Latte - The bitter aftertaste didn't appeal to me and till now; i can't find a close match to the best matcha latte i had from O'Sulloc in Jeju!

Watashino Curry Rice - i am such an easy prey for marketers; the picture for the curry rice was one of the biggest on the menu and i ordered thinking it must be recommended even though i am not a great fan of typical Japanese curry.

Unlike typical curry, the colour was a lot darker for this wastashino version which was black pepper based with chunks of minced beef. We can also choose one main and one side dish; mine was crispy fried chicken and sain'in crab cream korokke.

Special commendation for the sain'in crab cream korokke; the inside was a thick, creamy mayo-like paste with a delicious crab flavour while the outside featured a crispy crust that was of just the right thickness. The crispy chicken was sufficiently crispy but didn't wow.

I still wasn't convinced that i would enjoy typical Japanese curry despite the fact that i cleaned up the ten-grain rice and was thinking if i could ask for more to finish up the curry. I have been indicating typical Japanese curry as i had greater affection for the Hokkaido style soup curry.

Kaisen Avocado Don - Alex had actually patronized Japan Rail Cafe before and gave the thumbs-up for the Kaisen Avocado Don which contained salmon sashimi, aomori scallops and avocado.

Honestly, avocado doesn't provide much taste and i thought it might be better to just focus on the Aomori scallops for the naming of this dish. It did seem a lot healthier to have the word avocado though. Oh well, marketing strategy.

Whatever the case, i can understand why Alex likes this so much! The experience was like my first time having aburi bara chirashi bowl from Waa Cow but in this case, with the goodness of the yummy Aomori scallops. I regretted not ordering this as my one and only mouthful (courtesy of Alex) was full of unmatched satisfaction!

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