Entree Kibbles: Hoodadak Korean Dining Room @ Fusionopolis [Singapore]

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Hoodadak Korean Dining Room @ Fusionopolis [Singapore]

Visiting Fusionopolis on a weekday afternoon for lunch often means long queue at most eateries, and it didn't escape my friends' eyes that Hoodadak Korean Dining Room always commands a queue!

We had been wanting to pay a visit for quite some time and the opportunity came when someone decided to give us a treat! Anyway, I don't now what Hoodadak means in Korean; is it related to chicken given the use of chicken image even for their logo?

Too many items on the menu and I guess narrowing my choice to the set menu would be an easier way to decide. Honestly, when it comes to meat, I prefer beef and pork over chicken, and it appeared that the jeayuk set would be a better option for me!

Cutleries wrapped in a plastic bag; nice touch given the current pandemic! As customary for authentic Korean restaurants, you would find a bottle of cold water for you to help yourself with; to think other eateries have the audacity to charge.

Trays of Korean side dishes! These would be the kind of things that my family totally enjoyed when it comes to Korean cuisine and there were times where the side dishes were the main highlights!

For a moment, I was wondering why the mom doesn't allow customers to take the food. After mere seconds, I got it; MOM stands for the ministry of manpower and self-service for food is disallowed under MOM's COVID-19 guidelines.

Side dishes - four types in total; sweet seaweed sprinkled with what looked like sugar, braised egg that was a favourite among my peers, okay tasting spinach, and the spicy, sourish kimchi (not my cup of tea). Refillable; just request from the service staff.

Jeayuk Set - Arrival of my set meal; I lamented a long time ago that I disliked the seaweed soup served in Korean restaurants. Now that I am older, I appreciate the soup a lot better as it gave the impression it's healthier for the ageing body!

My meat; tasted like the typical spicy pork bulgogi I was accustomed to and while the flavour was good and portion was generous, the cheapo me couldn't help comparing with the much cheaper version (half the price) from Hwang's Restaurant in University Town, NUS.

Saving grace; Hoodadak gave a lot of onions which I like and I couldn't deny the fact that Hwang's Restaurant has recently reduced their side dishes to just one; kimchi, and I don't think it's refillable since there's no indication of that.

Seafood Pajeon - always good to have a pancake for sharing! With prawns and squids, was sadly quite doughy despite the light crisp on the outside. Know what I was thinking of as I bit into pancake? I miss the seafood pancake from Pa Bul Lo Korean Charcoal BBQ @ Serangoon Garden.

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I would be of mixed feeling if you ask whether I would return for a meal at Hoodadak Korean Dining Room. On one hand, prices weren't that easy on the pocket and taste wise, it didn't make me wide-eyed, but on the other hand; with so many other options to choose from (including fried chicken), maybe I should go again to check out their other dishes.

Address

1 Fusionopolis Place, #01-10,