In 2018 alone, there have been multiple instances where we have witnessed Singaporeans’ relentless patience to queue for overseas brands who have made their debuts in Singapore, including famous Korean toast chain Isaac Toast, original cheese tea inventor HEYTEA, and Austrian bakery specialising in devil cheese buns, Guschlbauer.

Keep your eyes peeled and your calendars marked because come late November, famous Hokkaido soft serve shop Naganuma Ice is slated to open in Singapore’s Carlton City Hotel.

Known to be Hokkaido’s most sought-after soft serve brand, the brand specialises in soft serves and gelato and always sees queues of almost an hour long. Distinctively the sole Hokkaido firm certified by the prefecture’s authorities for using raw Hokkaido milk in their ice cream products, their milky goodnesses is quite possibly the best in Naganuma itself.

Photo Credit: choochooho

Founded in 1994, Naganuma Ice prides themselves on using milk that is sourced from ranch cows near Naganuma town before being transported immediately to the brand’s factory for low-temperature pasteurisation, making sure that every cone boasts an intense milky flavour.

Currently, Naganuma Ice has 6 outlets worldwide—3 in Japan and 3 in Taiwan, all of which draws long queues. Diners can expect the very same quality to be produced in Singapore’s outlet as Japan’s outlet as only the same ingredients, such as 100% Hokkaido raw milk, will go into the making of the soft serve.

Photo Credit: yan.sg

Singapore’s outlet will serve 6 soft serve flavours and 12 gelato flavours. Look forward to items such as the signature Rich Milk Soft Serve (S$6)!

Also, be sure to try out to their Singapore-exclusive items, the Black Lover Parfait (S$8.50) which is made of cream, strawberry jam, cookie crumbs, and Asahikawa dark chocolate as well as the Crème Brûlée Rich Milk Soft Serve (S$8), which is Naganuma’s very own twist on the caramelized custard dessert.

Photo Credit: yan.sg

They are slated to open at Carlton City Hotel at Tanjong Pagar on 25th November. Be sure to head down ASAP before the queues get crazily long!

Carlton City Hotel
1 Gopeng Street
Singapore 078862
Tel: +65 6741 9108
Daily: 11am – 9pm
Nearest Station: Tanjong Pagar

Red Holic is where lovers of Korean food can settle in for some of the tastiest tteokbokki around. Helmed by the same folks behind Super Star K, this cosy joint boasts a myriad of home-style Korean stews, dumplings and other tasty delights that go well with beer or soju.

Red Holic specialises in comforting Korean food in the likes of classic tteokbokki, ramyeon and Korean street snacks. While their menu is pretty selective, this Korean eatery does make for a nice pit stop for a quick snack on the go or for your friends and yourself to retire to over drinks after a hard day’s work.

Kick start your meal with one of Red Holic’s Giant Mandus (Korean dumplings). Red Holic serves a selective variety of this classic Korean street snack at a relatively affordable price per piece.

We opted for the Giant Kimchi Mandu (S$1.80++ per piece) and each piece came steaming hot and stuffed with generous amounts of kimchi, minced pork and glass noodles.

While the variety of textures, flavours and tongue-tingling heat surprised us in some way, we would have much preferred if it was less dry.

If you are tired of drooling over the Jjajangmyeon you often see in Korean dramas, hop over to Red Holic and order up a portion of Jjajang Tteokbokki that will satisfy any of such cravings.

The Crispy Chicken Jjajang Tteokbokki (S$27.80++) comes with Korean ramyeon noodles, quail eggs, 2 pieces of fried mandu, tteokbokki and pieces of diced up chicken thighs that are deep-fried to a nice golden brown.

The Jjajang sauce was mildly sweet and savoury with a slight spicy kick to it, which we felt went pleasantly well with the tteokbokki and ramyeon. The fried chicken arrives tender on the inside and crisp on the outside but we suggest you finish them up quickly before they turn soggy.

If you’re a fan of spicy food, don’t beat around the bush and head straight for the Red Holic Tteokbokki which comes with a broth that is equally as sweet as the Jjajang sauce, but with a fiery element that will impress.

The Red Holic Beef Brisket Tteokbokki (S$28.80++) can feed 2 to 3 people nicely given its size. Similar to the Crispy Chicken Jjajang Ttekbokki, this dish gives you the best of both worlds as it comprises both ramyeon as well as their signature Tteokbokki. Carbs aside, this dish will fill you up with the beef brisket, fried mandu as well as glass noodles too!

Tanjong Pagar may be home to plenty of Korean restaurants—this area is known to be Singapore’s ‘Little Korea’ after all—but what makes Red Holic stand out is their exceptional tteokbokki which are undeniably one of the best that we tried.

And while Red Holic’s menu is rather limited, they definitely deliver when it comes to quality. Should you wish to indulge in inexpensive and hearty Korean fare that is not overly pretentious, Red Holic is a great place to consider.

Red Holic
88 Tanjong Pagar Road
Singapore 088509
Tel: +65 6224 1064
Daily: 11.30am – 2am
Nearest Station: Tanjong Pagar