Korean premium produce gaining popularity in Singapore
A greater variety of high-end fruits and seafood give their Japanese equivalents a run for their money
MATSUTAKE mushrooms. Shine Muscat grapes. Black-throat perch or nodoguro. Musk melons. Sakura ebi. Awabi or abalone.
They all sound like a typical shopping list a high-end restaurant in Singapore might be sending to its suppliers in Japan, but increasingly, that shopping list – with the necessary language adjustments – is being sent somewhere else. Specifically, South Korea.
Besides fine-dining Korean restaurants such as Meta and Naeum, the likes of Cloudstreet, Labyrinth, Zen, Odette and Tarte by Cheryl Koh have warmed to the idea of using premium Korean versions of the same products. Abalone from the Korean province of Wando, for example, is becoming commonplace on menus (also for its friendlier pricing), while Korean songi or pine (matsutake) mushrooms are known to be equal to their Japanese counterparts (and just as expensive).
KEYWORDS IN THIS ARTICLE
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Lifestyle
Former Zouk morphs into mod-Asian Jiak Kim House, serving laksa pasta and mushroom bak kut teh
Massimo Bottura lends star power to pizza and pasta at Torno Subito
Victor Liong pairs Aussie and Asian food with mixed results at Artyzen’s Quenino restaurant
If Jay Chou likes Ju Xing’s zi char, you might too
Mod-Sin cooking izakaya style at Focal
What the fish? Diving for flavour at Fysh – Aussie chef Josh Niland’s Singapore debut