Ju Shin Jung (West Coast)

Had a dinner for 4 there last Friday. Booked early to aviod disappointment and waiting time as I'e exeprienced it before on a few occasions while dining there.

The place still smells and you will smell likeiwse at the end of your meal. But ntg is impossible for the sake of good food. I really liked this place so much I am willing to put up with the lack of ventilation! But that's all past now. My latest soujourn there yielded disappointing results.

The raw beef was tasteless, the  tounge too thin and yet tough. Side dishes still aplenty and good but looks like the stars are fading so why bother with the ensemble?

 

I've been faithful to this authentic korean diner for the past 4 years, ever since a friend introduced this place to me. This will be a great place for ppl who have nv tried real cuisine dining. What we get at food courts are nowhere near be coz at Ju Shin Jung, it's all about Korean BBQ!!

Pls remember to make a reservation as it's always full house during dinner time. I must firstly mention that it's a great place for family get togethers or with friends!

At the start of the meal the tabletop is drowned by the 101 side dishes to accompany ur dining adventure. I personally love the mini pumpkin cakes but when they arrive cold n hard, I'm easily disappointed. Anw the whole meal is not just abt kimchi- which is only in the side dishes, Kim chi pancake n kimchi soup.

The BBQ items to order must include: Marinated Pork, Mushrooms, Marinated Chicken!

As u wait for the server to cook the meats for u, make sure u've ordered their spicy tofu soup n seafood pancake! Awesome... The seafood pancake is super wholesome while the tofu soup is just pure goodness!

I've tried the raw beef before, but it is totally not for me. So unless u are adventurous, I suggest u just invest ur $$ in the BBQ n cooked good items.

Oh u cld consider drinking the Ginseng Chicken Soup too, really hearty and heartwarming.

Ok, u can't possibly enjoy this meal if u are dining by urself. Bring along at least 3 friends to enjoy the feast and u r bound to hv a cam-whoring gd time with the food while chomping on healthy wholesome goodness!

Was there with a group of frens, with me being the one who LOVES Korean food to bits.

There were 8 of us, and we ordered :

2 portion of pork
1 portion of beef
1 portion of chicken
1 seafood omelette
1 Seafood bean paste soup
1 bottle of Soju (not enough for 8 pax la! but cos it was way too expensive @ S$25/bottle, we had to control!)
1 dolsot bimbimbap

IMHO, the bimbimbap tasted very normal, but you MUST try their omelette and bean paste soup.
VERY AUTHENTIC.
I have tried numerous korean bean paste soup in Korea cos of my 3 trips there last year, and comparatively, this restaurant has one of the closest taste I can find in S'pore.

The meat tasted great mainly becos of the marination. Other Korean restaturants in S'pore lose out completely if u want to compare.

The ambience and setup of the restaurant looks very similar to what we have in Korea too.
And yes, not forgetting the bbq smell lingering in your hair and clothes after tat. Abit la. :)

Came to this place on a friday night. Even before I entered the restaurant, me and partner already had a bad experience. With the parking. So pple who are driving here on a friday night, be warned. There's little parking and the valet wasn't very helpful.

Food is so-so, esp the BBQ meats which are often overdone (we opt for the waitress to help us since we were a big grp). Kimchi and side dishes I understand is free flow and FOC. Love the seafood pancake though. The kimchi pancake is a little too sour for me. But all in all, the food and place feels quite authentic.

There's a small kids' playground area, which I thought is quite nice. Avoid the private rooms if you do not want to kneel or sit cross legged all night.

Hubby and I went stumbled upon this restaurant for dinner without realising that it’s the ‘famous one opposite Haw Par Villa’. Hence we went in without high expectations, not realising it has a 7+ rating in hungrygowhere. On hindsight, I felt that only one thing in the restaurant matched its reputation which I have heard from a few sources – that it is expensive. Though friends and family have commented the food is ‘not bad’, hubby and I felt that it is so-so only.

The décor of the price was very basic and simple. We were disappointed to see there was no ‘pipe’ to suck in the BBQ smoke, and the place had a ‘porky’ smell. We were upsold to order beef ribs $40 instead of slice beef. Having been to Hyang-to-gol at Amara, I dun remember prices being this steep. We need not pay extra for the accompanying veg for BBQ meat, though I’m sure it would have been factored into the cost of the BBQ items. Plenty of restrictions in the restaurant. The kimchi and side dishes (again, nothing special, kimchi had a musty smell) were served only with order of BBQ items or steamboat. Patrons had to order min 2 BBQ items or 2 portions for BBQ / Steamboat.

The beef ribs turned out like satay – very sweet marinade, no beefy taste. The BBQ pork fared better. Our order of soy-bean soup was good - salty, spicy and flavourful , goes well with rice. The tiny pot of soup + rice (1 person’s portion) cost $12. It comes with spring onions, chilli, beancurd and a few small clams.

In conclusion, nowhere does this restaurant deserve its 7+ rating. So-so décor, so-so food, ok service, super high price. I regret not sticking to Hyang-to-gol.

Went there for lunch on 15 Jan.
Decided that the buffet will be too much for the 2 of us, so order the $10 set lunch.

I had the spicy chicken soup, while the other had Mix Veg rice in Hot Stone.

$1/pax for the free-flowing of tea and $1/pax for mis

I prefer the one in Pasir Panjang where the bosses are female Korean rather than male Koreans in the East.

The food is rather authentic Korean, but I think what is missing in the East Coast Branch is the Korean touches. It looks very much like a large buffet place.

However, I love the food, obviously because I am a huge guy and BBQ meat will win me over anytime. The additonal serving of Kimchi, fresh vegetables and soup is a sure winner for me.

As a place for kids, I really don't think it is that great as there are pipes all over the floor, so kids still needs to be supervised at their play area (which is not visible to the parents at their tables), that defeats the purpose of having that play area really.

Went to try Ju Shin Jung for lunch today after hearing that it is more affordable during lunch than dinner.

Originally comtemplated having the lunch BBQ buffet ($29+++ per adult for unlimited servings of Daeji (marinated pork) and chicken, but decided not to over-indulge right after the Stan Chart run and had the ala-carte versions instead. Each of these ($20) came in large portions which were more than sufficient for the two of us and came with a wide and colorful array of vegetables to wrap the meats in. Best of all, there was no risk of repeating a Seoul Garden-like disaster as the waitress skilfully grilled the meats to perfection for us! Service throughout the meal was polite and prompt.

What is a Korean meal without complimentary side dishes?? Here at Ju Shin Jung, we were served 10 different side dishes, ranging from the ubiquitous kim-chi, to interesting ones like candied lotus root slices.

Tried also the chilled noodles (Binaeng) for the 1st time. Special lunch offer of $9.90 from the usual price of $12.90. Portion again was substantial, with a seemingly bottomless bowl of very fine noodles (looked like very fine beehoon) which were served with a tangy and midly spicy red sauce. Very refreshing to eat this on a hot afternoon and a good counterbalance to all the meat, especially with the slices of cucumber, radish and a large piece of chinese pear.

Overall, a great experience! Better to come for lunch if you want to take advantage of the unlimited BBQ buffet, but trust me, unless you have been starving for several days, the ala-carte portions, together with all the free side dishes, will leave you very satisfied.

Caution: Vegetarians, enter at your own peril. Please do not picket-fence my current favourite carnivore hideout though!

eh. finally tried this place. but it wasn't as WOW as i had wanted it to be. maybe it was the drawn out wait (and my expectations increased). i;ve never had korean before so i was a tad apprehensive about going into a restaurant not knowing how to eat.

we ordered 3 sets of meat; bulgogi, pork collar and chicken. i have no idea why we even bothered ordering chicken but then again my dad suggested it and my dad was paying so no complaints. i thought bulgogi was a must because i've heard it randomly in korean dramas. the pork collar was just to add to the variety. BUT it turned out to be the best. we also ordered a pancake and ginseng chicken soup upon recommendations. after ordering, the fun began.

they started serving this onslaught of stuff, some of them weren't even recognisable. the best was the long platter of lettuce leaves of literally every variety. i can be a real food snob and ramble on with their names; butterhead, endives, cos... ok i only recognised those. i love my veggies so all the greens and purples got me very excited. then the whole table started to cramp up with all kinds of small sides, everybody's eyes were like pouncing off each item as they came on the table so quickly. we were really seeing stars and the table was so full every movement had to be well-timed with a clumsy nut like me.

the sides were interesting. i mean, i've never had most of the stuff. i remotely remember some: the kimchi was real good (but i've only had kimchi THRICE in my life thus far), there was this spinach thingy (blanched perhaps), a cold tofu, iceberg/corn salad (is this korean??), a seaweed soup (?!?) which was sour, achar (haha), 4 types of sauces, the taugey with the super big head, ikan bilis, etc. we really didn't know what we were doing, we jsut picked up random things that looked remotely edible and popped them into our mouths. luckily i knew the coins thingy were dehydrated towels cuz i swear i would've just popped it in like sweets if i didn't.

because we looked like total idiots, the nice ladies helped us with the grilling. it's the round type of grill (yes just like what you see in korean dramas) which apparently lets the oil flow to the sides. but i like the fats in the meat! anyway, she started to grill the pork collar and dropped the last one on the floor. omg. she said that she was going to get us a new one from the kitchen. but i couldn't help feeling this bit of suspicion that she merely walked away with that piece of dirty pork and came back with the same one. dunno la. either way, i've already ate it so...point is, it was good! unadulterated flavour, very nice! texture, awesome. i started acting like a pro, taking the meat and other stuff i figured would taste nice with it and wrapped it with some lettuce leaf. so much for acting pro, i broke a few leaves with the korean chopsticks! juices flowed out to my hands and all, drip drip drip. totally tak glam. blame it on the metal hardcore chopsticks!

bulgogi was overseasoned. maybe it's supposed to be sweet and all but we just couldn't taste the real beef flavour. however, the sweetness provided a good contrast to the leaves. oh oh, there was this one lettuce that had rather thick stems and sharp leaves, and it tasted like grass or ultra bitter and stiff arugula. my mom and dad totally looked down on the green chilli. so hilarious seeing them bewildered by its heat. hahaha. chicken was so normal i can't describe how normal it was. by that time i was already distracted by the neighbouring table's hotpot. the ultra super spicy red red kind? speaking of neighbours. their tables are stuck rather close together, so my dad and mom were literally sitting beside the next table's dad and mom. like we all came for dinner together.

ohoh and the ginseng chicken soup. skip la. nothing special. not even enough to go around 4 people. the last bowl had like scraps. if i were to come again, i'd order the better beef cuts, the solid marbled types. but it was overall a good experience, i like having new foreign cuisines. oh but contrary to what they state, it isn't exactly charcoal bbq. it was total electricity. disappointed! i'd come back, but only if i don't have to pay for it. haha.

In terms of Korean BBQ meat, I think most of us cut our teeth on Seoul Garden. I still remember going to their first restaurant at Marina Square as a kid and devouring so much bbq meat the we literally crawled out of the buffetaurant suffering and swearing we'd never go near any bbq place again for the next 2 years. Well, it wasn't that Seoul Garden was bad, it just preyed on the very Singaporean mentality of having value-for-money, all-you-can-eat meat buffets. And we are such suckers.
So when i discovered Ju Shin Jung at Yess center, i was a little apprehensive. Life! ran an article once on how there is no really-good Korean food in Singapore. Not to mention Yess center was situated on West Coast Highway, not quite in town. Unless you live in West Coast/ Clementi/ Pasir Panjang or you work on the PSA ports there, it's unlikely you'd come by this restaurant. Or this weirdly named YeSS building.
So one day, I decided to just skip over for an experience. And I was glad i did.
The restaurant was large, spacious, brightly lit and comfortably patronised on a weekday. There was plenty of space between each BBQ bench so you don't feel claustrophobic, and your neighbour can't see what you are eating :-/ There were tables with chairs so that if like me, you get leg cramps when kneeling, you can opt for the tables.
It's generally a family place from what i can see, there's a little room with colored plastic balls for tiny tots and a little playground surrounded by glass walls so you can see your kid monkeying around. How thoughtful! The place is NOT bereft of korean businessmen too. So it must be good.
The staff were extremely friendly and helpful. ALL of them were Korean and spoke a smattering of English but what really impressed me was that they literally RAN around the restaurant to bring you brisk service.
The menu was somewhat limited - BEEF PORK CHICKEN... but was made up for by the dizzying array of Korean pickled vegetables and side dishes on little saucers which were re-fillable. I found the food a tad pricey and hadn't expected it from the casual decor and suburban location. Ok, but then we've been spoilt by Seoul Garden. Further more, other Japanese BBQ places fell within the same price range too.
The marinate was light and tasty - not like the Seoul Garden ones and I was quite amazed. Absolutely delicious. I was left wondering if this was the real authentic Korean BBQ. The staff were also on-site most of the time to grill the meat for us and they changed the chicken wire very frequently - great service.
A jug of rice tea was given to every table, as was a jug of ice water. The rice tea was very refreshing and something new.
As i was smacking my lips greedily, i noticed white pellets, each resembling a stack of 10 fifty-cent coins in a dry saucer. i curiously picked them up with the chopsticks and examined them closely. THere was an imprint of a coin on it; it was hard, matte. It resembled icing sugar candies. I gingerly bit a corner of it. It wouldn't come off so i bit even harder. The candy fought back with equal tenacity. It was velvet-y and tasted bland. I gave up after a while and left them alone.
Presently a waitress came. I pointed out the 'strange candy' and she exploded into peals of laughter after seeing my teeth imprint on the 'candy'. She picked up the jug of cold water and poured it into the saucer- just enough to wet the 2 pellets. I watched in tickled amazement as the pellets swelled up 3x and the imprints blurred. When all the cold water has been soaked up, i picked up the pellets and it was soft, wet, cold and velvety. Recognition came leaping and i opened up the - HAND TOWELS!