Tanjong Pagar has yet another Korean restaurant with the opening of Fav.grillbar, a no-frills Korean BBQ restaurant with the age-old favourites.
Compared to the other Korean restaurants which are generally located on the Tanjong Pagar Road stretch, this is at Neil Road (in between Tanjong Pagar and Outram Park MRT stations) which is lined with Japanese izakayas and bars.
The interior is slightly different from the typical K-restaurants, done up in a more industrial and modern tone.
With short set menus and simple a la carte add-ons, this is where you can drop by if you have your K-BBQ cravings.
You may notice the dry-aging fridge here, as the meat here are aged for a week for a more condensed flavour profile.
If you are here just for BBQ, then the menu is pretty straight-forward with Pork Set ($65), Beef Short Rib Set ($98) and ala carte options of Pork Belly ($22), Pork Jowl ($24), Pork Collar ($24) and Marinated Pork Collar ($25).
So some may consider the menu rather lean and lacking of varieties if you are looking for other beef parts or even chicken.
Let’s start with The Fav Set ($98, good for 2-3 pax) which has beef short ribs only, which are chewier but carries more flavour.
The sets come with steamed egg and side dishes.
After reading some ‘reviews’ online, I noticed that a key feature or aspect was left out. The meats are actually first barbecued on charcoal in an open-view ‘live’ kitchen, before being transferred to another grill on your table.
I guess they do this to impart the unique charcoal smokiness to the meats, without having to install charcoal grills on every table.
The Beef Short Ribs were actually quite superb (in Singapore’s context), with good marbling, succulent texture, deep meaty flavour, and a hint of smoke.
The Pork Set ($65) is good for two to three people. It has all you need, with pork belly, pork jowl, and pork collar.
However, if I came here only ordering the Pork Set, then I would have probably left fairly disappointed. The higher-than-usual price would be a slight deterrence as well.
Unfortunately, the pork in general had a strong gamey flavour, and it did not help that the pork belly was cut up into large chunks of pieces.
The layer of fats was thick, with an overwhelming flavour that was rather unappetising.
You can get sharing plates like the Charcoal Spicy Chicken BBQ ($35) and Seafood Pancake ($32). There are also stews like Kimchi Soup ($18), Soybean Paste Soup ($18), Army Stew ($25) and Soft Tofu Soup ($18).
While you may not find the fanciest items at Fav.grillbar, you can try out their Beef Short Ribs and Banchan which were quite well presented and done.
Fav.grillbar
63 Neil Road, Singapore 088896
Opening Hours: 5pm – 12am (Mon – Sat), Closed Sun
Other Related Entries
OMMA Korean Charcoal BBQ (Bukit Timah)
Taste of Korea 찐 (T.O.K JJIN) (Amoy Street)
Charim Korean BBQ (Tanjong Pagar)
Reply K1988 (Jalan Besar)
MIMI Korean BBQ Restaurant (Tanjong Pagar)
* Written by Daniel Ang @DanielFoodDiary and Dean Ang. DFD paid for food reviewed unless otherwise stated.
