Jinggho Shokudo: Hawker stall serving affordable Japanese fare & giant unagi bowls as big as your face

If someone asked me “What do you enjoy eating the most?”, I’d say Japanese food, particularly sashimi – but it’s not usually wallet-friendly. Some hawkers have taken up the challenge of providing delicious Japanese fare at a price point that’s more approachable than most restaurants, and Jinggho Shokudo is one of them. I decided to pay their Beauty World outlet a visit.

There wasn’t much written about Jinggho Shokudo online – the brand has 3 outlets islandwide, with the first located in Yishun, and the other 2 in Beauty World and Clementi. The mastermind behind these stalls is Alexander Kong, who hails from Malaysia. He started Jinggho Shokudo due to his passion for Japanese cuisine, and a strong desire to give everyone a chance to enjoy affordable Japanese food.

The menu includes a range of donburi (rice bowls), and an item called Signature Japanese Hakka Noodles (S$7.80). The availability of each item does vary depending on the outlet, though.

At the outlet I visited in Beauty World, the stall had a weekday promotion where you could get 2 donburi for S$10.

What I tried at Jinggho Shokudo

My eyes immediately went right to the Unagi Ju Tendon (S$16.80) – it featured a whole slab of unagi draped alluringly over some tamagoyaki. Now, before you say anything about the price… Yes, S$16.80 for a rice bowl with some grilled eel in a hawker setting sounds mad. But to put things into perspective, the same portion of unagi in a restaurant would set you back close to double the price of this donburi. 

I also ordered the Aburi Cheese Toji Don (S$6.50), and I wanted to add a side of Bonito Fried Tofu (S$4.80), but it wasn’t available.

Once I placed my order, I was given a buzzer to hold on to. I waited about 15 to 20 minutes.

Both donburi included a bowl of miso soup, and the smell coming from both of the bowls made my tummy rumble.

The Aburi Cheese Toji Don featured a freshly fried pork cutlet that was topped with a slice of cheese that had been torched to melt it, and a side of eggs and onion. 

As I gently lifted a slice of the pork cutlet, a cloud of steam escaped. The meat was perfectly done, and looked moist and tender. The outside was crispy and hugged ever so gently by the torched cheese. I took a bite – and blinked. Underneath the savouriness of the cheese, I could taste a distinct sweetness from the cutlet’s breading. I prefer a more salty, umami flavour profile for pork cutlets, so this wasn’t exactly my preference. 

Despite that, though, the pork cutlet was cooked very well, and wasn’t dry or tough.

Onto one of Jinggho Shokudo’s showstopper items, their Unagi Ju Tendon. The portion of unagi was so long it couldn’t be contained in the bowl, while the slab of tamagoyaki lay serenely beside it.

As I dug into the slab of unagi with my chopsticks, I noticed how easily the flesh yielded – tender yet retaining that signature eel-like chewiness.  It also had a slightly smokey-sweet accent from being grilled that worked very well with its glaze. Delicious.

I do wish there was more of the unagi sauce to break up the monotony of the plain rice, though.

The tamagoyaki too was fluffy and soft, and didn’t have that unpleasant texture that you get with factory-made tamagoyaki. I was apprehensive about the amount of cheese sauce and mayo on top, but the slightly sweet egg went surprisingly well with it.

The accompanying miso soup, however, felt like an afterthought. I find that a decent bowl of miso soup does help tie the meal together. The soup here was quite watered down, although the cubes of tofu and wakame (seaweed) were fine.

Final thoughts

I have no major quibbles about the food at Jinggho Shokudo. The price I paid for each dish was fair to me, and I enjoyed both dishes. I do wish the miso soup was more robust, but that’s not a big deal. My only request would be that they open an outlet in the northeast area soon so I can eat more of this unagi. Hint, hint.

Expected damage: S$6.50 – S$16.80 per pax

The post Jinggho Shokudo: Hawker stall serving affordable Japanese fare & giant unagi bowls as big as your face appeared first on SETHLUI.com.