Food Review: U-Town's Waa Cow

Everybody say "Yayy!" because Waa Cow has finally landed on the NUS map, right smack in UTown! Finally, we can break free from the daily ban mian, chai fan or laksa for some mouth-watering authentic beef and salmon bowls. This is not to say that our daily meals are terrible of course, but once in a while it'll be good to spice things up a little bit with a wider variety of food.

Waa Cow is currently located right next to Fairprice finest, first floor of the Stephen Riady Center. It offers a variety of flavoured beef and salmon bowls and a choice of meal upgrades. With an additional $3, you can get an additional bowl of chawanmushi and a drink of your choice. While I was really tempted to try all of the dishes, my friend and I settled for the upgraded Truffle Wagyu Beef Bowl set ($22.90) and the regular of Aburi Spicy Mentaiko Salmon Bowl ($18.70).

The food presentation was the first thing that caught my eye. It was clear that a lot of thought was put into the plating, proving the chef’s efforts and determination not to discount preparatory steps despite the crowd during lunch time.

I was never a fan of Japanese cuisine, let alone a follower of the craze for beef bowls. But I have to admit that after trying out Waa Cow, it really gives many other Japanese restaurants a run for their money. The raw salmon was exceptionally good as it had an outer smoked layer that was not too overpowering. The mayonnaise complemented the salmon with its creamy savoury taste. Coupled with the sesame seeds and fish roe, there was a good mixture of crunchiness, smokiness and juiciness that all melts in your mouth at the same time. Even writing this now makes me drool.

The truffle beef was also well done albeit being too salty for my taste. One may get sick of it pretty easily. It could probably be the truffle that gave too strong a flavour when eaten with the beef.

The soft boiled egg was the highlight of the meal. Its gooey and sticky texture went well with the rice, enhancing the overall flavour of the dishes.

The chawanmushi is also another reason why I really enjoyed eating at WaaCow. Not only was the the steamed egg fragrant, its silky texture also melts almost instantly when you eat it, leaving a really smooth and luscious feeling in your mouth. It also has a pretty unique taste in which I can't exactly put my finger to what the mysterious ingredient was, but I believe that it was probably sesame oil.

Although the dish was delectable, Waa Cow's menu may be a tad too pricey. Perhaps I am used to the student privileges, but I do believe that the price of the bowls should not be as expensive as those sold outside of school. We are after all (poor) students without strong purchasing power (yet). I doubt Waa Cow will be altering its prices and that’s why I will only strongly recommend this place to most students during their occasional splurging seasons (which is about once a month?) . But overall, Waa Cow is definitely a must visit food place in NUS!

#foodreview #WaaCow #WaaCowFoodReview #Singapore #food #dining