THE BEGINNING – THE RETURN OF THE FAITHFUL

My weekly Sunday religious haven, Koya Bar has always been blissfully satiating – and as I had been on a streak of rising extremely early, and with the persuasive nudging from my hungry partner, we managed to roll ourselves out of bed into some decent clothing and make headway towards our happy place. And it thrills me to say that we arrived around 10.15AM, and we were the first ones there. First. It was aweing to see the noodle bar empty – but it wasn’t for very long as devoted customers began to trickle in. I tend not to be a big fan of Asiatique breakfasts unless it is dimsum. Perhaps it stems back from childhood trauma of being fed bland congee (rice porridge). Either way, this place is a great place to go for a relaxing brunch on the weekend.

THE FOOD
Kedgeree
Rice Porridge | Poached Egg | Smoked Haddock

I originally wanted to order the Kitsune (udon noodles with sweet tofu and spring onions) but after much um-ing and ah-ing, Adam suggested that I try the Kedgeree as it wasn’t on the normal menu and I would probably end up loving the dish. He was annoyingly correct. Before breaking the egg, I tried the rice porridge, which had a nice thick consistency – unlike my traumatic childhood ones, which tended to be more water and bits of rice than actual rice porridge. It wasn’t until the egg was broken and mixed together with the accompanying dried fish flakes and sesame seeds that the dish came together. The rice porridge had a mild flavour and went well with the smoked slices of haddock and crispy skin flakes, however when the egg (I should probably stop eating so many) yolk was added to the mixture – there was a certain missing flavour and the egg yolk filled that gap perfectly. Although this rice porridge dish did not give me the exact same magical feeling that the congee at Duck and Waffle did – it came incredibly close!

Japanese Breakfast
Rice | Grilled Fish | Miso Soup | Grated Daikon with Ponzu | Pickled Daikon Slices

I was too late. His hunger overcame him, and in my own ravenous stupor…I forgot to take a photo of the breakfast. But it was glorious and simple. The grilled fish is crispy and flakey (fresh, as it should be). And the grated daikon with ponzu gave a tangy zing that was sorely needed.

“English Breakfast”
Rice Porridge | Fried Egg  | Shitake Mushroom | Bacon | Miso Soup

Adam’s second round. Simple in its ingredients and presentation, I felt that although it took a Japanese take on the English breakfast – its flavours went well together, however I thought it was rather lacklustre if I were to choose between the Japanese breakfast and the “English breakfast”.

THE ENDING – ROMANTIC & HAPPY SUNDAY BRUNCH ACHIEVED.

Nathalie’s Rating: 4.9/5