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How to skip the queue for popular samgyetang at Modu
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Modu serves six variations of samgyetang or Korean ginseng chicken soup (left). Minari Pancake is one of the set meal options at Modu.
PHOTOS: MODU
- Korean restaurant Modu at Mandarin Gallery specialises in ginseng chicken soup and is popular, often with long queues.
- Sister restaurant Drim offers a similar menu, including the 2-Gather set ($98) with variations of samgyetang.
- The meal features excellent soups, appetisers like crisp dried pollack, and a standout Minari Pancake, making it a worthwhile dining experience.
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SINGAPORE – At a time when restaurants keep going belly up, it is heartening – and a relief – to see a queue outside one. But here is the problem: What if you really want to dine there?
Many times, I have tried to get seats at Korean restaurant Modu, which serves ginseng chicken soup, but the long queue at Mandarin Gallery always puts me off. On the latest visit, however, I get lucky.
It is about 4.50pm, and already there is a line. Staff at the entrance ask if we would like to be seated at sister restaurant Drim instead. That Korean steakhouse is at the other end on the same floor. Yes, we say. Achievement unlocked.
We opt for 2-Gather ($98), a set meal for two. It includes two variations of samgyetang, an appetiser, a dish for sharing and dessert.
When seated at Drim, diners can pick from four variations of samgyetang, while those seated at Modu can pick from six. We opt for Beauty Collagen and Perilla Seed. Both are excellent.
The flavour of ginseng comes through very well in the Beauty Collagen soup, and the clear broth has plenty of depth. I even like the glutinous rice stuffed into the chicken, as it is not heavy like others I have had. Do not forget to eat the strips of ginseng root.
Just as good is the Perilla Seed variation, thick and cloudy from perilla seed powder added to the soup. It tastes nutty, and is so very rich and comforting. Ladle some into the bowl of glutinous rice served alongside for even more comfort. The organic spring chickens in the soup are easy to pick apart with chopsticks.
The soup, of course, is the star of the meal, but the accompaniments are just as compelling. As the meal progresses, I understand more why the place is mobbed. The appetiser is atomically crisp strips of dried pollack, to be dipped into mayonnaise. It tastes nothing like the kind that comes out of a packet.
We pick Minari Pancake for the sharing dish and it really almost eclipses the soup. The herb, also called Korean water dropwort, is already crunchy but the lacy, filigree batter amps that up. Each piece is also studded with tiny shrimp. Served alongside is a dipping sauce made with soya sauce, gochugaru and some kind of acid.
Minari appears again in the banchan served with the soup. This time, it is in a muchim, which allows the diner to enjoy its crunch in a different way. Kkakdugi, or radish kimchi, is the other banchan, and its tartness is a good contrast to the rich perilla seed soup.
For dessert, if you can eat any more, we get semi-dried persimmon stuffed with cream cheese and walnuts.
An unhurried, substantial dinner for two for just over $100 with taxes, and every element on point? Sign me up. Seat me anywhere.
Where: Modu, 02-37 Mandarin Gallery, 333A Orchard Road
MRT: Orchard
Open: 11am to 10pm daily
Info: modu.sg
