NAE:UM :: 'Episode 2: Mountain Lodge'

I was very keen to check out NAE:UM because its menu totally fits my preferred flavor profiles. Managed to get a lunch slot for a first visit! I was intrigued by the flavors presented in Chef Louis Han's contemporary Seoul cuisine. It's definitely a refreshing change from the greasy flavors often found in popular Korean restaurants in Singapore, BBQ or otherwise.   

NAE:UM's menu changes according to the seasons, and are termed 'Episodes'. That's of course delightful since we're able to have the menu refreshed every quarter. I don't necessarily need to eat the same dishes at each visit. Reservations aren't easy to get, but they aren't tough to secure either. 

Our lunch menu doesn't appear for dinner currently. The dinner menu changed in mid-April and has moved on to 'Episode 3: Seaside Dreams'; it will last till end of summer 2022. This lunch menu was extended from its November 2021 to March 2022 menu, and was themed 'Episode 2: Mountain Lodge'. That was great! I didn't get to have it during its run and I was sorely disappointed to think that I might have missed it.  

We didn't mind taking the wine pairing. The man went for the full menu of six wines, whereas I opted for half, which totaled three glasses, the champagne, a riesling and a pinot noir. Perfect. Easy labels, nothing complicated for my plebeian wine palate. 

We started with a duo of snacks of nurungji and duck galbi. Then we were wowed by the starter of domi — sea bream, acorn and citrus soy. We added on the somyeon. No regret. The portion of buckwheat noodles with a subtle touch of kimchi and Hokkaido scallop was fantabulous. 

Then came the meats, which I didn't totally care for. There were naengchae of French chicken, abalone, soybean, and a pork Iberico tenderloin with burdock, potato and galbi. I was extremely relieved when the nuruk-aged Wagyu beef came in the form of sanchae sotbap with x.o. makjang and namul. The rice made the meats feel light going down.

I loved that samchi of mackerel, winter mushrooms, daikon, and onion. I could probably have ordered a second portion. Hahaha. To be honest, I could skip all the chicken, pork and beef, and stick to the fish and vegetables. The kitchen prep their dishes beautifully. Not fully Korean, but with loads of ingredients used in Korean cuisine.

The dessert was mandarin with vanilla yoghurt, honeycomb, ginger snow. I liked it because it was dependable; it was refreshing enough. We added on a second dessert of charcoal jujube — with multigrain and jujube ice-cream. I thought I would take a spoonful of it and leave the man to finish it. But woah, it was so surprisingly good that I ordered another! The petit fours were uhhhh weird. I didn't like either of those. They were jeungpyeon (rice wine cake) and jooak (or 'joak', a sweet fried glutinous rice ball). And these trio of sweets beautifully rounded up 'Episode 2 Mountain Lodge'. I'm so glad to have tasted it.