Parting the Yellow Egg

by Shania Sukamto

 

OMU Japanese Omurice Restaurant

It was midnight. I was hungry. Do I leave the comfort of my bed to cook up a storm in the kitchen? Nope. Will I turn in and await dawn? Can’t. So obviously, I resort to the most logical and mature solution — binge-watching food videos!

 

representation of self; hunger pangs do incite late night delirium

 

That night, I chanced upon a video of the whimsical Chef Motokichi making his internet famous Omurice. Like a true artist, he dons an iconic red beret as he carefully assembles the elements of his masterpiece. First, he deftly flicks the omelet in a pan, then carefully transfers the fuwarto parcel to the bed of tomato rice. In one swift motion, he slices (wait since when could an omelette even be sliced?!) it. Being a huge fan of Japanese food, eggs and all things photo-worthy, I was undoubtedly captivated!

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Uu5zGHjRaMo

 

To my pleasant surprise, OMU had just opened its first outlet in Singapore at Suntec City Mall. Here you can choose either a curry, cream, classic tomato, demi glace or Hayashi sauce base and add toppings like hamburger steak, eggplant, katsu etc.

 

I ordered the Curry Sauce Omurice with Pork Cutlet (usually $12.80++ but there is an ongoing lunch set for $13.80++$2 that includes a drink).

 

I have to say that the items looked way more sumptuous on the menu, I was expecting Monster Curry-sized dishes… Also note that the standard Omurice on the menu does not include the insta-worthy “lava egg”. For that, there is a $2 premium.

 

Here is a video of my Omurice minus the stylish flick of wrist action. Perfectly glossy on the outside, almost like a Japanese plastic display but bursting with silky eggy-ness in the inside. The extra $2 is indeed worth the experience/ boomerang content/texture. However, the curry was not as rich as I expected and the cutlet had a hint of staleness… I also wished that they more generous with the curry sauce. To sum it up, the elements were individually rather lackluster. There are other places that could offer Omurice of the higher standards like Ma Maison or Watanabe Coffee. Yet, when assembled with the Lava Egg it beckons a visit.

 

We also ordered the Cream Sauce with Bacon & Mushrooms and Hayashi Sauce Omurice (also under the set lunch menu). I loved how you could have two contrasting options within a plate. Its thinly sliced beef was especially tender and gave the Hayashi sauce a kick of umami. The tomato fried rice tucked inside the Omu was a bonus! This dish definitely made up for its curry counterpart.

 

 

Overall, I had quite a toothsome adventure would recommend it for the splitting Lava Egg experience. With plethora of toppings (just don’t expect too much from the Katsu) and sauce options, there’s no other place in Singapore that specializes in this Japanese staple like OMU.