Food Review: Bento Set and Oyakadon from Tonkatsu and Ramen Restaurant, Hajime

Singapore – Hajime might not ring a bell if you are living in the vicinity of Thomson or Serangoon Garden. Hajime is the brainchild of Chef Tan-San, who left Singapore in the 90s to master the art of Tonkatsu in Japan and returned to the little red dot to helm the kitchen of the first Tonkatsu Specialty Restaurant chain, making him the nation’s very first Tonkatsu chef.

The Unity Bento priced at 29.90SGD with GST is a great option if you love variety and want to share lunch with a love one. The set has limited daily portions and comes with complimentary fruits and Tonjiru soup. We loved the tender pork fillet, Ebi fry, that stayed quite crispy despite having travelled from the restaurant. The complimentary tar tar sauce and tonkatsu sauce added another layer of flavour.

The Loin rib chashu was tender and thankfully not dry. The bento also comes with an interesting panko egg which I felt was unnecessary. Why not marinate the egg and let it shine on it’s own? The breading did not add additional flavour. The Niigata rice was cooked well and fluffy and went well with the small sides.

I would admit that Oyakodon is the dish that I hardly ever order at a restaurant as it is a bland-looking dish and many places end up making a boiled chicken and egg dish instead. This was not the case with Hajime’s Oyakodon($12.50) is a warm bowl of comfort, The deliciousness comes from its simplicity. Tender chicken and sweet caramelized onions simmered in a sweet-savoury dashi broth are held together with soft eggs, served on fluffy Japanese rice.

Overall, we were pleasantly surprised with the Hajime food delivery option on a hot and sunny Singapore afternoon, the quality of food is on point at a reasonable price point. If you are looking for your next Japanese bento fix this might just be it.

Hajime Tonkatsu & Ramen

myVillage @ Serangoon Gardens
1 Maju Avenue, #02-07/8/9
Singapore 556679