Nakhon Kitchen

Do you enjoy Thai food? Wait a minute, I used that for the previous post :P This is my second Thai food post in tandem. Nakhon Kitchen has received tremendously favorable reviews for their authenticity; from the person serving you all the way to the food being served.

I made a mistake of visiting at around 7:30pm, and had to queue for approximately 30 minutes for it . In fact, around 8:30pm, there is still a long queue.


Ordered
Pineapple Fried Rice

For some reason, pineapple fried rice is my first order whenever I go to any Thai eatery, so Nakhon Kitchen is no exception.


There are raisins and pineapple bits inside to provide you with bits of fruity sweetness, but I guess those who hates the thought of fruits in their rice already knew. Of course the floss on top adds to more flavor for the dish. 


However, each grain of rice was... exceptionally grainy and tough. Perhaps it's the long queue, perhaps it's my luck, this dish was somehow marred by the tough rice.


Score: 3.0/5.0


Tom Yum Soup (Clear)

Why did I say clear? Cause Nakhon Kitchen serves 2 different version of Tom Yum Soup. One either with rich coconut milk, or just the soup itself. I chose the clear version for you can better taste the finer details of the soup. You can also choose between the catches of the sea, specific catches of the sea(prawn), or chicken. Seafood is depicted here.


Fresh and succulent prawns and chewy rings of squid, the seafood in this small bowl is fresh and tangy. 


Can I say that usually, I do not really appreciate Tom Yum soup. Most that I tasted either are too sour and just felt weird. "Spicy" and "Sour" is clearly distinct in the tom yum here, and it melds together in your mouth nicely here. The spiciness of the soup does not switch on your resistance immediately, but causes a consistent and growing riot as additional sips of this wonderfully balanced tom yum soup into your gut. The result: a constant flare in your gut, the kind that people who loves the kick in spicy food really enjoy.


Score: 4.25/5.0


Mango Salad

Thinly sliced mango, cashew nuts and a mild spicy feel to the salad gives a spicy and sourish jolt to your taste buds for the upcoming dishes. Since I ordered it, there is not much of a regret here but the mango salad is a little boring IMO and I can do without it.


Score: 3.0/5.0


Phad Thai

Springy and slim rice noodles fried to awesomeness, with crushed peanuts, lime and chili flakes on the side. The rice noodle here is slim, chewy and comes out of the wok with all the well meaning flavors intended; stirred with the nuts, a dash of lime and some chili flakes, the dish is just awesome.
The bottom is a tad oily. I do know that lots of food is oily, but Ignorance is bliss and I'd rather ask myself why the pants are suddenly tighter than to see it. Also, do slurp up the goodness while it's warm, the awesomeness goes down a notch or 2 when it's cooled though.


Overall, one of the best Phat Thai in Singapore I've tasted so far.


Score: 4.25/5.0


Pandan Chicken

Marinated chicken pieces squeezed into a the shape of a pandan dumpling. The chicken does not really taste nor smell of the fragrance of pandan and makes one wonder the use of the leaves in the first place, besides serving to lock in the juices of the chicken while deep frying? Maybe the strong marination here overpowered the slight pandan fragrance?


Either way, soft and juicy is what you get. The taste of the chicken here reminded me strongly of this. For $6, you get 4 pieces of this satay pandan chicken as a great addition to your mains.


Score: 3.5/5.0


Green Curry (Chicken)

Choices choices choices. Nakhon Kitchen provides you with the freedom to choose what you like in their soup and curry. Again, seafood, prawn and chicken is available for choosing. Just to go by my standard memory of what I see in a curry, I chose chicken here. I think there is no right choice per se here, just like the tom yum soup, for the main star is the gravy.

It comes in this little bowl with a flowery-edge. The green curry here is sweet, spicy and smooth that is provided by the streak of coconut milk on top. It goes really well with rice and is choked full with slices of chicken and greens amidst the green.

See that little pea-like thing? Try biting it and you'll know it ain't no green pea (despite looking like a large green pea) that you find in your fried rice. A google search turns out that it is actually a Thai eggplant called Ma-kuea.


Score: 4.0/5.0


Thai Iced Tea

Taking a shot at Gong Cha and Koi, Nakhon Kitchen have their own version of their milk tea. (Nope, not lemon tea) This iced tea is creamy and orangey(in color), and tasted smooth and very rich. Much richer than what you'd queue up for at koi. It might have been a little saccharine but the drink actually fits in nicely with the rich flavors of thai food.


Score: 3.75/5.0


Coke

Heheh, even the coke is from Thailand :D


Boneless Chicken Wing

Ordered this out of pure curiosity. The chicken wing was deboned and stuffed. Let's take a look on the inside shall we?

The taste is kinda~ like ngoh hiong with carrot bits. In fact, it looked like ngoh hiong shaped to look like a chicken wing. I guess I am a little disappointed by what it turned out to be.


Score: 3.0/5.0


Mango Sticky Rice

Looking for a sweet finisher to our meals, we decided to order sticky mango rice. The plate is a cutesy plate shaped to look like a leaf, with warmed glutinous rice, mango and sweet coconut  milk drizzled over it.

The warm glutinous rice is mildly sweetened and complements the mango beautifully. The dessert was a hit among all the fork wielders seated and was gobbled up pretty quickly.


Score: 4.0/5.0


Overall
Nakhon Kitchen is generally good with some dishes that disappoints slightly, but with affordable pricing with no GST and service charge, Nakhon Kitchen is probably one of the best place in Singapore for some authentic Thai food.

Oh, there is this cute little rattan holder for holding a roll of paper for you to clean your hand or wipe off your sweat.


Nakhon Kitchen 
(Kovan MRT exit C)
212 Hougang Street 21, #01-341


Nakhon Kitchen
BLK 136 Bedok North Ave 3, #01-166