SBCD Korean Tofu House – New CBD Lunch Spot for Comforting Stew

Korean soft tofu stew is comfort food for me. I have lost count of how many soft tofu stews I have gobbled down, but back at home, and I am constantly on the lookout for authentic Korean food that will give me a taste of “home” at home.

A restaurant specialising in Korean soft tofu stew, SBCD Korean Tofu House has arrived in town all the way from the United States of America. Madam Hee Sook Lee, who is a first generation Korean immigrant, was inspired to populate Korean cuisine all over the world. The original name, BCD House, was named after her mother-in-law’s restaurant in Buk Chang Dong in Korea. Well, our guess is that the S in SBCD probably stands for Singapore. This restaurant, a first in Singapore, is currently housed right inside the new tallest building, Tanjong Pagar Centre which is directly connected to the MRT station.

Starting off with their promising Assorted Soontofu Stew ($19.90), a red bubbling mess loaded with soft tofu, beef slices, prawns, clams and squids made its appearance moments after we ordered. Although their soup base is boiled using pork and vegetables, the broth was further enhanced with the strong and sweet seafood flavours. The freshly handmade tofu was indeed soft, wobbly, and went well with the generous portions of seafood and beef slices. On the day of our visit, the choice of the spice level was not made available, perhaps due to the lunch crowd. Our guess is that the restaurant offered all their customers the standard Medium level, which in our opinion, is not spicy and robust enough. I’m not a crazy spice fanatic, but the broth was really lacking in the punch that a traditional soft tofu stew should have.

Their mains mostly consisted of meats ranging from the premium LA Galbi (BBQ Short Ribs) to the simple Spicy Grilled Chicken. Each main is served with Hot Stone Rice and side dishes. We ordered Spicy BBQ Pork ($25.90) and were pleasantly surprised with the generosity of the mountain of sliced pork laying atop a sizzling hot plate. The pork was quite tender and well-seasoned, but we wished it could be more spicy. On the other hand, the marinated onions soaked up all the pork juices; it was so delicious we couldn’t stop eating even though we were already stuffed.

If you aren’t planning on having your meats for the day, you will be glad to know that the restaurant has included Hot Stone Bibimbap ($19.90) in their menu as well. Mixed vegetables and a sunny side-up are beautifully placed around the rice. However, hold your spoons and don’t stir them just yet. Let the rice cook for a little while more, and you’ll love the crispy rice bits when you scrape them off the base later.

The restaurant also allow you to adjust the amount of hot pepper paste you wish to mix into your rice. If you wish to enjoy some extra sesame flavour and aroma just like us, you may request for some sesame oil to add to your bibimbap yourself.

A Korean meal is only ever complete with banchan (side dishes) right? They serve typical banchan like kimchi, spicy squid strips, seaweed and pickles which are refillable. But, not just that. We loved the whole fried yellow crocker fish, which is less commonly seen here in Singapore. The well-seasoned fish was cooked perfectly such that it was still tender despite being cold. Unfortunately, this is not refillable as much as we wished it was.

As you may have noticed, SBCD Korean Tofu Stew definitely is not as affordable as we all hope it is. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for variety, head straight for their combo sets which allows you to have the signature Soontofu stew and a main (although in smaller quantities) at lower prices.

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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