Who doesn’t love a good hotpot? Especially during the rainy season when there’s nothing better than something to warm the soul. Singapore has many types of hotpot outlets, so it takes a unique concept to stand out. ENChanko Hotpot & Kamameshi is doing just that.
Coming onto the scene at Vivo City just this 21 Nov, they announce themselves as Singapore’s first and only Chanko Hotpot speciality restaurant.
Chanko Hotpot, or Chankonabe, is a traditional hotpot stew from Japan. ENChanko explains that ’Chank’ means ‘parent’ and ‘Ko’ refers to a child. So a chanko meal is a time of communal dining. The restaurant also uses this term to refer to their Sharing Hotpot.
ENChanko also likens this type of meal to that of a sumo wrestler’s diet during their training. It’s also why the restaurant has decorated itself to look like a sumo training stable.
For their opening, ENChanko is running a special opening promo that ends on 8 Dec. Customers can enjoy a complimentary Kamameshi Set with any Sharing Hotpot ordered. They are also running a 1-for-1 for every purchase of a Jim Beam Highball Sharing Bottle that’s only available on weekdays.
While their Signature is the Tori Chankonabe (S$58 for 4 pax, S$30 for 2 pax), a Jitori chicken pot, my friend and I opted for something more adventurous. We got the Buta Motsu Chankonabe (S$65 for 4 pax, S$35 for 2 pax), which uses pork intestines and pork stomach.
By recommendation, we added in the Mochi Kinchaku (S$6.80) – mochi wrapped in tofu skin to look like moneybags which is a symbol of good fortune – and Himokawa Udon (S$6.80). It was my first time seeing flat Udon noodles.
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The Himokawa Udon was extremely silky and easy to slurp up. In fact, it felt like we could keep eating it. In contrast, the Mochi Kinchaku was stretchy and sticky, but still soft and not overly chewy. It was a delight when it took in some of the soup.
As our soup was filled with intestines, it became very rich with collagen. We were told we could ask to add even more collagen to our hotpot, but it was unnecessary.
Sharing the stage with the Buta Motsu Chankonabe was our choice of Kamameshi Set. It’s also known as ‘kettle rice’, as it’s a traditional Japanese rice dish cooked in a cast iron pot.
ENChanko recommends that after eating the first layer of your rice dish, you pour in the signature stock and let it simmer a little longer. It will make scraping off the charred rice easier and it transforms into more of an ochazuke.
We get to top everything off with a smooth and flavourful ice cream. The Matcha (S$3.80) was deep and strong, and the Chestnut (S$4.80) tasted almost like coffee.
Honestly, this whole experience was extremely filling. While there are more affordable hotpot options out there, the amount of sides and ingredients you get is rather worth it, especially during this promo. If it sounds appealing in any way, do come and spoil yourself a little bit.
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ENChanko Hotpot & Kamameshi
1 Harbourfront Walk, Vivocity, #01-52, Singapore 098585
ENChanko Hotpot & Kamameshi
1 Harbourfront Walk, Vivocity, #01-52, Singapore 098585
