KNN Mookata: Authentic Charcoal Mookata Under S$20 Near Jalan Besar MRT

What’s the first thing you think of when someone says “KNN“? This Thai Mookata eatery’s cheeky name is not what you think it is.

Only a few minutes walk away from Jalan Besar MRT Station, KNN Mookata specialises in authentic charcoal mookata. KNN is actually the abbreviation for Kin (it means ‘eat’ in Thai) Nam Nam (it means ‘water’ in Thai).

However, to the owners, the word ‘nam nam’ sounded more like a sound you might make when eating something delicious — like ‘Mmm, niam niam niam’.

You can order as you would at any other mookata stalls with a range of meat varieties and sides with individual prices, or you can opt for their KNN Buffet (S$19.90/adult, S$10.90/child).

They have a self-service display of meats and other sides where you can help yourselves to if you choose to go with the buffet.

The meats that you get have all been marinated and one of the owners was actually working as a chef at Shangri-La so you can expect some quality meat here.

They sell servings of Black Pepper Beef Slice (S$3.60) but it is separate from the self-service display. So if you want beef slices, you’ll have to order from them directly.

Alternatively, they also have different food platters that you can order separately such as the KNN Meat Platter (S$18). However, do note that you’ll have to pay an additional charge of S$8 for their Authentic Thai Charcoal Pot as long as you’re not ordering the buffet.

For those who prefer seafood, they also offer a Seafood Platter (S$22) that includes prawns, salmon, crab meat and squids amongst other things.

Before getting down to business, you can top up S$5 for some free flow drinks which can be inter-switchable between their Thai Ice Milk Tea (S$2.50) or Thai Lemongrass Drink (S$2.50). Both drinks are equally amazing especially on a hot day, but we recommend having the Thai Lemongrass Drink after the meal as it’s more refreshing after the heavy meal.

We decided to go for their KNN Buffet as we felt it was the most value-for-money option. As you’re waiting for them to prepare the charcoal pot, you can also sip on the drinks that you’ve ordered beforehand or go pick the dishes that you want to cook.

For the less-initiated, mookata is essentially a combination of Korean barbecue with a steamboat surrounding it. Most places have mookata pots on the portable gas stoves rather than cooking it atop charcoal pots. There’s also a serving of lard so the surface of the grill is smooth enough for you to cook your meats.

Once you’ve thrown in your ingredients, all you have to do now is wait for it to cook. It cooks pretty fast so if you don’t want your meat to burn, make sure you turn them over often.

One of our favourite meat from the Meat Platter was the Black Pepper Chicken. The sharpness of the pepper has an edge to it which made the chicken more flavourful. We unanimously agreed that the smokiness from the charcoal grill also made the meat more delightful.

If you can handle spicy food, these chilli mixes will give your meats an extra oomph. Even though we felt that it could be spicier, we understand that spice tolerance is very subjective because we’ve heard there had been feedback that it’s spicy enough.

The first sauce reminded me of sweet Thai chilli which goes well with meats, especially pork.

The second one, however, has a slight tanginess to it which would go better with the seafood. Though the meat itself was already well-seasoned and juicy, I prefer to dip my meats in sauces for the spice and because it packs a greater punch when you eat it with rice.

We cooked most of our seafood in the steamboat but you can grill some fish or the other ingredients if you’re feeling adventurous. After all, you’ll be doing the cooking yourself so who’s to stop you? Don’t worry about accidentally swallowing bones from the fish because it has already been carefully deboned.

I was pleasantly surprised when I started eating the squid slices. I expected it to be chewy and rubbery like most, but instead, it was soft and easy to chew which was what I liked.

Both platters come with an egg each, but you can help yourselves to more from the display if you’d like. We cracked them into a bowl and beat them together before pouring them into the soup to get sort of a silky string of steamed and boiled egg goodness.

After you’ve eaten your fill, feel free to ask for some wet tissues that have been packed into these brazen packaging. We had a good laugh after the initial shock when I was first given these.

Unlike some mookata places, the meats were actually really succulent and well-marinated, the seafood was extremely fresh. If you’re lazy like me, your favourite part of the seafood platter will be the prawns because they’re deshelled for you. The prawn heads will be left on so it’ll give your soup more flavour as they soak in it.

Overall, the ingredients were of pretty good quality at an affordable price. KNN Mookata was also convenient to get to considering it was only a few minutes walk away from Jalan Besar MRT. We highly recommend you to add this place to your list of supper places and bring your family and friends ASAP.

Expected damage: S$24.90 per pax

KNN Mookata: 31 Kelantan Lane, Singapore 208654 | Tel: +65 8855 6969 | Opening Hours: 5pm–12am (Sunday to Thursday), 5pm–2am (Friday & Saturday) | Facebook