The first half of 2014 has really seen a lot of new and exciting vegetarian eateries open up in Singapore. The R.E.A.L Hut is one of those which have opened recently in 2014. This restaurant abides by the motto 'relax, eat and love', which makes up the name of the restaurant - REAL.
The R.E.A.L HutLocation: #01-197, Blk 46 Sims PlaceContact: 68469976Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 11.00am-9.00pm. Closed Monday.
Here is a look at the menu. Many of the dishes are Taiwanese influenced, but all sorts of cuisines can be found here.
I was feeling a little under the weather this particular evening, so I decided to pick the
Immune Boost as our choice of beverage. Inside this pot is a concoction of fennel seeds, cloves and orange peel.
Price: $5.50. 6/10We decided to commence our meal with a side dish named
Vegetable Sushi Roll. The concept of wrapping vegetables in nori roll is not revolutionary, but I've always liked this healthier way to eat sushi. Unfortunately for this version, I found the combination of vegetables and nori to be way too dry. It was really crying out for a zesty sauce, like the one at
New Green Pasture (Fortune Centre). Definitely a healthy choice, and the mayonnaise (which is vegan) does bring it to life somewhat. But it really needs a textural moisture, which a good dressing would ultimately bring.
Price: $5.00. 6/10R.E.A.L Hut have a number of dishes all from different culinary influences - A Korean style dish they have on their menu is the
Kimchi Noodle. Kimchi is a fermented vegetable preparation, usually consisting of radish, cabbage or even cucumber. Shrimp paste is used in traditional kimchi, but is obviously omitted here. This soup based noodle dish was quite flat taste wise. Unless you literally bite onto the kimchi cabbage, it is really difficult to get that wonderful sweet and sour kimchi flavour onto one's palette. The kimchi flavour was totally lost in the soup, which caused me to feel quite disappointed. I like the use of seaweed and thin rectangular pieces of tofu inside, but the flavour of the dish really needs to be turned up.
Price: $8.90. 6/10To finish the meal off, we selected a piece of
Carrot Cake. The desserts at R.E.A.L Hut can be seen at the point of sale area of the shop, and there can be found a limited range of vegan and non-vegan desserts to choose from. The carrot cake is totally vegan. This cake didn't have enough moisture, and could have done with another layer of 'cream' in the middle. Also, the cake didn't have the right balance of spices (cinnamon, cardamon, ginger) inside. I did like the orange rind that was sprinkled on top, but improvements in all other aspects need to be made. Having said all that, vegan cakes are not easy to master, so we shouldn't be too hard on them.
Price: $5.50. 6/10Conclusion - For the positives, I really enjoyed the polite and friendly attitude of the staff running R.E.A.L Hut. The restaurant had a nice and peaceful atmosphere. Unfortunately the disappointment came in the form of the food, which I all found to be totally forgettable. On a brighter note, I am sure with a few tweaks here and there, the quality of the dishes can improve significantly.
Overall Rating
Food - 6/10
Ambiance- 7/10
Service - 8/10
Value - 7/10
