Sherman's Food Adventures: Bubble Waffle Cafe (Iron Kitchen)

Bubble Waffle Cafe (Iron Kitchen)

If you haven't noticed, one of the fastest growing Asian chain restaurants has been Bubble Waffle Cafe.  Starting as a humble little food stall in Aberdeen Centre specializing in bubble waffles as well as DIY soup noodles, they have expanded to several locations.  One of the newer spots happens to also be in the former Iron Kitchen (think of it as Pepper Lunch lite).  But instead of completely transforming into a full-blown Bubble Waffle, the place operates as half-BWC and half Iron Kitchen.  Judes, Boss Woman and I decided to check the place out after softball one night.

I started with a side order of their Chicken Nuggets and boy were they oil-soaked.  So much so, that the plate was greasy.  In turn, the exterior was only crispy on the top as the bottom was oily and soft.  The meat was tender and well-seasoned though with a mild saltiness.  I also got an order of Takoyaki since they ran out of squid.  Turned out to be a good decision as they were pretty good.  Now, they were not prepared the traditional way, but that didn't matter as the exterior was lightly crispy that gave way to a fluffy soft interior that consisted of 2 pieces of tako (that wasn't too chewy).

For my main, I had the Angus Beef Teppan with rice, corn and tater tots.  Okay, I know they are not exactly the same, but I would like to state that Pepper Lunch has nothing to worry about.  This version here was serviceable but hardly memorable.  The Korean sauce was just sweet while the dish was uninspiring.  The tatar tots were oil-logged and overfried.  I did like the tender slices of beef though. Boss Woman ended up with the Lamb Teppan which was similar to mine but only with a meat change.  Hence, it wasn't that different other than the fact there was the classic lamb gaminess and slightly drier meat,

Judes went for something that shouldn't be in a hot teppan IMO with the Hainanese Chicken.  Since the rice was not flavoured, the dish was not really representative of the authentic version.  Furthermore, the chicken continued to overcook in the hot teppan.  As a chicken dish, it was fine, but hardly a Hainanese chicken.  We ended things off with a classic Bubble Waffle.  Sure, it wasn't as fancy as some of the newer spots in town, but really, it sometimes just comes down to the basics.  This one was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside with a light sweetness.  Good in my books.  As for the teppan, I was on the fence.  Sure, it did the job, but really, Pepper Lunch is remarkably better for the same price.

The Good:
- Solid bubble waffles
- Interesting mix of 2 restaurants

The Bad:
- Teppan ok, but nowhere as good as Pepper Lunch
- More care could be put into the preparation   

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