Captain Kim Review: Muslim-Friendly Korean BBQ & Hot Pot Buffet From $16.90++/Pax At Tampines

The brand-new buffet restaurant burst onto the scene back in October, when it unveiled an opening promotion of just $9.90++. Naturally, this set a lot of tongues wagging – including yours truly – and it’s been popular ever since.

Muslim-Friendly Korean BBQ & Hot Pot Buffet From $16.90++/Pax At Tampines Food at Captain Kim Arranged in two rows are the five stations from which you can adorn your plate: Meats Vegetables Hotpot Ready-to-eat Salad Bar So in total, you can expect over 60 varieties of food, which is insane given how affordable the buffet lunch ($13.90++ for students, $16.90 for adults) is. So I can say with absolute certainty that their meats are on point and the stars of the show.

The marinade that went into the Bulgogi Beef was superb, as we could taste the mix of sweet and sour flavours, even at its centre. That being told reporters, the best meat we had that day was, hands-down, the Volcano Chicken . Next up was filling the army stew with the slew of hot pot components available.

Though the restaurant had a healthy mix of mushrooms, tofu, corn and noodles, the broth itself was disappointing. There was hardly any flavour in the broth even after adding all sorts of food into it.

It reached a point where we were content with just eating the grilled stuff. Thankfully, the ready-to-eat section fared a whole lot better, with options like spaghetti carbonara, glass noodles, truffle fries, tteokbokki and sweet potatoes.

The sweet potatoes had the right balance of saltiness and sweetness, further rousing our appetites. Chewy without being starchy, the tteokbokki was addictive and we kept going for more. We paired it with the bulgogi beef and the result was simply stunning.

For what it’s worth, the offerings are diverse, with stuff like edamame, fusilli, coleslaw and watermelon chunks up for grabs. Ambience at Captain Kim By now, Captain Kim has gotten popular, so you can expect a sizeable amount of diners all day err day. K-Pop aficionados will as well be glad to know that played over the restaurant are MVs from groups like BTS, BLACKPINK and TWICE.

The verdict When we got our bill, we were flabbergasted that the total damage for two students was in the low thirties. Given the spread of tasty dishes, this was an absolute steal and made the food coma worth it. With a halal certification coming any day now, I can definitely foresee Captain Kim becoming even more popular with the Easties.

Address: 300 Tampines Avenue 5, #01-06, NTUC Income Tampines Junction, Singapore 529653 Opening hours: Mon-Fri 11:30am to 3:30pm, 5:30pm to 10:30pm, Sat-Sun 11:30am to 10:30pm Tel: 6260 4247 Website Captain Kim has applied and is awaiting its halal certification.