Captain K Seafood Tower |
Seafood
Tower is one of the latest fad that came out of Korea last year. Made
popular by Youtube clip and food show about Korea as well, it pique
our interest in search and look for it. Looking to satisfy the Korean
culinary craze, enter Captain K with its visually exciting Korean
Seafood Tower, or Nine Layers of steam seafood as it is known in
other part of Asia. As a K-food lover, LD and friends definitely
won't miss out on this.
How to Eat Seafood Tower |
We
ordered the 9 tiers ($288.90) with Premium Korean Ginseng Chicken
(additional $15) as a soup base. According to the menu, it is suppose
to feed 8 pax. Being offered the Alaskan crab leg, we decided to add
it as well, so our K-Tower became 10 tiers with only 6 of us.
Order being assemble |
It took
about 20 minutes before the seafood tower to arrive. The base to heat
the soup uses induction cooker, with each side of the hole to place
the cooker are enforce with steel to ensure the tower does not
topple.
After 20 mins - Wohoo!! - 10 Tiers |
First tier, mussels and clams |
Mussels and clams - up close |
You can
actually eat the steamed shell seafood au natural or dip it in their
sauces such as Samjang sauce, Thai green chilli, Yuzu Miso, Ponzu
sauce or Sambal Belacan. I had mine Yuzu Miso and Ponzu for that
acidity in the dish. Once you finished a tier, the service staff will
remove the empty steamer so you proceed to the next tier.
Dipping sauce |
Second
tier are prawns. It was solid and crunchy. You can actually suck up
the juice from the brain if you like. As the shells and leftover from
the prawns started to fill the plates, you can dispose it in the bin
under the table. The service staff will clear it regularly.
Second tier, Prawns |
Third
tier, mini Alaskan Crab. At the first sight, it gave you the wow
look. However, it does not deliver in taste. The meat feels brittle
and tasted powdery. I suggest to give this a miss.
Third tier, mini Alaskan Crab |
Fourth
tier, lobster. This is much better compare to the crab. The meat is
fresh, springy and thick. Each of the lobsters are half, so you will
not have any problem taking out the flesh.
Fourth tier, lobster |
Fifth
tier, oyster. While we ate most of our oyster raw or fried with egg,
eating it steamed is pretty unique indeed. The flesh is boiled in its
natural juices, it tasted refreshing. I suggest you eat the flesh
first, with the sauce and slowly sip the balance of the juice from
the shell. Yum Yum.
Fifth tier, oyster |
Oyster - up close |
Sixth
tier, squid stuffed with glutinous rice. An interesting combination,
but we find the portion is a bit small compare to previous layers.
Instead of one squid, they should gave us two squid. The rice are
well seasoned, but it was mushy. The idea is to get the rice to
absorb the flavour of the squid, however it seems to be lacking here.
The squid is chewy, like its a bit overcooked.
Sixth tier, squid stuffed with glutinous rice |
Seventh
tier, scallops with glass noodle and garlic. A more Cantonese style
of dish, the glass noodle absorbs the natural flavour of the
scallops, while the garlic nicely enhanced it. The scallops was
cooked just right.
Seventh tier, scallops with glass noodle and garlic |
Eight
tier, leg of Alaskan crab leg. The flesh is juicy and brainy. It is
better compare to the small Alaskan crab. However, the portion is a
bit small as it was suppose to feed 8 pax.
Eight tier, leg of Alaskan crab leg |
Ninth
tier, mantis shrimp. Though it was the closest to the soup base, the
thick layer of exoskeleton helps to seal the juice in the mantis
prawn. Slightly hard to dig out the flesh, but its worth the effort.
It tasted like a cross breed between tiger prawns and crayfish.
Ninth tier, mantis shrimp |
Finale, Tenth tier, The Ginseng Chicken Soup. This is actually the
best part of the meal. All the natural juices from the steamed
shellfish drip into the soup base, adding the sweetness to the
already robust chicken soup. You can actually taste the collagen from
the soup on your lips. The chicken meat is so tender, it basically
fall off the bone. To be exact, you can even eat the chicken bones,
as it crumble when you picked it up.
Tenth tier, The Ginseng Chicken Soup |
You can
actually treat the soup base as steamboat as well, where you can add
fishballs, eggs, dumplings, vegetables, luncheon meat and instant
noodle. These extra ingredients are charged by colour of the plates,
$2 for yellow, $3 for orange and $4 for red. After all those
shellfish in previous tier, I was happy to enjoy the soup base with
just vegetables and instant noodles.
The Add On |
My Finale |
The décor
of this restaurant is simple and open. Just like any typical
steamboat restaurant. This is not a full service restaurant, as the
service staff only take your order and deliver the seafood tower. The
sauce, side dish (kimchi), drinks and other additional ingredients
for the soup base you need to self-serve.
The Decor |
The
Verdict: it is definitely a unique dining experience. Majority of the
seafood is fresh, but skip the Alaskan crab. The Ginseng Soup Base is
a must try. Cheers!!
Food
& Drink: 7.25/10
Value:
6.5/10
Service:
6/10
Ambiance:
6.5/10
Budget per Person: $26 - $50; $51 - $80
must visit Delicious and Healthy Steam Seafood Steamboat
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