For those whom have been going around Maxwell Food Centre, perhaps the sight of a signage mentioning MAXWELL79! Is something that comes across as pretty familiar. Despite the signage being put up on the stall for quite some time by now, MAXWELL79! had only managed to open its doorsrather recently. Looking around its social media pages previously, it does seem that the establishment was conceptuallised to serve up vastly different things than what eventually happened — with that being said, MAXWELL79! finally opened its doors being an establishment that serves up rice, soba, pasta and salad bowls. MAXWELL79! does allow for here patrons to opt between rice, soba, pasta and salad bowls where the elements included within the bowls are already pre-defined, though those whom prefer to have some flexibility and customisability to their rice, soba, pasta and salad bowls can also build their very own bowl by selecting their desired base, toppings, protein and dressing by scanning the QR code pasted on the whiteboard beside the screens showing the menu.

Skipping all of that fuss to build our own bowl, we found ourselves going for the Yakiniku Beef Bowl which is one of the bowls that came with a pre-defined combination of elements on the menu at MAXWELL79!. One thing that we had noticed about the rice, soba, pasta and salad bowls at MAXWELL79! would be their affordability — one can build their very own bowl from $7.90, while the pre-determined combinations are priced within the range of $5.90 to $8.90. Despite being a bowl that comes with a pre-defined list of elements, patrons still get the flexibility of opting for their preferred Base and Dressing — we went with the Olive Pearl Rice for the Base; a special on the day of our visit, and went with the default Smoky BBQ that usually comes with the Yakiniku Beef Bowl for our Dressing. The menu describes the Yakiniku Beef Bowl to come with elements included Yakiniku Beef, Kimchi, Sous Vide Egg, Sweet Corn, Purple Onion and Baked Broccoli. Digging into the bowl, the Yakiniku Beef does come in the form of thin slices; slightly chewy especially considering the cut of beef used, though came with a sweet and savoury note without much of a gaminess though the Smoky BBQ sauce drizzled atop does overwhelm some of the other elements in the bowl. The Olive Pearl Rice comes as short grain rice; pearly and sticky with visible traces of olives speckled throughout which adds a soft fragrance to the rice. Sous-vide egg was served chilled with soft whites and runny yolk, providing creamy and silky texture for all of the other elements when mixed into the bowl; the kimchi in the meanwhile also added a refreshing crunch with a distinct tang to cut through the base and the protein — all that while the onions adds a zing to much of the same impact as well. The nibs of corn added a hint of natural sweetness to balance out everything else in the bowl.