Char

If blogs were geographic locations, you are in the Sahara now. Nowadays I seldom write here and I have sold my soul to Instagram (go: instagram.com/weekendeatwhat). But I can't stop thinking about a particular Char Siew for weeks since the fateful encounter. So I need to write about it. Hopefully the Char Siew ghost can stop harassing my hippocamus.

This is the Char Siew I was referring to. It caught me unexpected like a MRT fault (for a lack of better analogy that's trending). There's so much going on in each slice. They used the best part to make the Char Siew and the ratio of lean meat to fats was perfect. My heart melted as the Char Siew melted in my mouth. Not to mention that the caramelized sauce was sweet yet smoky. Best eaten with a bowl of warm white rice.

I can finally die without regrets.

Because we got a mixed platter ($24 for 2 roasts), the Char Siew was accompanied by the Sio Bak. The Sio Bak was also good and it crackles like a wafer. Each piece is a tetris layer of fats and lean meat. Goes best with the accompanying mustard sauce.

We got ourselves some vegetables as a courtesy to our carnivorous diet. Though it looks ugly, the Charcoal To Fu with Spinach and Wild Fungi ($14.80) was actually appetite-whetting and the sauce was addictive.

Oh Char, you have spoilt me. Now, Char Siew can never be the same again!

Kam's Roast

吊起来卖 or "hang up to sell" in English

Due to stricter employment laws imposed by the ministry of manpower in recent years, Hong Kong Kam's Roast Goose's Michelin winning goose did not get its work permit in Singapore.

Oh I think I got the wrong ministry. I meant the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) didn't issue work permit to the goose due to potential bird flu scares.

Without the star performer, the Singapore franchise of Kam's Roast Goose, which opened at Pacific Plaza in Orchard featured other foreign talents such as the Malaysian roast duck, and Toro Char Siew (barbecued pork).

The Toro Char Siew was highly recommended by the media. It was supposedly based on a secret marinade that is developed by the Kam family and you might have to marry their offspring if you really want to know the recipe. Wow, the sweet sticky sauce that coated the charred caramelised bits didn't disappoint! However, it was let down by the char siew which had lean meat that was too tough for my liking, and had too little fatty portions. For the value, it is overpriced at $22.80 and I doubt I will order it again.

Toro Char Siew ($22.80!)

We got a roast meat combo noodle (with 2 meats which we chose roast duck obviously and roast pork). The roast duck was quipped by my friend as 有前途 (got hope). Indeed the first bite into the crispy skin and juicy tender meat gave us hope that this is the one. But reality soon hits us that it just tasted like a good plate of roast duck and nothing extraordinary.

Roast duck and pork combo noodle ($11.80)

Roast pork & Roast duck

The noodles were supposed to be flown in from Hong Kong daily. But we did not find it very different or unique.

Service was attentive even though food took quite some time to arrive. Which is puzzling because I thought not much cooking was required.

So Kam's Roast didn't turn out to be a life changing experience after all. The food was not bad but there wasn't much economic value. A bit of 吊起来卖 or as they say in English, "hang up to sell". I guess I won't be back anytime.

Crystal Jade Steamboat Kitchen

OK when the previous non-food post was out, I had friends who were like, "WTF??!!"

WTF means "Where's the food?" hor.

So I decided to do a food post before I do my Cambodia Part 3 of 3 post. Dedicated to the famished and starved.

When I think of Crystal Jade, I think of three words - reliable, good and affordable. The dining scene in Singapore is not some easy game. Hence, to not only survive but also thrive for such a long time, Crystal Jade must have got it right.

And not just get it right today, but also getting it right tomorrow by constantly changing its strategy to suit the changing trends.

So when an opportunity to revamp the Crystal Jade Kitchen at Plaza Singapura arose, the management transformed the outlet into a new hybrid concept restaurant - an all-you-can-eat 90 minute steamboat, and Cantonese delicacies and dim sum. Since steamboat is the trend now. A totally feasible feastible concept for me, the glutton.

I had the blessings to be invited to try out the best of both worlds of steamboat and kitchen.

Deep fried yam puff with minced meat ($4 per serving of 3 pieces)

This is as delicious as it looks. Deep fried with a delicate, golden, wispy covering, the yam paste and the minced meat were moist and savoury with a salty finish. Great appetizer.

Steamed pork & shrimp with crab roe dumpling ($4.20 per serving of 3 pieces)

Siew Mai was fresh and the meat was chewy. The shrimps they used were pretty huge. And I like that the skin doesn't stick to my teeth. If you know what I mean.

Steamed shrimp dumpling / Har Kau ($4.60 per serving of 3 pieces)
The shrimps used for their har kau were nice, big and fresh.

Pan-fried fish cake with radish ($4 per serving of 3 pieces)
This is unique to the Crystal Jade kitchen and hard to find in Singapore. It is made by stuffing minced fresh fish cake and radish between two layers of wonton skin, and then deep fried until crispy on the outside. It's like eating a fried har kau, but without the inconvenience of the skin flying all over the place. Yummy.. must try!

Roasted combination platter ($25.80 per serving)

Crystal Jade's roasted combination platter comprises of my favourite roast meats: Roast duck, Char Siew (honey barbequed pork), and Siew Yok (pork belly).

I personally find the char siew and siew yok to be average and I've had better ones. But the roast duck stole the limelight. The roast duck is a product of Crystal Jade's hard work and research. Based on their research, ducks which were grown up to 49 days have the best meat. Wah so sad, like the Korean drama 49 days. Can only live for 49 days.

Anyway, I have personally tested their hypothesis and am glad to report the meat is indeed very tender and had the perfect proportion of meat and fat. During the roasting process, the chef has to keep turning the duck and add on a sweet glaze that helps to caramelise the thin layer of skin for a crispy texture. Goes well with the plum sauce. Must try!

After eating the above, I was kinda full. But the never-say-die spirit in me persevered to continue the steamboat buffet. The steamboat buffet was truly value for money.

Induction cooker

Mix your own sauces!

There are six different soup bases to choose from: Pork's bone soup, tomato soup, curry soup, miso soup, superior soup, and spicy mala. Each steamboat pot comes with two compartments so you can choose more than 1 soup. So no need to fight with your friend.

We got to try the pork's bone soup and curry soup. The curry soup is not like our Singaporean curry soup. It's not the "knock you out" kind of spiciness. There's no coconut milk in it, unlike the Singaporean curry. Most of the rest preferred the pork's bone soup. I personally preferred the curry soup as it is more flavourful, and the maggi noodles soaked the flavours pretty well.

The above shows the meat paste. It tasted like minced meat but smoother in texture. Must try!

We also got fried fish skin and mushrooms, which can be eaten as such. However, we think it tasted better when dipped in the soup as they absorb the soup flavours very well.

QQ rice (above) is something that only Crystal Jade has. It is made of both Thai jasmine rice, and glutinous rice. Add some freshly made scallion oil and it turns into flavourful rice that has more than one texture.

The buffet comes with free flow of drinks (soft drinks, hot tea, coffee) and ice-cream.

Don't know why there is lever for the "vanilla" and "chocolate" at the ice-cream machine. Because obviously people will take the "mixed"? Hahaha..

But maybe not because the chocolate was not intense enough.

We were given a bottle of chilli oil as a gift. I forgot to ask if they sell chilli oil separately. Because it makes a perfect gift for friends/family who are abroad. I got this delivered to my friend who was on a London secondment. By passing to another colleague who happened to be flying there. Delivery time was not perfect, tracking service was nonexistent, but never mind since it's free delivery.

Overall, I think Crystal Jade Steamboat Kitchen is an awesome place to dine in. The pricing is right. The food is right. The location is right. Great for gatherings. Hmmm, really difficult to find a reason not to visit this outlet. Maybe that is Crystal Jade's strategy for surviving and thriving so long in the local food scene.

Thanks to Crystal Jade and Joh-Ju for the invited tasting!

Address: Plaza Singapura, 68 Orchard Road #02-32 s238839

Tel: 6336 2833

Chong Qing Grilled Fish

Hello! Another post on fish after my Fish & Co post which I had friends commenting "Huh Fish and Co? Really?" Anyway this time this is Chinese fish, not Western. I love all fish, regardless of race or nationality. Meow.

As seen from the picture above, Chong Qing Grilled Fish is very popular, especially on weekend nights. In fact, there was a queue already waiting at 6.30pm on a Friday. Patronage was a mix of local and PRC. I would recommend you to call and reserve to avoid disappointment.

Ordering is a simple and idiot-proof (but not fickle-minded proof) three-step process:

So many choices!

We chose the sea bass in fermented black bean (甘香豆豉) soup, and beancurd skin and enoki mushrooms as our sides. We were so excited when the fish came in a huge saucer with the hot stove beneath! The regular size ($30) was huge and enough for two pax. A thin layer of chilli spice powder was sprinkled on top to give a kick to the fish which was grilled to perfection. The sea bass was very tender, fresh and tasty, evident of the oil, herbs and spices that were used to marinate the fish. We slurped all of the black bean soup which was aromatic, and packed a balanced punch of saltiness, savouriness and sweetness. We were very satisfied with every aspect of the fish and there was really nothing to nitpick. 

Sea bass in fermented black bean soup

We had the opportunity to try the authentic Chongqing spicy style - Spicy Fragrant 一品香辣(medium spiciness) on another occasion. OMG. I can only say the spicy fragrant soup is not for the faint-hearted. The chilli oil was very hot, spicy and numbing. I am not exaggerating. My fellow diner, who is a major consumer of the chilli industry, also found it too spicy and numbing. By the end of the meal, we felt our tongues did not belong to us. Good idea to bring a frenemy here if you want to do a kamikaze.

Sea bass in spicy fragrant soup (medium spiciness lvel)

But this is their signature lah. Chong Qing Ma La mah. Suggest you choose mild spiciness level. Just drink more water which is free. I think I drank more water than the soup. Or have some cooling desserts just opposite Chong Qing Grilled Fish. I highly recommend the durian shaved ice at Desserts First - read review here.

Indoors are air-conditioned but you are more likely to smell like grilled fish at the end. Outdoors might be too humid on a hot day. If you are lucky like us, you might get a seat that is indoors but close to the main door-less entrance which will grant you the best of both worlds - Cool air-conditioning and good ventilation. 

Address: 1 Liang Seah Street, #01-05/06 s189022
Tel: 63339148

Mellben seafood (Ang Mo Kio)

Pic from Mellben Seafood website

When I told mama I was going to bring her to Mellben for Mothers' Day, she thought I meant Melbourne. Oops.

Anyway Mellben also very good what. 

One of the ways you can tell if it is a family is if they love the same food. For mine, our love is seafood. Hence, no need DNA test. Hence, family dinners are easy to plan- everybody happy with seafood.

I have a social responsibility to warn you before visiting Mellben. 

Warning #1 - Queuing is unavoidable. Unless you go on weekdays which they accept reservations.

Don't want to queue? Can.. come at 10.45pm lor (time for last order)

Warning #2 - Waiting is unavoidable. unless you are some king. Or unless you saved the world. Then maybe. Otherwise...

After we got our seats, we waited for like 45 minutes for our food!

Warning #3 - No guarantee on the quality... Mellben will thank you for understanding.

Although the menu boasts of a wide variety of seafood, the main star of Mellben Seafood is the claypot crab bee hoon. 

But first, coconut juice ($4+ each) is always a must when we eat seafood. While it was refreshing, the inner flesh was a bit hard to scrap though. 3.5/5

Crab #1 - Claypot Bee Hoon crab

It was a unanimous thumbs-up for this. The buttermilk broth was robust and slightly peppery. I think there was also coconut milk but it was not very overwhelming or too much. The overall combination was savory and tasty. 

And the Bee Hoon - so silky and smooth that I had a problem holding them with my chopsticks. Awesome.  4.5/5

And not to mention the main star - the crab- very fresh and fleshy. Sweet and succulent. I only have one more word for the meat quality - solid!

As I am the princess, I have my crabs cracked and presented to me. I just eat. 

Crab #2 - Chilli crab

Mellben's chilli crab is seriously not for the wimps. The sauce is super duper spicy that it puts other chilli crabs in shame. My tongue was on flames. And soaking up the fried piping-hot mantou ($4+ for 10) in the sweet eggy spicy sauce? Shiok! But too spicy lah. Can only eat a few. 4.5/5

And guess what? I made a new discovery.. 

Some of the chilli crab sauce accidentally dropped into my bowl of Bee Hoon soup.. The outcome --> butter milk chilli crab sauce that's spicy and milky! And not overly spicy as compared to chilli crab only. It's like the combination of two power essences. Divine! Don't say I never share...

While the price depends on the daily market rate, the two crabs (1 kg each)  cost $110+ that day.

We loved the cereal prawns ($20+, below) too. Crispy and coated with fragrant cereals, the king prawns were huge, succulent and sweet, and full of wok-hei. The problem was there were too little prawns. We finished the whole thing including the cereals. 4.5/5

For a non-seafood change, we ordered the venison meat ($15+, below). The venison meat was gamey, yet tender and savory with the sweet soya black sauce. 4/5

Please don't misunderstand that we are a carnivorous family. We also ordered some vegetables such as bamboo shoots. Which was good too. Which I forgot to take photo.. 

Ok that's all we ate at Mellben. Looks little but actually it was a lot for 4 pax. We were damn full.. I guess the tummies in my family are all small and not very stretchable. 

Mellben AMK - Right at the ground floor of a HDB flat. 

Note: Mellben charges 7% GST but no service charge. 

Address:

232 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 S'pore 560233

Red House Seafood

In this country which the seafood scene is highly competitive (Think: Jumbo, Long beach, Palm beach, No signboard, Mellben), and every establishment strives to have the best national dish aka chilli crab, surviving one year in the industry is an accomplishment, ten years warrants a fireworks display.

So it's interesting that a relatively unknown (at least to me) such as Red House has been around since 1976. It was upon a chance that I passed by Red House along Prinsep Street which has become a thriving breeding spot for gaming shops, pubs and ktv. 

When I saw Red House, I thought it was a real house (no pun intended). A double story terrace house with a courtyard. The courtyard of the restaurant was big enough to host your banquet/war victory/whatever party. 

For those who can only survive in low humidity and < 30 Deg Celsius conditions, indoors would be the wiser choice. There were also private rooms that can cater about 40 pax on the second floor.

Sorry if I misled you into thinking this is a post about crabs, prawns, fish. I have a bad habit to go off-topic. In the end , we opted for some simple dishes instead of seafood. 

Starter was spinach tofu & mushroom ($14++, below) - the lightly fried and crispy tofu was coated in a secret mushroom sauce and topped with real mushrooms and crisp conpoy. The fragrance of the mushrooms coupled with the savoury tofu made this was a hearty and tasty dish. 3.75/5

Thai sauce fried chicken with mango slices ($14++, below) - Pieces of fried chicken which were generously coated with flour were crispy and the Thai sauce was spicy enough to give this dish a fiery kick. Mango slices gave a sour touch to the dish. 3.75/5

Braised Ee fu noodles with assorted mushrooms ($12++) - The flat thin noodles were cooked al dente and the mushrooms gave this dish a tasty flavor. I thought it was a little dry for my liking but my companion seemed to love it.  3.5/5

The service staff were friendly and attentive. Most of them appeared to be old aunties and uncles and they were quite jovial: But I wished the serving speed would be faster. Especially when I was really hungry :p

Address: 68 Prinsep Street S'pore 188661 
Monday to Friday:
11.30am – 2.30pm (last order at 2pm)
5pm – 11pm (last order at 10.30 pm)

Sat, Sun, public holidays;

11am - 11pm (last order at 10.30pm)