And now for the pièce de résistance of any meal at @chefchina.sg, the Grilled Fish. For thirty two dollars and eighty cents before additional taxes, you get a whole grilled fish in one of four different broth bases. We chose the Pickled Vegetable broth base, and we couldn’t have been more pleased with our selection.

A whole fish of indeterminate species is grilled till cooked through before being laid to rest in the pan. Peanuts as well as slices of cabbage, onions and tomatoes join a heaping helping of both green & red Sichuan peppers as the accoutrements of the fish. To seal the deal, everything is then bathed in pickled vegetable broth before being sent to your table, and that’s where the show gets lit. Literally. As the fire burns beneath the fish and gets the broth gently bubbling, dig in to that gargantuan grilled fish.

The fish on my dish has clearly been well fed, as there was an astonishing amount of flesh on the bones. As with all whole fish, there are some bones to pick, but the abundance of fresh, firm white fish flesh vastly exceeded the annoyance of picking out fish bones. The piquant pickled veg broth, however, is what really makes the Grilled Fish go down swimmingly well.

It’s tantalisingly tangy, with a decent sourness that helps to open up your palate and get your salivary glands going without forcing you to scrunch up your face. Complementing that sourness is a superb saltiness from the pickled vegetables that have imparted their qualities to the broth during boiling. That savouriness is sufficient to flavour the broth as well as the fish, and it flavours everything it comes into contact with flawlessly.

Once again, thank you for inviting us to sample your cuisine, @chefchina.sg!