Homegrown Flavours

I had high hopes for King of Fried Rice after reading about them in the Sunday Times. How they are priced at half of Din Tai Fung’s original dish but still boasting similar taste and quality. So I did a takeaway on a Monday late afternoon to beat the dinner crowd. I ordered the Egg Fried Rice with Pork Cutlet which costs $7.20 (inclusive of $0.30 for takeaway). The takeaway order came with a tiny container of the XO sauce like chili (not pictured). When I opened the box at home, a nicely browned huge slab of pork cutlet was draped over the fried rice. Maybe it was the high expectations cos when I tucked into the fried rice, there was no fireworks. I recalled thinking this is it? I couldn’t detect any trace of wok hei. The fried rice itself tasted almost bland though it was fried very nicely and evenly with every rice grain covered in egg. The pork chop was very tender but tasted a tad salty. In fact the highlight of the entire dish for me was the chili. Man it packs a punch and a tonne of flavour. A flavour bomb alright. My throat has been acting weird lately but that didn’t stop me from mixing every bit of chili I could get out of the tiny container and mixing it all up with the fried rice. That did it for me and I polished off every single grain of an otherwise pretty meh fried rice.

I almost look forward to the encouraging note handwritten by the staff from Le Shrimp Ramen in my delivery order..😊 I ordered the Red Garoupa with Pickled Vegetables Hor Fun in Tonkotsu Broth this time. The garoupa chunks were very fresh with no fishy taste at all. Normally I would remove the fish skin but kudos to the chefs at Le Shrimp Ramen for cooking it so well that it was absolutely slurp-worthy. I was surprised that there were spicy undertones in the broth initially until I fished out some picked green chili heads. As with the robust shrimp broth, I finished every drop of the creamy and rich tonkotsu broth. Another perfectly executed dish from homegrown favourite Le Shrimp Ramen. What more could you ask for in your comfort food in these trying times. #SGUnited #SupportLocal #StayHomeForSG

Another encouraging note handwritten by the staff of Le Shrimp Ramen for my delivery order ❤️ I ordered the prawn dumpling thick vermicelli in shrimp broth and chilled silken tofu with century egg as an appetiser. I throughly enjoyed the slippery thick vermicelli that paired so well with the slightly oily and robust shrimp broth. The four accompanying prawn dumplings were also perfectly executed with its plump and crunchy prawn filling. The prawn dumplings were almost too pretty to be eaten. I was never a fan of century eggs for its strong ammonia taste but the halved century egg with the silken tofu was surprisingly palatable. With its warm and personable service and consistent excellent food quality, Le Shrimp Ramen certainly excels on all fronts. There is nothing more we can expect from a F&B establishment in such trying times 😊 #SGUnited #SupportLocal #StayHomeForSG

I have been ordering in Korean stews and fried chicken; and burgers and fries of late so decided to go back to familiar favourite Le Shrimp Ramen. Food wise, no complaints as usual. But what really made my day and touched me was the encouraging poetic note handwritten by the restaurant. The delivery rider was also very prompt, polite and professional in the contactless delivery process. It’s acts of kindness in times like these that really make a difference 💪🏻💪🏻 加油 SG! #SGUnited #SupportLocal #StayHomeForSG

I had a cashback voucher from Prata Alley so decided to order the Nasi Goreng Kampong for supper. I got a whiff of the potent chili (bottom right hand corner of pic) once I opened the box. It looked pretty nondescript but boy, did it pack a punch. Fortunately I’m quite the spice fiend or it could be too overpowering for those who can’t handle too much heat. The fried rice was cooked with long beans, carrots, onions, chives, egg and topped with an oozy sunny side up and two slices of cucumber. It also came with fish crackers which could be fresher. Overall I enjoyed my supper as the nasi goreng kampong was moist and flavourful and the crispy ikan bilis added enough crunch. Yums.

I enjoyed Prata Alley’s bee hoon goreng Ikan bilis and kway teow goreng seafood so thought I would try the other dishes on its menu. But my latest encounter with Prata Alley proved to be rather uneventful. I ordered the mutton chop and sardine murtabak this time. The murtabak looked rather unappealing when I opened the packet as it lacked the golden brown colour normally seen on murtabak. I had hoped the flavours would make up for the lack of aesthetics. Unfortunately the sardine filling was completely bland to the point of I could hardly even taste the sardine. All I could taste was the thick doughy texture of the murtabak. They should have added sliced red chili to the sardine filling to make it more palatable. Maybe they should take a leaf out the sardine epok epok’s book where the sardine filling is usually moist and spicy with onions and red chili. The mutton chop in the pic looked a mess because it was completely concealed by the blanket of fries and I had to dredge up the mutton for the purpose of this pic haha. The fries were obviously piled on top to retain its crispness. The dish also came with a sunny side up egg, cucumber and tomato slices. This was my first time trying mutton chop and I found it too gamey for my tastebuds. This was rather surprising to me as I love western style lamb chops. Maybe I should stick to the rice and noodle dishes at Prata Alley next time.

Le Shrimp Ramen has been my go to place for comfort food nowadays. Recently I ordered the Ebiko Prawn Paste With Chili Vinaigrette Hor Fun, Braised Beancurd in Tonkotsu Broth, Poached Lettuce With Supreme Soya Sauce and Chilled Crunchy Cucumber. I was a bit disappointed they gave me ramen instead of hor fun as I had really wanted to try the other noodle options other than ramen. Oh well. The slightly oval mounds of prawn paste with crunchy pops of ebiko never fail to satisfy and were absolutely delightful to bite into. I really like the chili vinaigrette with the mala undertones. The poached lettuce was crunchy though it got rather salty towards the end as it was practically drowning in the supreme soya sauce haha. The cucumber tasted firm and fresh while the braised beancurd was rather pedestrian. Let’s hope they get my noodle option right the next time.

Ordered the signature dishes Traditional Popiah ($7.80), Stir Fried Hor Fun with Omelette and Prawns ($22) and Roasted Chicken Stuffed With Minced Prawns ($24 for half). The popiah is a thick fat roll busting with fresh ingredients and is amongst the best I have tasted. The popiah is freshly prepared at a kiosk near the cashier. The hor fun is a unique rendition of the traditional stir fried flat rice noodle dish with the omelette piled atop and served with crunchy prawns. I thoroughly relished the chicken dish which was flattened and roasted till it is crispy. The minced prawns at the bottom of the chicken added to the flavour quotient of the entire dish. I would definitely order this dish again at Spring Court. Oh and the popiah too.

Never understood why they took this sinfully mouthwatering salad off the menu at PS.Cafe. Other than the signature truffle fries, this is one dish i would order again and again at PS.Cafe if they hadn’t taken it off the menu. So this is kind of a tribute to an ingenious salad with an Asian twist. I was completely taken with the fragrant peanut sauce, crispy tofu noodles and cashew nut crunch atop a healthy mix of red cabbage, potatoes, sugar snap peas, avocado, bean sprouts and quail eggs. I say bring back this Gado Gado Salad already, PS.Cafe!

We ordered the must-order har cheong pork kerepok, hae bee hiam spaghettini, mushroom and double cheese beef burger and some fries with bonito flakes and chives. The most memorable dish was the har cheong pork kerepok which was basically paper thin strips of pork belly marinated in shrimp paste then deep fried. They should just bottle this and sell it as a CNY snack already cos the umami pork belly crisps were really addictive and I had never tasted anything like this. It would be a perfect CNY snack and a welcome change from the usual boring salted egg fish skin and potato chips. The burger and fries were meh. The hae bee hiam spaghettini would appeal to those who like spice.

Came here to celebrate one of my bestie’s birthday and it was the perfect choice! We ordered a total of 6 dishes including a chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream (not pictured) and all hit the right notes! We ordered the white bait with chili salt, cauliflower florets with spicy mint aioli (not pictured) sakura ebi angel hair pasta, 36 hrs duck confit with truffle emulsion and lemon mustard vinaigrette; grilled striploin with garlic ponzu. We would be hard pressed to select a favourite cos all were soooo good though I am slightly partial to the striploin just cos I’m a beef lover. The dessert paled in comparison to the appetisers and mains which were the real stars (I went back on another visit and tried the pear tart and would rate it as good as its savoury counterparts) Significant damage but totally worth it cos it was for a bestie’s birthday. Service was impeccable too. They will advise if you order too many dishes.

I would order this again and again. This fanciful name of a potato skins deserve special mention for its expertly deep fried texture without being greasy and cloying. It comes with bbq dip and a honey and mint yogurt cheese dip. The ambience is also perfect for a romantic date with the awesome waterfront views though it can get rather hot if you sit near the windows. Best to go during dinner. Oh and don’t forget to make a booking! Expect this place to be jam packed and jumpin’.