Chinese

Biang Biang Noodle ($7.40)
⭐️ 4/5 ⭐️
🍴Hidden gem for chewy, thick, hand-pulled noodles from Xi’an. Choose from among 5 ingredient combinations and our 3-in-1 featured tangy tomatoes, creamy scrambled egg, marinated pork cubes, and fresh greens.

The noodles one of the better textures around - silky with enjoyable chew and bite. Choose your own spicy level by adding in the addictive crisp fried chili bits and chili oil. Tossing everything together in the savory sauce was highly satisfying and slurp-worthy.

📍Biang Biang Noodle, 01-518, 190 Lor 6 Toa Payoh, Singapore

Enjoy best of both worlds with this restaurant serving local chicken rice and comforting steamboat. We enjoyed a decently priced and delicious set meal for 4-5pax comprising steamboat, 1/2 chicken, and 1 side.

The chicken rice was fluffy and fragrant without being oily. Both steamed and roasted chicken were executed well and tender, in spite of being mostly breast meat which tends to be drier/ tougher.

One can choose among 3 soups and we selected the herbal chicken. Includes assorted vegetables and seafood, with the standouts being the juicy mussels, QQ squid, and succulent pork slices.

For those looking for a richer taste, do consider their deep fried fish head options. The broth is more complex with various greens and crispy Sole fish.

Comforting old-school fresh fish soup that’s clean-tasting yet flavourful. The fish slices were fresh and perfectly poached to a succulent texture. Opt for standard Batang ($8.90) or top up for more tender Garoupa ($12.90) or the most premium Pomfret ($16.90). The latter featured delicate cut and full-bodied flavor but can’t ascertain if it’s worth the price top up.

📍@firststreetfishsoup, 01-31, 58 Seng Poh Road, Singapore (other outlets at Kovan, Serangoon & Tai Seng)

𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 (3.5 ⭐️; $18) - Enjoyed the assortment of seafood including fish, prawns, and squid, along with sweet crunchy onions and ladyfingers. The sambal was flavourful but didn’t quite permeate the ingredients and believe longer boiling would have done the trick.

𝐍𝐠𝐨𝐡 𝐡𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐠 (4.5⭐️; $8) - Would recommend their homemade ngoh hiang. Perfectly crisp on the outside encasing juicy and flavourful meat.

Been awhile since my last visit but this traditional black chicken soup is still as hearty and nourishing as ever

𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐛 ($14.50) - Signature option featuring generously-sized ribs and tender meat. Was also impressed by the 𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐤 ($9) which had an enjoyable soft chew.

𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐤𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐠𝐠𝐬 ($6.50) - Unassumingly simple but well-executed to a silky smooth finish and allowing the natural eggy flavour to shine through.

𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐯𝐞𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 ($4) - Classic salty-tangy mix that was a refreshing balance to the peppery soup.

𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐝 ($4) - Crunchy cucumbers tossed in a flavourful spicy sauce.

𝐓𝐚𝐮 𝐤𝐞𝐞 ($4) - Juicy beancurd skin in a herbal broth.

Pair with rice ($1) or slurp worthy mee sua ($2.80). Highly recommend the 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐨 ($3) that’s freshly fried to enjoyable crispness and absorbs the broth well for juicy and flavourful bite.

𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐚𝐭 ($39/48/72) - Their signature dish and must order when here, featuring a flavorful pork bone broth with fragrant smokiness from the charcoal, and umami sweet notes from the fried sole fish. Includes chunky fish pieces, fried yam, tang oh, and cabbage. Be prepared to also leave the restaurant smelling like charcoal 😂.

𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐟𝐮 ($10) - Personal favourite dish with its soft fluffy interior and lightly crisp batter coat. Haven’t had anything quite like this before!

Check out the free flow sides with every hotpot. Buffet-like with meats, vegetables, quail egg, noodles etc.

Delicious Chinese-Thai style individual hot pot, with various broth choices. Favourite was the Tom Yum Goong with its flavourful balance of sour and spicy. The signature Tom yum set ($23.90) also suits seafood lovers with two generously sized fresh tiger prawns, squid flowers, sliced fish, and lala. The non-spicy tomato soup with sliced beef ($21.90) was on the sweeter side, whilst abundance mushroom with marinated pork ($17.90) was nutritious and earthy, and lighter on the palette. Other options include spicy sour papaya with golden soup, mala, pepper flavour, and sour shiokness.

The single sets are highly value-for-money with free flow sliced pork/chicken, vegetables, noodles/ rice, and soup refills. One can choose between your original rich soup base or light chicken stock.

Also enjoyed the fragrant Thai milk tea ($1.90) that was not too sweet (as per our reduced sweetness request) and refreshing Thai iced lemon tea that had an almost herbal flavour ($4).