Chinese

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).

𝐋𝐚 𝐌𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐞 ($10.80) - Enjoyable dry rendition with non-spicy savory mix of minced pork and mushrooms.

𝐋𝐚 𝐌𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐚 𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐤 ($14.30) - Comforting and creamy pork bone broth with tender pork slices, a slurpworthy rendition.

𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐲 𝐗𝐢𝐚𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐨 ($16.80/8) - Well-executed juicy meats wrapped in the thinnest skin. Went with the assortment which featured their latest addition of Korean kimchi xiaolongbao and enjoyed the spicy tangy rendition reminiscent of traditional Korean mandu. Personal top favourites are still the original and truffle rendition.

𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐃𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐇𝐨𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢 𝐕𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞 ($10.30) - Yummy dumplings tossed in a mala sauce. Straightforward but good.

We waited 2 years for a slot at this popular Cantonese private home-based dining by Chef Sam. Overall, the food was good but nothing great, and reminded some us of our grandparents/parents best homecooked dishes. Delicious and hearty curation with use of fresh, seasonal ingredients. Value-for-money experience but not particularly impressive if comparing to most Chinese restaurants around.

Started with comforting 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐩 with distinct bean flavour boiled down with duck, dried octopus, shrimp, and mushrooms.

Next was a whole 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐤 which while flavourful, personally wished for some braising of sauce or pairing with chili, particularly for the drier breast meat sections. Did love the accompaniment of the sweetest pineapple and crunchy cucumber. The 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫 was quite standard although the fragrant Cai poh topping was a group favourite and left us scavenging every piece. Fourth was a huge 2.5kg 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧 with tender meat, topped with addictive caramelized garlic (albeit on the oiler side). Vegetable was 𝐝𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐢𝐚𝐨 with ikan billis that was cleansing on the palette and enjoyable bite with the crispy ikan.

We waited 2 years for a slot at this popular Cantonese private home-based dining by Chef Sam. Overall, the food was good but nothing great, and reminded some us of our grandparents/parents best homecooked dishes. Delicious and hearty curation with use of fresh, seasonal ingredients. Value-for-money experience but not particularly impressive if comparing to most Chinese restaurants around.

Started with comforting 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐩 with distinct bean flavour boiled down with duck, dried octopus, shrimp, and mushrooms.

Next was a whole 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐤 which while flavourful, personally wished for some braising of sauce or pairing with chili, particularly for the drier breast meat sections. Did love the accompaniment of the sweetest pineapple and crunchy cucumber. The 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫 was quite standard although the fragrant Cai poh topping was a group favourite and left us scavenging every piece. Fourth was a huge 2.5kg 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧 with tender meat, topped with addictive caramelized garlic (albeit on the oiler side). Vegetable was 𝐝𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐢𝐚𝐨 with ikan billis that was cleansing on the palette and enjoyable bite with the crispy ikan.

Highlight of the meal was definitely the 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐟𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐧. Naturally sweet and umami undertones from the crayfish, with fried shallots and QQ horfun.

Finally paid a visit to this Michelin Bib Gourmand store after the many positive reviews and it lived up to expectations! While pricier than most hawkers, we found the generous portions, delicious ingredients, and restaurant-quality service to be worth it.

Thick and rich prawn soup bursting with natural umami prawn flavours, served piping hot in a claypot. Comes with fresh prawns (love that they are peeled!), and choice of ingredients. Our chosen tobiko prawn balls were juicy with enjoyable textural pops, while the thin shabu sliced pork was tender and fragrant from the soaking up of the prawn broth. If nitpicking, the main soup was a tad on the sweet and intense side so might not be for everyone.

We tried both soup and dry renditions. The soup was a lighter, clean-tasting broth with sweetness from the vegetables. While it gave a nice respite from the intense prawn broth, the latter was still the star of the show. Dry was adorned with crispy pork lard and didn’t have sauce or much flavour, but enjoyed tossing the noodles with their zesty chili powder.

Best part: they allow soup refills!

📍@oneprawnco, 458 Macpherson Road, Singapore