Xin Cuisine - Nice and Interesting Dim Sum

This year, I do not intend to write lots of posts for this site since I had kind of foreseen that I will not be visiting new restaurants within the year plus the plan to focus on my other writing projects. But guess what, here I am writing about another restaurant! This is where those vouchers get me to: checking out new restaurants. And when the food at the restaurant is good, I feel obliged to write about it.

While the interior is of nice modern Chinese theme, Xin Cuisine mainly wins me over with its selection of interesting and unique dim sum items, especially those under Sunday Special.

One of the highlights is Seafood Dumpling with Pumpkin Paste. This is a very interesting dim sum in which the tasty meat filling, completed with juices like what is found in Xiao Long Bao, is wrapped within a thin layer of deep fried pumpkin paste. The exterior of the pumpkin paste is very crispy, contrasting so well with the moist filling. And the earthly sweetness of pumkpin adds dimension to the saltiness of the meat. I like this creation a lot.

Highly recommend the Steamed Shrimp Paste Ball with Marinated Glutinous Rice and Chinese Wine. Yes, this is one of the Sunday Specials. I like the unique texture of the glutinous rice coating the shrimp ball. And one bite into this, one can immediately catch whiffs of the light floral aroma of Chinese wine. The shrimp is fresh, tasty and springy in texture. This is my favourite among Xin’s offerings because it is so unique.

Shrimp Dumping with Fish Roe, more commonly known as Siew Mai, is packed with lots of ingredients such as fish roe and prawns, so this staple dim sum is a good choice to consider. I am expecting Xin’s Sweet, Sour and Spicy Dumpings to be like those spicy dumplings soaked in vinegar and served with chopped spring onion and chillies. Alas, I am wrong. But smooth texture of the dumping skin and generous meat filling make this a pretty nice treat.

Pan-fried Pork Bun aka Gou Bu Li is another must order. The bun is so fluffy and its surface is slightly pan-fried to bring out the flavour of the dough. The meat filling is very flavourful and juicy.

Stir-fried Radish Cake in X.O sauce here is spicer than its counterparts in other restaurants, and I like it, surprisingly as I am generally not really into real spicy food.

Yam Dumpling with Chicken and Mushroom looks really pretty and I enjoy savouring the crispy exterior that shatters at a light bite. But I will like it more if the yam coating is thinner since too much sticky yam eclipses the taste of the filling.

Service is pretty much the same as the standard of most Chinese restaurants, efficient and the aunties are friendly.

With so many interesting dim sum items that I have yet tried, I am really looking forward to go back and check them out.

My Thoughts: Nice!

Nearest car park: Holiday Inn Atrium's car park
Nearest MRT: Tiong Bahru or Chinatown

#04-00 Holiday Inn Atrium
317 Outram Road
Singapore
Contact No: 6731 7173

Baba Chews - Interesting Combination of Peranakan Cuisine and Bar Concept

If not for vouchers my companion got as a member of Gourmet Collection, I never know what I had missed out in Katong! It is a place that is full of character, dotted with heritage buildings and shophouses, whose neon lights add bright colours to the night there. I really enjoy the sights there while on the way to Baba Chews. Though Katong Square, which is right beside Hotel Indigo, is pretty quiet in a Thursday night, it is bustling with life on Friday night. And as a result, lots of people patronize this restaurant during this time.

This restaurant fits exactly right in place in the heart of Katong due to its bar concept that is the perfect accompaniment to the busy night life of its surroundings. And serving Straits cuisine, unique to this region, feels so right in this place of nostalgia. The interior is pretty dark, illuminated by yellow lights, atypical of restaurant bar. Actually, this is a pretty romantic place since it is dim and is yet not noisy. The blood-red chairs add a splash of modernity and boldness to the whole place. The paper table mat with florid designs is like the cherry on top to add an extra touch of Peranakan influence.

The nicely presented Five Spice Ngoh Hiang is a good starter to start the meal with. The beancurd skin is incredibly thin, to the point that I hardly feel it breaking apart when I sink my teeth into it. The meat filling is bursting with lots of very subtle flavours that complement each other perfectly, making it hard to pinpoint on any particular flavour that stands out more. Actually, this is part of the charm of Peranakan cuisine. One can tell from the taste that lots of work and spices are put into the food. And what’s more, this is not oily.

As for the Otah, while the main star of this dish, the spicy fish mousse, is packed with flavours of tumeric, blue ginger, candlenut, shallot, etc and is of the right spiciness—slightly spicy for the kick but not overwhelming so numbing the senses, the accompanying prawn and otah siew mai steals the show. The tasty whole prawn stuffed into the dumpling skin is succulent and is coated with a light sauce that renders smooth texture and adds extra moisture to the filling. This is most dainty and one of the best siew mai I have.

Iberico Pork Ribs Pongteh is amazingly tender. Just use the fork or spoon to gently pull the meat away from the bone to yield a huge chuck of tasty meat! Despite its less than appealing appearance, the fermented soy sauce actually goes very well with the meat. It achieves the delicate balance between saltiness and sweetness.

Crabmeat X.O. Fried Rice is fantastic! Stir-fried with real crabmeat, it has the light taste of the sea. But it will be better if there are big chucks of crabmeat added. Yes, I am being greedy!

Chap Chye is mixed vegetable stew. Like other dishes of Straits cuisine, it features a myriad of flavours, but I find this dish more of ordering for the sake of getting vegetables into the diet rather than being exceptional on its own.

Ondeh Ondeh Cake is a nice choice to end the meal with since it is not like one can find such cake everywhere. In fact, I have been wanting to try Ondeh Ondeh cake since hearing about the one at Malayan Council. So I do not hesitate to order this dessert. The caramel goodness of palm sugar goes so well with the soft, fluffy, moist pandan sponge and coconut shavings, which is smoother in texture than shredded coconut, on top of the light cream. If only the aroma of pandan is stronger, but I am still loving this cake.

Service is pretty good. The service crew is very friendly.

While I have not tried Peranakan food in many different establishments, for now, this restaurant is definitely my top choice to satisfy cravings for Straits cuisine. Not to mention I like its ambience a lot.

My Thoughts: Yummy!

Nearest car park: Katong Square’s car park
Nearest MRT: Eunos

86E East Coast Road
Katong Square
Singapore: 6723 2025

Yummy Recipes - Splendour and Grandeur in ... Hougang

Imagine a restaurant that has the space, splendour and grandeur of a Chinese Palace right in the heart of Hougang. Yes, it is unbelievable, but there is really such place in the form of Yummy Recipes. Located at one end of Defu Lane, an industrial park area, I am immediately blown away by the grand white stone stairs decorated with traditional Chinese sculptures and flanked by lush foliage.

More feast for the eyes—and reasons to go camera-crazy—when one arrives at the impressive entrance that features, yes, more sculptures and large heavy wooden doors completed with golden fittings.

And this restaurant has lots of beautiful, intricate lanterns hanging from the ceiling, brightening up the whole place. Parts of the walls are decorated with white painted wooden lattices with golden motifs while the plush chairs all have ornate golden designs on them. The setting of this restaurant is the definition of Chinese opulence.

Double Prosperity Baby Kailan is one of this place’s specialty, and I say this is a must-try due to the novelty of deep fried Kailan. The thin slivers of crispy kailan, with salted deep fried white baits added for dashes of saltiness, is a joy to munch on because of its unique texture. The accompanying stir fried kailan is good also due to the tender but crunchy texture and the slices of garlic added for the extra oomph.

Signature Chicken is very flavourful due to the thick somewhat sweet sauce coating the drumsticks and wings. But this dish does seem ordinary as compared to the kailan since it has nothing special going for it.

Ee fu noodles with crabmeat is cooked just right: smooth texture, flavours thoroughly seep into the noodles and not soggy. It looks like it is meant for three persons, but two of us manage to finish it as it is so favourful. But I feel the crabmeat is bland and does not add much to the dish. Need to find out if there is another more wallet-friendly version of ee fu noodles that does not have crab meat.

Service is decent, and the managers are very friendly and professional.

I think this restaurant is a wonderful choice for gatherings or to impress because the ambience here is unparalleled and the food is good.

My Thoughts: Wow, Nice!

Nearest car park: Car parking compounds within 87 Defu Lane Building
Nearest MRT: Kovan. Enter the building compound through the gate at the side facing the main road.

87 Defu Lane 10
#02-01
Singapore
Contact No: 63431818