Hand In Hand Shandong Restaurant 手拉手山东菜馆 @ 69 Boat Quay

Was doing a staycation nearby, and this was one of our dinner destination. Makan kakis have patronized their Jalan Besar outlet before and this is our first time trying the Boat Quay one.

Had a reservation but the staff had mistakenly put it down as 8pm instead of the earlier timing of 630pm. Hence, there was a bit of a scramble to get us a table. Only available ones seemed to be at their third floor, which involved some steep steps climbing.

restaurant entrance

interior

ready to eat

I trust my buddies to order and we waited for the food to arrive. The food would be sent up using the food lift. And I had a good view of it, so it was always in anticipation if those were our orders.

First to land on our table, was the plate of cold appetiser of shredded cabbage with jellyfish. Hmm, first time having this and it was rather refreshing as it was vinegary and light.

Shredded Chinese Cabbage with Jellyfish @$9.80

Next, was the Peking Duck, served on a tray and looking all glistening and nice.

Peking Duck @$38.80 (half)

yummy

Next, we had a couple of baskets of dumplings but for some odd reason, the speed of serving these started to slow down. The interval between each basket of the dumplings seemed to be between 10 to 5 minutes each.

Steamed Xiao Long Bao @$6.80

Steamed Crab Roe Xiao Long Bao @$9.80

Was too hungry so the steamed xiao long baos were quickly devoured. Loved the crab roe ones. I think they are comparable to another famous brand.

Fresh Cuttlefish Dumplings @$9.50

insides of the cuttlefish dumplings

Dumplings with Chive Egg and Shrimp @$7.50

fully loaded

In total, we had waited for about close to an hour for all the dumplings and with two to three reminders to the wait staff in between.

We had chosen the duck bones to be cooked in cabbage soup and boy, that was a good choice! A huge bowl of soup was brought to our table and just the perfect dish on a cold night. It is rare for me to say but the tofu in the soup was pretty good too. The cabbage had nicely soaked up on the delicious broth and tasted sweet. The glass noodles were slurp worthy as well.

Duck Bone Stewed Cabbage with Tofu and Glass Noodles @$13.80

cabbage soup

The last to arrive was a wrong order but since it was already sent up, we ate it. It was pork shao bing (pork pancake) and, it was pretty yummy albeit a tad oily. Freshly cooked and was somewhat piping hot when served. The shao bing was crisp on its outerside yet airy when bitten into. The fillings consists of bell pepper, pork bits and green onions. Pricier but delicious nonetheless.

Old Beijing Pork Sauce Pie @$13.80

All in all, it was a good meal shared with good buddies. Cheers to our impromptu food adventures and here's to many more to come!

Hand In Hand Shandong Restaurant 手拉手山东菜馆

Address: 69 Boat Quay, Singapore 049857

Website: https://handinhandfood.com/

Contact:  6970 0226

Business Hours:

Daily 11am–3pm, 5:30–10:30pm

[Tasting] Kai Duck 嘉苑美鸭 @ Ngee Ann City

Located at Level 5 of Ngee Ann City, Kai Duck is a new modern Cantonese casual dining restaurant by Kai Garden. Its menu has creative signature dishes based on Cantonese-style Peking Duck. The outlet itself is decked in 1960's cha chaan teng (茶餐廳) decor with an upbeat modern vibe. Expect delicious contemporary Cantonese cuisine that appeals to millennial as well as baby boomers.

signage

sights that greeted diners

interior

Service was quick and friendly. The place was bustling and packed a crowd on a Friday evening. The 160-seater restaurant has 3 private dining rooms that can accommodate larger group of up to 12 pax. Reservation is advised.

Let's start with a pot of hot tea as our choice of drinks. Absolutely loved the striking blue coloured pot. Tea itself was mildly fragrant with a light taste. Forgot to ask what type of tea it was!

飲茶

Started with a plate of cold appetiser in the form of Chilled Mini Tomatoes topped with Japanese Sesame Sauce. This dish whets the appetite with its combination of sweet from the red mini tomatoes countered by the savoury from the fragrant goma sauce. There's bits of aiyu jelly for additional texture contrast.

Chilled Mini Tomatoes topped with Japanese Sesame Sauce @$10.80

Then, we had the pan-fried carrot cake from their dim sum menu. Can taste bits of lap cheong 腊肠, dried shrimps 虾米 and slivers of radish in the lo bak gou (萝卜糕). Was that chili sauce that was drizzled all over? Hehee.

Pan Fried Carrot Cake @$13.80

You know, very often we only get to eat Peking Duck if it was a big family outing like Chinese New Year or grandma's birthday, or with big group of friends. Now, we can feast on the crispy crunchy goodness of Peking Duck without having to order the entire fowl at Kai Duck.

Let's see what Chef Fung, owner and Group Executive Chef, has in mind for us diners with Kai Duck's featured signature dishes; Sliced Peking Duck with Crackers, Mini Burger with Peking Duck Salad, Crispy Bun with Sliced Peking Duck and Peking Duck Handroll.

Sliced Peking Duck with Crackers @$4.80 (min. 4 pieces)

Mini Burger with Peking Duck Salad @$9.80

Crispy Bun with Sliced Peking Duck @$4.80 (min. 4 pieces)

Peking Duck Handroll @$4.80

I was impressed by the Peking Duck skin. Glistening, golden and crispy all the way, even after many shots of photo-taking prior. Amazing.

Unlike traditional Peking style of baking the duck with fire, at Kai Duck, the duck skin is prepared by using the Cantonese method of drizzling the duck with oil after baking. Expect a good mouthfeel from the duck oil for the paper-thin skin that crackled with each bite. I loved how the crispy skin was further enhanced by the pairing of cracker, deep fried bun/mini burger, as well as the crispy popiah skin in the handroll.

The Sliced Peking Duck with Crackers was refreshing with a slice of cucumber and tangy sauce, and the crispy texture further enhanced by the tasty corn cracker. The Mini Burger with Peking Duck Salad felt more substantial with the inclusion of duck meat. Thought the salad was a bit like coleslaw. It was funny, as we thought the crispy bun looked like luncheon meat. The Crispy Bun with Sliced Peking Duck was crispy duck skin, with cream cheese and extra crispy flattened mantou. There was a bit of sweetness from the handmade mantou bun too.

My favourite signature dish would be the Peking Duck Handroll. I loved the extra crunch from the popiah skin, the sweet savoury sesame sauce that coated the duck meat and the cucumber slices for extra freshness in taste. Yummy. 好食！

Stir Fried Hong Kong Cai Xin with Pork and Preserved Vegetables @$15.80

We didn't forget our vegetables and the plate of greens in the form of crunchy cai xin topped with the preserved vegetables was a good interlude. This dish goes well with rice and speaking of which, I'd recommend you to try their Signature Fried Rice with Black Truffle Mushroom and Beetroot, served in a hot stone pot.

Signature Fried Rice with Black Truffle Mushroom and Beetroot @$16.80

As soon as this was served, we were greeted with a strong whiff of truffle aroma. It looked pretty with all the puffed rice topping which was hiding the pinkish-purple grains below. What could this be like? How will it taste? Thoughts started to run wild and anticipation builds.

The service staff will mix the rice for the table. Loved the colour and can't wait to taste.

delicious signature fried rice

It was love at first bite. Savoury, flavourful and with crispy bits and the tiny diced mushrooms and sweet corn. Maximum enjoyment even when it was meatless. Recommended!

Chase this with some hot soup and we tried the Poached Patin Fish Soup with Chinese Wine. The wild caught patin fish is delivered twice weekly from Sarawak and each fish weighs about 5kg. This fresh water fish is also known as '水果鱼', loosely translated as 'fruit fish' because it loves to feed on the fruits around the river. Rich in collagen and fish oil.

Poached Patin Fish Soup with Chinese Wine @$38

full of goodness

The soup has a wholesome rich taste accentuated by the mild flavours of ginger, yam and chinese wine. The pot is meant for 4 pax but I want more soup! For fish lovers, especially those who loves fish oil, then this pot can also be shared amongst two pax. Just give me a bowl of rice to go along with this for a happy meal.

If you don't fancy fish, how about trying some Crisp-Fried Fish, Prawn and Crab with Black Truffle Sauce?

 Crisp-Fried Fish, Prawn and Crab with Black Truffle Sauce @$16 (min. 4 pieces)

Loved the yellow hue and the cereal coated batter. The Black Truffle Sauce has strong flavours, so a dab will do.

cheers to good food, good friends

Thank you Kris for extending the invite and May, Kai Duck for hosting the dinner. Kudos to Chef Cheung and his team for the delicious food. Special thanks to the service crew who attended to our table.

Kai Duck 嘉苑美鸭

Location: 391 Orchard Road, #05-10/11, Ngee Ann City, Singapore 238872
Website: http://kaiduck.com.sg/
Contact: +65 6235 5419
Business Hours:
Monday to Fridays:
11.30am to 4.30pm* (last order at 4.30pm);
5.00pm to 10.30pm (last order at 10.00pm).

Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays:
10.00am to 4.30pm*
5.00pm to 10.30pm


*Dim Sum available

Restaurant HOME @ The Rail Mall

Located at The Rail Mall, Upper Bukit Timah Road. Usual route to get there would be via bus #67 from Choa Chu Kang bus interchange. The bus stop is right infront of The Rail Mall, so it could still be conveniently accessible.

HOME by award winning and celebrity Chef Tan Yong Hua

A slight rain prior but the clouds cleared just as we approached the appointed dinner time.There's a classy homely feel to the place.

table setting

chinese tea

Started with HOME's signature, the Peking Duck Barbecued with Lychee Wood. The table was served with the duck's crispy skin, to be dipped in sugar. Cracklingly crispy. A delicacy.

crispy skin

sugar dip

After which, one gets to wrap the thin sliced meat with the flour crepe. The sauce here is not overly salty, so one could dip plenty.

Peking Duck Barbecued with Lychee Wood ($38++ half/$68++ whole)

place all together

Peking duck wrap

The second serving (of the bones and remaining bits of meat) of the Peking duck was then deep fried with dried chili, roasted minced garlic and capsicum pepper fine salt. The appearance of this dish is close to the one that I had in Duck King (鸭王) Beijing.

deep fried duck with dried chili, roasted minced garlic and capsicum pepper fine salt @$10++

The next signature dish was the Baked Soon Hock in Claypot. Pricing is based on weight @$9/100gms.

baked fish in claypot

Fish was fresh, firm and sweet. Chef Tan shared that to make a good claypot fish dish, the size matters. Fish ought to be at least 1kg. A splendid, simple dish.

soon hock fish

Next up, Homemade Egg Bean curd with Shrimp Paste, Crabmeat and Roe in Pi Pa Style. It must've been quite a big spoon to make such a big piece of pipa styled beancurd.

Homemade Egg Bean Curd with Shrimp Paste, Crabmeat and Roe in Pi Pa Style

Loved the striking golden colour. Served piping hot, with plenty of sauce. Deepfried beancurd that tasted so good.

crabmeat, shrimp paste, beancurd

Next dish was the Stewed Golden Noodles with Lobster and Spring Onions wrapped in O Ba leaves.

Lobster in O Ba leaves

The noodles were requested to be specifically made using Chef Tan's recipe. The result? Springy, egg noodles without the alkaline taste. It tasted as though it was tossed simply with sesame oil, and light soy sauce. Very yums.

Lunch Sets

Next we sampled Restaurant HOME's lunch sets. In the lunch set, one gets a soup of the day, a dessert and a noodle dish. Price ranges from $20++ upwards.

The soup of the day happened to be Boiled Dried Vegetables with Candied Dates, Wolfberry and Pork. A soothing kind of soup that reduces heatiness.

Soup of the Day

Noodle choices include Crispy Roast Pork, Barbequed Duck, Honey Glazed BBQ Pork Loin (char siew) served with yellow noodles.

The plates pictured below, were of tasting size. The actual serving size for example, one gets a quarter of a duck for the BBQ Duck with Lychee Wood set lunch @$24++ per pax.

barbequed duck with lychee wood served with homemade yellow noodles

crispy roast pork with homemade yellow noodle

Or, one could try the homemade Ramen with 8 Head Quality Amidori Abalone (fresh).

homemade ramen with 8 head abalone

After so much meat, the Chilled Rosella Flower Jelly with Diced Mango was a welcomed change.

Chilled Rosella Flower Jelly with diced Mango

For those working nearby, the lunch sets will surely satisfy the big eaters. Or, share it with someone.

Special thanks to media personality, Chef Tan Yong Hua whom is also the Director-Executive Chef of Restaurant HOME (家). A humble and affable man, whom patiently answered our queries, shared tips and his philosophy on food.

Thank you too, to my fellow blogger friend, Hence for this session.

Restaurant HOME

Location: No. 394, Upper Bukit Timah Road, S678046
Contact number: 6465 1698
Website: www.restauranthome.com.sg