Exploring Chinatown Eats Part 2 @ Chinatown Complex Food Centre

"Let's go eat Ma Li Ya Virgin Chicken!" and that was how we ended unanimously with our brunch location. It was a 15 minutes walk from Parkroyal Collection Pickering. As it was raining the day before, we were glad to have better weather on the day we want to walkabout.

Chinatown Point

thank you for your hard work

lets explore Chinatown

Ann Chin Popiah

Duo Ji

We visited on a Sunday morning, smack right during breakfast time and popular stalls like The 1950s Coffee were having crazily long queues. Our table were at a far corner, and observed that most elderly seated there had this coffee with the same logo so we decided to get the same.

coffee from Tou Shou Di 

our morning fuel

Thank you Ivan for getting the chee cheong fun and the roasted meats. Thank you Hence for getting the soy sauce chicken, and thank you Tracy for getting the traditional wa kuih and drinks.

Roasted Pork Belly and Char Siew (mixture of lean and half-half ratio meat) from Fatty Ox

The char siew from Fatty Ox even when fatty, had a rather firm mouthfeel. I loved the caramelised bits on the char siew and the crackling from the pork belly.

Ann Chin Popiah @$1.60 per roll

Ann Chin Popiah was listed in 2019 Singapore Michelin Guide and has been around for ages. Packed with ingredients and tasted healthy. Inexpensive as I have encountered neighbourhood popiah stall in coffeeshops with a $2 price tag.

kopi from Tou Shou Di

The coffee from Tou Shou Di stall was likeable. Traditional coffee and 'gao' enough (and warm enough) but I think can reduce on the sweetness slightly.

It is extremely rare to come across a stall selling 碗粿, so we bought one to try. Soft, gelatinous with slightly sweetish savoury sauce that's still mild. Best eaten when still warm and with chili.

碗粿 (wa kuih)

chee cheong fun from Duo Ji

yam cake from Duo Ji

Am not sure if there are others like us who eats roasted meat and soy sauce chicken in the mornings...but I'm a fan of Maria's Signature Soy Sauce Chicken. It is so tender so good! Tried it twice and twice it delivered consistently good quality. I thought the HK Styled version was drier hence, strongly recommend the signature soy sauce chicken. The braised beancurd is pretty well done and the choice of water tofu is good with all the savoury lovely sauce.

Ma Li Ya Signature Soy Sauce Chicken @$10 for half chicken

  

Hong Kong Style Soy Sauce Chicken @$7 for half chicken

Signature Braised Beancurd @$1 per piece 

We saved the HK Style Soya Sauce chicken for teabreak, with wine. The adventure continues in next article. Watch out for the next blog post!

Fatty Ox HK Kitchen

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-84, Singapore 050335

 安珍 Ann Chin Popiah

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-112, Singapore 050335

头手弟 (Tou Shou Di)

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-114, Singapore 050335

阿公碗粿 (Ah Kong Wa Kuih)

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-116, Singapore 050335

玛俐亚处女鸡 (Ma Li Ya Virgin Chicken)

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-176, Singapore 050335

多记 (Duo Ji)

Address: 335 Smith St, Chinatown Complex Food Centre, #02-216, Singapore 050335

Exploring Chinatown Eats @ Hong Lim Market & Food Centre

As our hotel was just next door to Hong Lim Market, we braved the rain and went about looking for food. Bustling as always, the famous stalls like Ah Heng Curry Chicken, Tuck Kee (Ipoh) Sar Hor Fun, Tai Wah Pork Noodle all sported long queues.

Lucky us managed to find a seat and excited, we went on our way to scout for food.

The Old Stall Hokkien Street Famous Hokkien Prawn Mee

Decided to try the prawn noodles and the queue looked manageable. The uncle was really friendly.

Hokkien Prawn Mee with Pig Tail @$7

halved prawns

Unfortunately, am more used to the stronger broth of prawn noodles. This version tasted too mild for me. The pig's tail was nicely collageny but porky.

There are interesting eats as well and Tracy introduced us to the world of pork trotter jelly. The one with shark meat was not available hence, we had the normal one. Interesting and the accompanying dips were mild as well.

Tracy's pick - Hwee Kee's Pork Trotter Jelly 

Then, Ivan came back with fishball noodles.

Hong Xing Handmade Fishball / Meatball Noodles

mixed fishballs and meatballs

Oooh, I do like the fishballs and meatballs. It was nice and comforting on rainy days. And for finale, we had the Tuck Kee Ipoh Sar Hor Fun.

Tuck Kee (Ipoh) Sah Hor Fun

crayfish prawns hor fun @$10

Pacific clam prawns hor fun @$6

Wow, the hor fun are still as good. Smooth, slippery tasty goodness. The prawns, crayfish everything was cooked perfectly. Thank you to all the uncles and aunties at the hawker centre who are still making these good food for us!

coffee break

kopi

The coffee from Coffee Break was nice. Old school in a new school packaging.

Thank you Tracy, Hence and Ivan for all the queuings and spending!

Hong Xing Handmade Fishballs/Meatball Noddles 鸿兴

Address: 531A Upper Cross Street, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-30, Singapore 051531

Hwee Kee 辉记

Address: 531A Upper Cross Street, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-33, Singapore 051531

Coffee Break

Address: 531A Upper Cross St, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-41, Singapore 051531

Tuck Kee Ipoh Sah Ho Fun 德记怡保沙河粉

Address: 531A Upper Cross Street, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-40, Singapore 051531

The Old Stall Hokkien Street Famous Hokkien Prawn Mee (老檔著名福建街虾面) 

Address: 531A Upper Cross Street, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-67, Singapore 051531

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] Bonding Kitchen Singapore @ Orchard Gateway - Unique Modern Peranakan Experience

Located at Level 2 of Orchard Gateway, Bonding Kitchen is a new place for us to indulge in Peranakan food. With his unique brand of modern Peranakan cuisine, founder Chef Danny Chew has curated daily Set Lunches that is inclusive of some of the signature dishes, which I liked, as the concept allows the diner to sample favourites like Ayam Buah Keluak, Hokkien Lor Ark before bringing over loved ones to try the mains later on. And believe me, I have tried and will want to bring my family and friends to try more (maybe all!) of Chef Danny's dishes. For this initial experience, special thanks to Kris (@msginginly) for the invite and Chef Danny and team for hosting the dinner.

Bonding Kitchen @ Level 2 Orchard Gateway

entrance

menu

interior

The restaurant has a modern vibe to it and comfortably spaced. Loved the blue on the seats. Was ushered into the inner section where the one could enjoy the wonderful private dining experience with Chef Danny.

Bunga Telang Lemongrass Pandan (Blue Pea Flower Lemongrass drink) @$6.50++

While waiting, we started with light snacks of keropok served with piquant and zesty sambal belachan. 

Fish & Belinjau Keropok with Sambal Belacan @$4++

more please

Next up, was Ngoh Hiang appetiser. We watched Chef Danny as he proceeded to plate the Ngoh Hiang.

Ngoh Hiang @$14++

deep fried beancurd skin roll of handchopped pork, shrimps, mushrooms, water chestnut

The Ngoh Hiang, a quintessential deep fried beancurd skin roll that brought a smile to our faces. Loved the generous fillings, bits of juicy mushroom and the likeable overall flavour of this classic dish. Seasoned just right with five spice, slight bouncy texture and crisp exterior. Sauce was minimal.

Next up, we were served with a gorgeous plate of impressive looking prawns. Marinated prawns with delightfully tangy tamarind juices, and pan seared to perfection. Flavour was on-point and I was practically licking off the sauces from its shell. Zesty and savoury combo that rejuvenates the tastebuds.

Assam Ko Prawns @ $28++ to $36++

With the private dining experience, guests could interact with Chef Danny and it was really interesting to hear nuggets of information pertaining to recipe of the food that we were about to enjoy. 

Babi Pongteh in the making

And, it is heartening to see the care and effort being placed onto our meal.

Babi Pongteh @$22++

One of the classic dishes of Peranakan cuisine, besides Ayam Buah Keluak would be stalwarts like Babi Pongteh. Comparatively to the other dishes that we were having that night, this dish was more genteel in flavours when compared to the rest of the mains. Hence, recommend to try this dish first before starting the rest.

Hei Bi Hiam Shimeji Mushrooms @$12++

When I first saw the plate of Hae Bi Hiam mushrooms, I thought of how comforting this dish would be with a bowl of porridge. Tasty, and easy to eat with a touch of heat. Alas, there is no option for porridge at the moment, but do get a bowl of that wonderful looking blue pea steamed fluffy rice.

steamed fragrant rice @$1.50++

eat the way you want it

We enjoyed the pace of the food, which allowed us to fully savour one or two dishes at any point in time. Next up, was the Wagyu Beef Rendang. 

Chef Danny presents the Wagyu Beef Rendang

Wagyu Beef Buah Rendang @$32++

Australian Westholme Wagyu beef ribs, stewed with coconut milk and various herbs and spices which resulted in flavourful meat that was nicely tender while maintaining its form. The dish reminds me of serunding (beef floss) actually but dig underneath to reveal chunky pieces that goes well with rice. Or, savour it with wine. I spied the wine prices here and they are really reasonable. I'll do just that next time, and keep you guys updated. Or, you are welcome to share your experience too!

Nasi Goreng Buah Keluak @$15++

Friend tried the Buah Keluak Fried Rice and enjoyed its nutty eggy flavours. Looks kinda cool, those black grains.

My personal favourite dish of that night, was the Hokkien Lor Ark. I don't think it was due to any bias because am a Hokkien myself, but more because this dish represented itself well enough. Strong flavours, consistently tender texture, meaty plus comforting homely feels. Chef Danny revealed that this was from a family recipe and further refined. The dish uses duck leg that had undergone 1 day of marination. End result was a bowl of yumminess.

Hokkien Lor Ark @$22++

Lastly, we tried the Sotong Masak Hitam. If you think you know Sotong Masak Hitam, try this version at Bonding Kitchen. I can only say, that was one intense flavour! I believe a glass of wine would complement this well.

Sotong Masak Hitam @$20++

And, we ended the meal with icy treat chendol. Lovely fragrance from the gula melaka, and glad that it was not too sweet. Liked the softer red beans too!

Chendol @$7++

A lovely meal with lovely friends. Thank you Kris for the invite, and special thanks to Chef Danny and team Bonding Kitchen for the delicious meal.

Here is a shout-out for the Daily Set Lunch, which I think is a steal for that price. Am eyeing that buah keluak and wagyu beef rendang meal...with a glass of red. See you at Bonding Kitchen!

image credit: Bonding Kitchen

Bonding Kitchen Singapore

Address: 277 Orchard Rd, #02-18, Singapore 238858

Website: https://bondingkitchen.weebly.com/

Contact: 8860 9087

Business Hours:

Sat - Thurs:  11:30am–3pm, 5:30–10:30pm

Fri : 11:30am–3pm, 5–10:30pm