Best Chinese Restaurants in Singapore 2016

Following the success of its first outlet at Laguna Village, Diamond Kitchen has opened a larger, more spacious outlet in the West. The slightly inaccessible location hasn’t stopped regulars from returning (the sprawling 300-seater is located on the first floor of Science Park), and reservations are a must on weekends as the place is usually fully packed. Unlike its Laguna Village outlet, the Science Park outlet dishes out quick and affordable one dish meals for the office workers during the day, and the full works during dinner. Zoom in on popular items like the Gan Xiang Fried Rice (from $11) and the finger-licking good Salted Egg Yolk Crab ($68/kg). As part of their third anniversary celebration, the Science Park outlet has an exclusive menu that features the same Gan Xiang spice cooked with Bee Hoon ($25). Another exclusive item worth splurging on is the impressive Diamond Sauna Treasures ($188 or $368). The latter is a massive dim sum basket filled with a bed of hot stones, topped with Boston lobsters, snow crab legs, prawns, scallops and more. It's said that the steam from the hot stones helps to create a "sauna bath" — bringing out the natural sweetness of each seafood!
Avg Price: $35 per person
Photo by Burpple Tastemaker Justin Teo

This family-run restaurant in Forum the Shopping Mall serves a variety of set meals that are great for hosting business associates. Using only quality ingredients like Alaskan crab, Soon Hock fish and South African abalones, the meal is bound to impress your dining partners. The Lobster and Dim Sum Set ($38) is very value for money, featuring three kinds of dim sum, a delightful double boiled soup, roasted duck and soya chicken, stewed lobster noodles and a dessert. Aside from set meals, the Beef Brisket Noodle ($12.80) is also worth ordering for its tender to bite beef chunks, and get the Steamed Malay Cake ($4) for a sweet fix. For drinks, the restaurant prides itself on wine pairing, evident with their racks of wine around the restaurant. Just ask the friendly in-house sommelier for recommendations. Pro tip: Feel free to BYO. There’s no corkage fee here!
Avg Price: $40 per person
Photo by Burppler Jayne Tan

Located in the heart of Chinatown and just a two-minute walk from Chinatown MRT Station, this four-storey restaurant is perfect for accommodating the whole extended family for a meal. Prices are affordable, portions are big and flavours are consistently good. Follow Burpple Tastemaker Felicia Sim's lead and order the Roasted Peking Duck ($58) to share. After savouring the beautifully lacquered skin, the remaining meat can be cooked with either rice or noodles as the main (she does not recommend frying the duck meat with salt and pepper as it loses its sweetness). If you can stomach more, the gravy-slicked Lala Beehoon (from $28) is worth a try, or get their signature Popiah ($7.50) to share. It is a massive pillow stuffed full with ingredients that make it well worth every penny. End the meal with the crowd favourite Yam Paste with Gingko Nut (from $26).
Avg Price: $30 per person
Photo by Burpple Tastemaker Felicia Sim

On weekends and public holidays, this contemporary restaurant in the heart of Orchard serves up a decadent dim sum brunch ($68). The menu offers unlimited servings of over 40 selections of dim sum along with wok and seafood dishes — knock yourself out with items ranging from the classic (think shrimp dumplings and char siew buns) to the creative, like escargot cheese puffs and black pepper cod fish dumplings. Be sure not to miss Mitzo's much loved special barbecue pork. It comes perfectly charred with a slightly crystallised exterior and tender meat that's just the right amount of lean and fat... yum! End your meal with a delightful Hokkaido milk cheese tart. Pro tip: If you intend to make an afternoon of this, top up $60 per person for free flow of cocktails, champagne, wines and beer.
Avg Price: $70 per person
Photo by Burpple Tastemaker Justin Teo

With more than 30 years of experience under his belt, renowned Chef Tonny Chan helms the kitchen at Tonny Restaurant just a six-minute walk away from Kallang MRT Station. Expect innovative items using quality ingredients, like the Crispy Yam with Truffle Oil ($16) — a pile of thinly shredded yam drizzled with truffle oil, or the tummy-warming Double Boiled Black Chicken Soup ($32) with almond milk. The crown jewel however, is the award-winning Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon ($9) — a pool of silky smooth scallops and egg white held together in a crispy wonton skin shell. Then, load up on carbs with the Braised Pork Hock with Mee Hoon ($20). This sinfully satisfying dish of stewed trotters and fried lard sit atop a hill of mee hoon that feeds two comfortably. Pro tip: Book a table via his website and get one of four of his signature dishes at half price (only one item per table).
Avg Price: $35 per person
Photo by Burppler Caecilia Caecilia

When it comes to eating at this Sunset Way restaurant, it’s best to pre-plan your orders the night before making reservations as most of their popular items require advance notice. Start your meal with the Brinjal with Salted Egg Yolk Sauce ($8) — golden medallions coated with a dry salted egg yolk sauce that are crispy on the outside and dreamily creamy on the inside. If you’re in a group of 10 or more, share the Pig Stomach Black Chicken Soup ($98, order one day in advance). The service staff will snip open the puffed up pig stomach with a pair of scissors tableside, revealing a stuffed whole black chicken. The soup itself is peppery, super tasty and definitely worth having seconds! The Champagne Ribs ($6.90 per piece) here are also thick, very meaty and slathered with a finger-licking good glaze that will keep you busy for a while.
Avg Price: $20 per person
Photo by Burppler Hwans Lim

It's uncustomary to speak of dessert at the start of a meal, but we can't help ourselves — Yàn's Chilled Mango Cream ($12) is THAT good. It comes served in a coconut, with vanilla ice cream and oats that give a welcome crunch to the silky smooth cream, and a bonus of coconut flesh to scoop out! Sweets aside, this chic restaurant (perfect for a lunch catchup with mom) at The National Gallery does a mean Peking Duck ($40 for half) with homemade crepes. The glistening skin nails the fine line between crisp and fat, and the delicate crepe barely holds everything together. The second course ($10 for half) sees the duck meat fried in black bean sauce and tossed in chilli powder, and is deliciously savoury with just the right hint of heat. You won't go wrong with the roast meats here — the Roast Crispy Chicken (from $23 for half) is a favourite with the Burpple community. For a refreshing approach, opt for the Omakase Lunch option ($60 for six courses) and let the chef dictate your meal. Pro tip: Get an order of their Steamed Custard Bun filled with Salted Egg Yolk ($6 for three pieces) and request for it to be deep fried instead. It is stunning.
Avg Price: $60 per person
Photo by Burppler SG Food on Foot

What started out as a no frills eatery along Kitchener Road 16 years ago has now become a one-Michelin-starred restaurant. Putien, whose ancestry traces back to its namesake city Putian in China, specialises in Heng Hwa dishes that are incredibly tasty, consistently good and MSG-free — a reliable choice for dinner with the grandparents. Start with the Stir Fried Yam (from $12.90) — golden pillows of mashed yam encased in a thin deep-fried crust, before tucking into the crowd favourite Fried Heng Hwa Bee Hoon (from $8.90). The latter uses sundried vermicelli milled by hand in Putian, manually dried under the sun and cooked for hours with pork bone broth, resulting in translucent, fine bee hoon that is silky soft and unbelievably flavourful. Another popular dish is the Putien Style “Bian Rou” Soup with Vinegar (from $13.90) — little dough pouches of pork wrapped in smooth wonton skin that you can’t stop at just one! It’s not just the delicious food that has earned Putien loyal patrons — service is speedy and the servers are mercifully attentive to water requests.
Avg Price: $25 per person
Photo by Burppler Keropok Man

Situated within The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore, this classy restaurant is one for special family celebrations. Dress up for the plush interiors (check out their gorgeous tableware!) and elegant vibes. Prices are on the high side, but the food makes it worth the burn. Warm up tummies with the Double-Boiled Fish Bone Soup ($42 per person) with fish maw and wolfberries — it is impossibly comforting. Next, bite into the Pan-fried Japanese Wagyu Beef, Wild Mushroom ($60 per 100g), a wok hei-laden marriage of earthy mushrooms and wagyu beef cubes. No Cantonese meal is complete without fish, so get the Sautéed Dong Xing Grouper Fillet ($16 per 100g), which comes slicked in soy sauce. Add the shredded sweet peas and bean sprouts ($3 extra) for some crunch. For carbs, you'll do right with either the Poached Rice, Lobster Meat ($20 per person), which comes with a super tasty superior stock, or the Poached Special Fish Noodles, Mini Lobster Meat ($16 per person) — the bouncy, homemade fish noodles are amazing.
Avg Price: $100 per person
Photo by Burppler Ivan Teh

This fuss-free restaurant along Maude Road serves home-style Chinese dishes that your family would love to tuck into, regardless of the occasion. Seating is limited, so it's best to make reservations. Always start the meal with the Crispy Lotus with Salted Egg (from $11.90), addictive, crunchy lotus root chips coated with salted egg yolk. Get the tasty Pan Fried Kurobuta Pork (from $14.90) to share before moving on to the star of the show — the Signature Lobster Porridge ($31.90 per 100g). Its deeply comforting and flavourful porridge broth is naturally sweetened with lobster meat!
Avg Price: $50 per person
Photo by Burppler Dixon Chan

Situated within the 170-year-old Chui Huay Lim Club on Keng Lee Road, one of the oldest dialect clubs in Singapore, this expansive restaurant serves authentic, flavourful Teochew dishes that both young and old enjoy. It’s a good idea to make reservations at least one week in advance — the 4,000 square foot restaurant is often bought out for wedding banquets and private events, especially on weekends. You must start the meal with their Deep Fried Ngoh Hiang Rolls ($10) before moving on to perennial Teochew favourites like the Teochew Pig Trotters Jelly ($10) and the crispy Teochew Style Roasted Suckling Pig ($198, order three days in advance). Chui Huay Lim is one of the few restaurants that serve excellent goose meat, so be sure to include the Teochew Braised Goose (from $26) in your order. Don’t leave without having the Orh Nee ($4.50 per portion), a dessert topped with ginko nuts and pumpkin that you’ll see on almost every table in the restaurant (if they're not having Orh Nee, then they're having the Tau Suan, which is just as good).
Avg Price: $50 per person
Photo by Burppler Nic Lives to Eat

The crown jewel of HillV2 is Joyden Canton Kitchen, a modern Chinese restaurant that dishes out exceptionally good Cantonese dishes. Dishes arrive fast and the service staff are quick on their feet, which makes this place a great option for a quick lunch or that once-a-week family dinner everyone convenes for. You won’t go wrong with the Joyden Signature Soy Sauce Chicken (from $13) — slightly unconventional to order since there’s roast duck on the menu as well, but the tender slices of well-marinated chicken here are hard to beat. Another crowd favourite is the Signature Fish Maw and Prawns with Glass Noodles ($21), cooked in an umami-rich homemade XO sauce before it is served in a claypot. The portion runs small if you’re intending to share in a group, but feeds one comfortably.
Avg Price: $30 per person
Photo by Burppler Hilary See