Chinese

Parkway outlet: 5th review! Back once again @putien_sg, def anchored as my most frequented Chi restaurant 😂 Food here is consistently good, rare few places that actually improves on their dishes. 👍Previous review: 16Apr
🍳
Rating: 8.2/10
🍳
Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes
🍳
Pros: Good service. Even during peak hours they are able to maintain standard of food. Yellow croaker was beautifully done this time 👍Crowd favorites were the clams & fish, but my fav was the yam duck.
🍳
Cons: Quantity of ingredients getting lesser. Look at the soup! What used to be covered with floating meatballs is now reduced to this. Will not recommend the fish soup (not pictured) for the same reason as well.
🍳
Price: S$78.40 (aft $30 discount, complimentary fish & desserts x3) - 3pax, stuffed, did not finish bee hoon

Parkway outlet: My most frequented Chinese restaurant @putien_sg 😂 I like it because their food is very clean tasting & dependable. This is my least fav outlet though, Kitchener is the best, followed by NEX. Very stingy with ingredient quantity, meat dumplings considerably lesser here. Fish was really fishy (not fresh) & many bones.

Price: S$107.30 - 3pax, just nice, but could do without the fish

AMK outlet: @mellbensignature is a long-standing & well-known place for crabs without the fuss of a fancy restaurant setting. They were really killin' it years back, but now it just doesn't have that satisfactory value attached to it. Still good though!

Rating: 8/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Really tasty 😍 Love the crab bee hoon soup! Crab meat is very sweet. Green dragon veg yummy but overpriced @ $15 😒 Sambal lala sauce nice, not very spicy - but i think true sambal lovers will be disappointed.

Cons: MSG is too much. Long queues during dinner time (only AMK). Standard is dropping & inconsistent among diff outlets. Taste-wise, AMK is my fav. Cannot stand the majority of their staffs attitude. "Seafood" restaurant, but only left with lala & crabs for shelled seafood?! 😅 Lala isn't fresh. I'm pretty certain crab weight is less than what they claim (my uncle used to sell crabs so quite familiar), but as usual, just have to suck it up if i’m gonna dine there 😃

Price: S$138.03

Long-standing tze char (煮炒) shop tucked away in a cosy corner of Kembangan. Apparently famous for their black chicken herbal soup which i've not tried as it's forever sold out 😖 & to think i've been visiting for over 5 years! Another strong contender is their herbal soup pork mee sua.

Rating: 7.8/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Most stuff i've tried is good tze char standard 👍 Lovin' the vibe here, which you can seldom find in SG. Ample parking around the estate, the temple across is free. Closes at 4am! Fav dishes - Prawn paste chicken, pig trotter vinegar, green dragon veg, JB bee hoon (request to fry blacker. Still prefer Canopy cafe)

Cons: Crowded. Chaotic during peak hours & may be hard to get seats for large groups. Ingredients doesn't seem very fresh. Mee sua soup is comfort in a bowl, but i'm not really a fan of it, taste-wise. Worst dishes - Signature tofu, salad you tiao

Price: S$27 - fish, JB bee hoon

NEX branch: 2nd review of @putien_sg . Today i finally complained about the fish soup & qty of bones, ridiculously stingy amount of meat to bones ratio (20/80) for $32.90++? I've been dining here for so long & this being one of my top dishes, i would know how it first was. Good service recovery though but no more meaty fish soups forever 😔 In future, if i want it meaty, will have to order a grouper & request the same soup instead. Fav outlet is still at Kitchener Rd, i feel the quality is a tiny notch higher (heard the head chef is stationed there too)

Rating: 8/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Servers are personable. Know how to handle complains with good service recovery. Food is generally quite safe here. Consistent taste. No MSG. Seemingly healthier. You must try the bee hoon.

Cons: For a chi restaurant, menu is somewhat limited. Price increased but getting stingy with quantity. The small bee hoon had only 4 clams 2 tiny prawns, i counted 😂 Fish soup used to be chunks of meat, little bones; but with each renewed vist, increasingly more bones (the junk kinds like head/spine with little meat). Not everything is worth ordering imo such as: pork ribs, sea cucumber, bean curd soup, fish soup, yam duck, squirrel fish.

Price: S$63.75 - fish soup, fried century egg, bee hoon, soursop juice

Had dim sum @jiaweirest & plesantly surprised they have a really good promo of 40/50% discount till end April 😃 But food & service was a disappointment. If not for the promo, i would have been so annoyed with myself for spending money here.

Rating: 6.8/10

Will i return/recommend: No/No

Pros: Restaurant is cosy & great for lunch meetings. Quality is slightly higher than most chain restaurants. Food posted with individual photos were not bad - espc noodles.

Cons: Small restaurant but staff unable to cope. SUPER LONG WAIT, over 30mins for 1st dish & 15mins for nx dish. Limited menu. Lousy food for hotel restaurant. Very very average.

Price: S$58.85 (after -40%) org. est $90

Suntec branch: When i don't have any particular cravings, will just go for Chinese cuisine 😃 While dining @crystaljadesg , you know that most dishes will uphold certain standards. I would say this place is generally alright, a safe choice to bring overseas guests, outing with family, business meals etc... but in terms of price v.s value def not high on the list for me. I found it *pretty* ex for a porridge meal. I think TPY branch has dinner set meals which are very worth it though (can't confirm if still avail)

Rating: 7.8/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Prompt service. Their cantonese porridge was so creamy 😍 Roast meats were much better than expected. The roasted pork belly had crisp skin, very meaty & surprisingly minimal fats. The char siew also minimal fats, which is what i prefer. Not dry and very flavoursome (but salty)

Cons: Hot & sour seafood soup was overpriced & pathetic - "seafood" more like half a diced shrimp in a tiny bowl. Roasted meats not hot but served at room temp. Porridge quite salty, do taste prior to adding sauce. Fish skin was so-so, rather buy @tgdsingapore 's version 😂

Price: S$73.45 for everything pictured

Compass One outlet: For a chain restaurant, i find that @royallondonduck offers really good meats 👍 Even though i've only tried them twice (diff outlet), but have exceeded expectations on both occasions. Packed this home & it was still good, even couple of hours later. Previous review 24Mar.
🌸
Rating: 8/10
🌸
Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes
🌸
Pros: Nett prices for this outlet. Helpful & friendly auntie staffs. Well-executed meats. Even though nobody really cares about plain rice, but it was fragrant and of good quality. Quite generous serving.
🌸
Cons: Was a takeaway, none.
🌸
Price: S$8.80 - duck with char siew rice

Fried porridge!! In short - i liked it! Many ppl says no wok hei flavour, it's true... but for this dish, i don't expect any wok hei so it's good. If i have to q or make a considerable effort to go there, then it's not really worth it. First came to know of this place through @justinfoodprints
🍜
Rating: 7.3/10
🍜
Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes
🍜
Pros: Tastes awesome! Generous for single portion.
🍜
Cons: Quite salty. Texture similar to mushy yam paste/carrot cake - like eating gloop. Drifts between nice & weird. Very little shredded chicken.
🍜
Price: S$6

Kovan branch: Long-time "classic" that was so popular (& still is) when they first started. Have been dropping by good ol' Xin Wang HK cafe from time to time over the years. What i like about them is that not only does their food keep improving, they often tweak their menus (for the better) & repackaging themselves, presenting a fresh new look.

Rating: 7.9/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Pretty safe to go with most menu items. They serve a wide range that will please both young and old alike. Good place to bring elderly parents for a casual meal. Western, chinese, desserts, toasts, drinks, snacks etc... Free WIFI & opens till late! 2am for Kovan's outlet. Fav dishes: Papaya beehoon soup, claypot porridge, cheese baked spaghetti

Cons: Growing up in HK, the dim sum served here is a big fail. Only the mango prawn beancurd skin is nice. It's not authentic HK cafe food (most ppl knows that). Noisy, crowded. Ladies (& guys too) do bring a sweater as the a/c is strong!

Price: S$39.08 for everything pictured

The late night dim sum place. Was at Mustafa & dropped by just because. Been here 5 times over the years, left disappointed each time. Not a fan & much prefer 126. Always a crazy long queue during dinner and people all through the night. Perhaps i'm missing smth.

Rating: 5/10

Will i return/recommend: No/No (not worth the calories imo)

Pros: Wide variety. They have dim sum, la mian, soups, desserts, cooked food. Good vibe for supper. Fav dish: Mee sua kueh

Cons: Someone please teach me what to order! I don't get it, am i ordering all the wrong stuff? Food is subpar, for all the hype/attention/love it's been receiving over the years...😔 Soya milk extremely sweet.

Price: S$13.25 for everything pictured

Hougang mall branch: Never a fan of bak kut teh due to the often dry meats and terribly oily soups. Settled for this place as Soup restaurant had a queue. Was plesantly surprised by it!

Rating: 7.9/10

Will i return/recommend: Yes/Yes

Pros: Efficient staffs. The soup has really nice flavour but too peppery for me, pork ribs were meaty not just scrawny bones. It was really tender as well. Enjoyed all the dishes i had - pork ribs soup, preserved veg, braised pork rice.

Cons: Nothing fancy here

Price: S$18.50 for everything shown, there was 1-for-1 promo for pork rib soup