Zamas (Circular Road)

Mention River Valley and one of the most prominent F&B establishments that is located there would likely include ZAMAS River Valley Restaurant — a mamak-style establishment that had been operating in the said neighbourhood for quite some time now at least. While they do have quite a following at that location especially towards the later part of the day. Considering the popularity it has gained over years, it seems that ZAMAS had gained some confidence in opening its second outlet — this time round at Boat Quay. Located at 83 Circular Road, ZAMAS Boat Quay takes over the former premises of the now-defunct Thaitanium Thai Restaurant — the shophouse unit being rather large and is one that is located near the junction where Lorong Telok meets Circular Road. ZAMAS Boat Quay is rather noticeable from afar — the well-lit ZAMAS signage on the floor outside of the restaurant being pretty much the most prominent landmark for the dining establishment. Inside, the space sees some parts of it walls painted with murals either with the restaurant’s name, or with the skyline of Marina Bay Sands — the tables coming with a Formica-esque pattern but featuring black background and white lines, while the entire establishment takes on an almost monochromatic look save for the dining chairs that features wooden accents. The menu at ZAMAS River Valley Restaurant does differ a little from ZAMAS Boat Quay — the ZAMAS Boat Quay menu features section such as Biryani, Set Meal, Roti John, Murtabak, Nasi Goreng, Noodles, Tandoori, Naan, Masala, Prawn, Cuttlefish, Chicken, Beef, Nasi Putih / Nasi Goreng Dengan Ayam / Daging / Sotong / Udang, Egg, Vegetables, Fish and Soup, Prata and Thosai. Beverages include the standard variety available at mamak-style establishments, which includes Kopi and Teh, as well as a variety of juices, milkshakes and blends, and beverages mixed from syrup.

ZAMAS River Valley Restaurant has been one of those places that we had been visiting on and off — dropping by the establishment quite a number of times on quite a random basis, we had given various items a try; this includes their Plain Prata as well as Cheese Prata, and their Bee Hoon Goreng Ikan Bilis which we found to be really satisfying. One thing that we hadn’t noticed after all these years even though it was an item listed on the menu was the Prata Tsunami — an item which we had actually been hunting high and low for uncommon Roti Prata offerings around the island. Based on the description on the menu, the Prata Tsunami is a dish that features two pieces of Plain Prata, Curry and two boiled eggs — there is also another variant named the Prata Tornado, which is an item that we did not recall seeing at ZAMAS River Valley Restaurant, features three pieces of Plain Prata, boneless mutton, curry, and two boiled eggs.

One thing noted about the Prata Tsunami when it turned up at the table was that it also comes with a dollop of sambal chili on the side. Basically unlike the usual Roti Prata, the Prata Tsunami comes with the curry drenched on top of the Roti Prata above the poached eggs even. Essentially, this means that the Roti Prata had become all soft, having absorbed all of the curry gravy all over. The curry that was drenched over our order of the Prata Tsunami is the fish curry; the curry being sufficiently rich and tangy without feeling anywhere near watered down. Poached eggs were done decently with molten yolk that eagerly bursts as one pokes through with a fork, though the egg whites probably hints that more cooking time is probably required to achieve the most desirable consistency. As one attempts to pair everything up with the sambal chili provided at the side, this is where things start to change a little — truth to be told, we really love our Roti Prata in Singapore to come with a little bit of sambal chili just like how one would expect their Roti Canai to be. Here, the sambal chili carried a deep savouriness that had an earthy undertone — one with an obvious hint of anchovies but also rather unforgiving in its level of spiciness that it quite nearly gets to the limited even for those tolerable to moderate levels of spiciness; definitely packed a fiery punch that tickled our tastebuds and caught us off-guard with the increased levels of spiciness as we dug in further. Overall, quite a decent offering though one that is albeit pricey at $6. Do note that not all staff at ZAMAS Boat Quay seem to understand English well — there were clear instances of miscommunications and confusion by the staff attending to us whom just have difficulty understanding simple questions; probably something that would get better over time. Still, a great addition to the neighbourhood for especially for those looking for supper considering how they seem to be opened from 11am to 5am the next day on a daily basis.