It's been a long time since Jelloman and I had a lunch gathering with our parents. With our self-imposed ban on dining out, we were largely limited to take-away food since Chinese New Year until most recently that we started to relax our "dining rules". Since we have a long weekend coming up, I thought it'll be a good time that we finally do a catch-up lunch together.
Most of us are big fans of Malaysian and Singaporean food and I have taken that into consideration when I picked the venue for today's lunch. Satay Inn was easily my first choice but when I was told that they were still closed for business, I had to turn my attention to the new kid on the block - Sing La (星怡) at iSquare. They are not exactly brand new but most of us have never been here before since they opened late last year.
This guy couldn't care less as long as he has his game in his hand.
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Shrimp sticks (蝦棒六條) – I thought these would be like crispy spring rolls but they turned out to be more like Japanese tempura.
The batter was very very flaky working well with the stringy texture of the shrimp. Very addictive. I almost had to order another one of this to satisfy everyone.
Stir-fried green dragon vegetables with garlic slices (蒜茸炒青龍菜) – The name "green dragon vegetables" doesn't ring a bell but this came highly recommended by our server so we decided to give it a try.
While they looked a lot like Chinese garlic chives (韭菜), it tasted nothing like it. In fact, the texture was way better (more smooth) and it came without the strong flavors. I definitely won't mind having this again.
Singapore Hainanese chicken rice (新加坡海南雞飯) – Look at the diminutive portion of the chicken (compared to the rice)! It was so embarrassing!
Nothing wrong with the flavors here but the portion was just way too small for the price we were paying.
Beef Rendang Rice (巴東牛肉飯) – We had this when we came here at lunar Chinese New Year's Eve. The aromatic beef rendang was again very delicious today. Everyone was complimenting on the fact that the beef was so tender and juicy especially the tendon part.
Singapore Hokkien Noodles (新加坡濃湯福建炒麵) – This wasn't bad but it paled in comparison to the stir-fried Malay shrimp noodles we had last time. We were expecting rich flavors coming from the premium broth (based on the name of the dish) but that was missing in action.
Nyonya turnip cake (娘惹蘿蔔糕) – This was sold out last time we were here.
This was pretty nice. The texture of the turnip cake, I thought, could have been a little softer but everything else was perfect, the scrambled eggs, bean sprouts and the extra kick of spiciness. Definitely worth the extra waiting time.
Kaya toast infused with pandan (南洋咖央多士班蘭) – Of course, lunch at a Singaporean restaurant won't be complete without a bit of sweetness at the end. And this was an easy call.
The restaurant offers three kinds of kaya toast (egg yolk, durian and pandan), and for me, it was a no-brainer that I took the one infused with pandan. We had this on our last visit too but this was way way better than last time. The toast was thin and crispy, and that's already half-way there for a perfect butter kaya toast.
Deep-fried durian dumpling (炸榴槤湯丸) – I am not a fan of durian so I was more than happy to take a pass on these deep-fried durian balls but judging from the expression on everyone's face, these must be pretty tasty.
Judging from the crowd here this afternoon, it looks like Sing La is no longer a hidden gem. It also comes to show that there's a shortage of good Malaysian / Singaporean restaurant in town.
Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$$
Address: Shop 303, 3/F, iSQUARE, 63 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852 2117-1300
Opening Hours: 11:30am - 10:00pm daily
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