Nasi lemak at Grandma's...the restaurant

Quick update for today as this will prove to be a very busy week for me. A nice lunch with Kin at Grandma's in Raffles City. I wrote about them earlier, and returned for a re-taste.

Lunchtime crowd was thick and if you come in after 12:30pm, you will be confronted with a queue. We both went for our favourite, the nasi lemak

The rice was regular Thai fragrant rice, but soaked with flavour and aroma of coconut milk. Very nice. The chicken curry was also rich, thick, and bursting with umami. I found the achar serving to be rather pedestrian, though I guess does its job of cutting the richness of the rice and the chicken. As part of the one dish serving are some anchovies with onions in a piquant sauce. Rather nice and a good accompaniment.

We decided to add the day's special - ngor hiang...

Turned out to be a minor disaster. The ngor hiang was not made as a large roll, deep fried and cut like I expected it to be. But made out as tiny rolls, each about the size of a my pinkie, and I imagined it to be pan fried...as the browning on the skin was not even. The meat within was a bit too lean and had a rough, slightly astringent mouth feel. Not my favourite.

But overall Grandma's is rather nice comfort food place. The nasi lemak, though a bit pricey compared to food courts is very good.

Grandma's Restaurant
252 North Bridge Road, #B1-76 Raffles City Shopping Centre, Singapore.

Home style cooking: Cafe de Hong Kong

I have reviewed this restuarant twice before. And because it is a firm favourite of the family, and every friend I have brought there, I thought I'd do an update.

The place has not changed much in the last 2 or 3 years. It remains comfortable, home like environment.

And so has the attention to detail. We ordered 4 dishes, and CdHK provided 3 different kinds of chilli sauces

First off, the amazing...well still amazing to me how they get the meat to be so tender and juicy, and the skin to be so crisp

And my favourite fish with scallions and garlic.

The fish slices were cooked just right...still firm but tender. And tasty. The scallions, ginger slices and deep fried garlic packs a punch. Lovely. Great with plain steamed rice.

But we elected to do the lap mei fan...dried meats with rice in a claypot. The ingredients:

Chinese sausages, liver sausages, dried duck, and other internals...I am not sure what are the ingredients, but they tasted marvellous. Especially the liver sausage. Mixed into the rice and special sauce in claypot. The claypot caused a thick crust to form by burning the rice...oh, so delicious. (yes, I know...its carcinogenic, but the taste is gorgeous).

Nice, friendly, homely atmosphere. Great food.

Cafe de Hong Kong
586 Balestier Road, #01-01 Eastpac Building, Singapore.
open daily except Mondays.